Quote Originally Posted by Blackcat3168 View Post
Same here. Except I am only closed for 2 weeks a year. I have no idea what is and isn't the norm in my area as I do what works for me, not necessarily what everyone else is doing.

I get that parents want most daycares to be similar but I try to stand out and not be like everyone else so I set my rules and policies according to what works for my family.
Interested clients can choose to sign on if my policies work or look elsewhere.

There is a right fit for everyone.
I think you are lucky but this approach could backfire. It isn't as simple as saying if a family isn't happy with that policy they can go elsewhere if there are more providers than demand and lots of competition. Some providers rely on this income and it's not always a case of additional income so they don't have the luxury of doing this. It may be tough to fill those spots to begin with and when the parents have the pick of the crop they are obviously going to go with another caregiver who doesn't charge them for days they are not available. In an area where it is not the norm to charge for vacation days to do so potentially sets the provider up for putting themselves in a tough spot.

It's like pricing yourself out of the market when you charge more than the areas average going rate. Unless you are offering something above and beyond and can justify the extra then you have eliminated a percentage of your possible clientele to begin with. The same with paid vacation, if you are closed for business how can you possibly justify charging someone for a service that is neither available to them or being provided by the person they are paying. If they are paying for childcare services, then shouldn't they be able to use the services instead of having to pay double to get service elsewhere? They either have to pay someone else to care for their child costing them additional money, or take time off so money they receive from their vacation pay as an EMPLOYEE, they are just giving straight to the provider and they are left out of pocket. Yet when the parent takes time off to go on vacation you want them to still pay you...seems like a double standard to me.

Yes I would love to be paid for vacation days but that is a labour law set out by the government that employers must pay their employees the minimum legal amount per year, it is not an employer "doing what's best for them" it is them following employment laws. As self employed people we can do what we want when setting up our business policies, but like someone else said in this thread, and others on the many other threads regarding this, what other self employed business owners get paid vacation time off? My daycare is paid by enrollment but only for days that daycare is open for business or Stat/Civic Holidays or named paid days off as stated in the contract.

Obviously if you can get away with charging vacation days then good for you regardless of whether it is the norm or not, but in my opinion those providers are lucky because I don't feel like we are somehow entitled to it.