Bad experiences with day care providers

[Steph]

dear members - good day to all im a new user to the daycare bear forum - i just wanted to share my own recent experience , 6 months ago i had found a daycare through this site for my son who was 16 months @ the time , initially was very very happy w/ the home daycare & the lady as she seemed to be very motherly & caring , my son used to go p/t so it did take a long time for him to adjust to the daycare but once he adjusted he was a happy camper , she was too much by the books lady when it came to rules , i understand you run a business but my belief is one has to make exceptions when needed & not just go by black and white specially in the daycare profession.just a week ago had the worst experience of my life w/ her..my son is very prone to pneumonia since he was 5 months old he has already gotten in 4 times until now so there were lot of days where he was sick & we did not send him to the daycare - as per her rules/contract which she in love w/ i guess we paid her all along.In feb/2011 he was very sick & dint go to her for 2 weeks straight ( he goes 3 days a week ) which again we had paid her for , end of feb one friday which was not his day to go i requested her to do me a favor if possibe & accomadate my son that day - she on her own said yes send him as he was really missing his daycare friends when he was very sick..when time came to pay for the march days she never said anything about that days payment & i assumed she did me a favor for that one day , however when she received the cheq for march she claims the $ for that one day as well --- i was shocked by her behaviour really she was one woman who always said IM NOT IN THIS FOR THE $$$$$ IM IN THIS DAYCARE BUSINESS BCUZ OF MY PASSION FOR KIDS BLAH BLAH BLAH
-- it really shocked me that she was such an inconsiderate lady unbelivable so i called her & had a good chat w/ her that she needs to be more transparent w. parents if they ask a favor & be honest & bold enough to say before hand about anything & not once the favor has been done...anyways after the phone chat w/ her she made me read her CONTRACT again that no matter how many days the child is sick she need the $$$$..I was clear about it going forward , my respect for her from that day onwards had become less but i know my son was used to her & the daycare kids so dint want to do any changes for him.Within an hour of that phone chat when i checked my email she sends me a 2 week notice termination letter stating " After the conversation regarding the adjustment of sick days (for Feb 25, 2011) this evening,
I find it difficult to work with you. I have made my decision to terminate your sons daycare contract with two weeks notice as per the terms of the signed home daycare contract " it was one of the worst days of my life - very very unhappy w. the way she treated all of this for 1 day of payment omg..i belive she is in the wrong proffession - i decided not to send my child to her at all - i dont even need the 2 weeks not at all & also paid her for that one day when i went to collect his items..since then my nights have been sleepless finding a new daycare thanks to daycare bear i was able to find a new daycare where he will begin soon.i wish i could name the daycare but im not that type of a person so people are aware that she is a money monster & only in it for that which i was mistaken 6 months ago thinking she is a human anyways god is great i trust in him & he will make sure she learns her lesson soon.

I'm going to try an keep this as non-judgemental as possible. I understand that it is very hard fro working parents to place their children in the care of someone, and when that experience doesn't meet with expectations it can leave a bad taste in your mouth.
That said, why would you agree to a contract if you we're not willing to follow it? Providers have contracts for a reason. Contracts set out the expectations of both parent and provider. It fair to expect her to change the contract t suit you. You wouldn't be happy if she changed the contract to suit her.
Also, everyone works for money. If you work for a reason other than money,it's called volunteering. Do you often work an extra day free of charge as a favor to the company? My guess is no. Now if money were the only consideration no one would choose childcare as a career. I made alomost twice as much working in sales, but I like this job better. There are enough perks that the pay cut is worth it. I genuinely enjoy children and from what people have said I'm an excellent provider but that doesn't mean I don't work for the money.
As for naming names, how woudl you feel if this same provider was posting about this and put your name. There are two sides to every story and I doubt she sees this situation the same way you do.

[Sarah A]

I'm going to try an keep this as non-judgemental as possible. I understand that it is very hard fro working parents to place their children in the care of someone, and when that experience doesn't meet with expectations it can leave a bad taste in your mouth.
That said, why would you agree to a contract if you we're not willing to follow it? Providers have contracts for a reason. Contracts set out the expectations of both parent and provider. It fair to expect her to change the contract t suit you. You wouldn't be happy if she changed the contract to suit her.
Also, everyone works for money. If you work for a reason other than money,it's called volunteering. Do you often work an extra day free of charge as a favor to the company? My guess is no. Now if money were the only consideration no one would choose childcare as a career. I made alomost twice as much working in sales, but I like this job better. There are enough perks that the pay cut is worth it. I genuinely enjoy children and from what people have said I'm an excellent provider but that doesn't mean I don't work for the money.
As for naming names, how woudl you feel if this same provider was posting about this and put your name. There are two sides to every story and I doubt she sees this situation the same way you do.

You took the words right out of my mouth. I love children and love being able to raise my son at home, but to be honest with you, I am running this daycare for the income. And when someone takes their child out of care for a few days, it really hurts my budget. I allow 5 sick days per child per year and after that the parents must pay to keep their spot.

I too left my high paying job to operate my daycare so this low income has hurt our finances but it's worth it in the end to see the smiles on the kids faces everyday.

Sometimes parents take it too personally and don't realize that we are running a business from home and need the income. I don't like chasing people or money, parents should read and abide by the rules when they decide to start with a daycare. Just like we have to return the favour by doing all the things we promised with thier children when they are in our care.

[gramma]

I agree with you that we all work for money and yes the provider did work for the day BUt the child is only part time and she had been paid for many sick days so why couldnt she switch the day? What i mean is if the child comes mon, tues, wed but was sick and mom paid for those days but the child was better on friday why should she pay for another day? That comes down to flexibility in my mind. having said that, the parent should have specified that when she asked for a "favour" that she wanted the day for free.

I'm going to try an keep this as non-judgemental as possible. I understand that it is very hard fro working parents to place their children in the care of someone, and when that experience doesn't meet with expectations it can leave a bad taste in your mouth.
That said, why would you agree to a contract if you we're not willing to follow it? Providers have contracts for a reason. Contracts set out the expectations of both parent and provider. It fair to expect her to change the contract t suit you. You wouldn't be happy if she changed the contract to suit her.
Also, everyone works for money. If you work for a reason other than money,it's called volunteering. Do you often work an extra day free of charge as a favor to the company? My guess is no. Now if money were the only consideration no one would choose childcare as a career. I made alomost twice as much working in sales, but I like this job better. There are enough perks that the pay cut is worth it. I genuinely enjoy children and from what people have said I'm an excellent provider but that doesn't mean I don't work for the money.
As for naming names, how woudl you feel if this same provider was posting about this and put your name. There are two sides to every story and I doubt she sees this situation the same way you do.