Daycare - Midlothian,IL

1) I charged a FLAT rate, per month, whether or not the child came. Vacations were paid, as well. And because, if the child is NOT there for whatever reason, and even for vacations... I HAVE TO keep their space.... available for them, reserving their place. So yes, they DO HAVE TO pay....

2) yes
3) yes... IF the child is not sick.

4) No matter what the reason is... IF the parents are LATE at pick-up... they DO get charged. Which I have stipulated in the contract..... $5.00 per every 15 minutes they are late.

Again, I have ALL of this, clearly stated in my 'Contract' with the parents, which they read and sign-off on.... BEFORE I start services.

This is what I did, when I did daycare before my son was born.

Since rates differ in different areas, I can't speak to much of this, but this much I can answer:

As a working parent, I think if I'm paying you to watch my kids, I can do whatever I want in the allotted time. Running late is not okay, of course, but if I cut out early and go home and mow the lawn before picking up my LOs, that's my business. I definately send my kids to daycare if I have to stay home sick; then I can use the time to recooperate myself. My husband and I have used daycare as "date time" on the rare occasion that daycare is open by we don't have to work. We figure it's already paid for, so why not?

My best advice is that if you're feeling resentful and taken advantage of, change things so that's not the case. I very much respect the childcare providers who care for my children, and don't begrudge paying for vacation time, etc. But I wouldn't feel comfortable at all sending my kids somewhere where I felt I was being judged by the provider for being away from my kids.

Good luck.

I put my responses to your answers in CAPS! If you don't have a contract with your parameters in place, get one quickly! Have a "parent meeting" and explain this new contract and ask them each to sign and return within a week. If they don't like it, they have a month to find other childcare arrangements! I think they'll find that most daycare providers have a "standard contract" that is outlined by their local organization.

Do you feel there is something wrong with charging if the child is not there for whatever reason, sick, parents took the day off. THE CONTRACT THAT I SIGNED INDICATES THAT I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR PAYMENT IF SHE IS OPEN... IF WE GO ON VACATION, I PAY FOR THE DAYS. IF SHE GOES ON VACATION, I DO NOT.

And do you think you should pay a whole day or a half of day? WE PAY FOR THE WHOLE DAY B/C SHE HAS STAFF THERE AND OVERHEAD WHETHER MY SON ATTENDS OR DOES NOT ATTEND.

What if you are late, picking up do you offer extra pay for the extra time? HER CONTRACT STATES THAT IF WE ARE MORE THAN 10 MINUTES LATE, WE PAY HER HOURLY ($10 I THINK) AND IT IS PAID DIRECTLY TO WHOEVER HAS TO STAY (SHE GOES INTO HER "UPSTAIRS" PROMPTLY AT 5:30).

Is there anything that you do or don’t like about what happens at your at home daycare? I LOVE THAT MY SON IS WITH CHILDREN OLDER AND YOUNGER- IT'S BEEN GREAT FOR HIS LANGUAGE AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT AND HE'S A GREAT "CARETAKER" OF YOUNGER BABIES. I ALSO LOVE THAT SHE INVOLVES FAMILIES AS OFTEN AS SHE CAN- HOLIDAY PARTIES, PARENT VOLUNTEERS FOR SPECIAL EVENTS AND AN OPEN-DOOR POLICY.

I DO NOT LIKE THAT SHE DOESN'T CONSIDER THE FACT THAT 99% OF HER CLIENTS ARE EDUCATORS WHEN PLANNING HER VACATIONS AND DAYS OFF. I GET IT...SHE SHOULD HAVE TO TAKE VACATIONS WHEN WE DO, BUT IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE SOME MORE ALIGNMENT THERE.

I'm in the same position as you only 18+ years. I just raised my rates to $25. a day. Most of the parents complained that this is too much. So they are now going down to 4 days a week. I expect payment on the first of every Monday today Tuesday I had a mother come in hadn't paid yet for the week, this afternoon she texts me if she can pay on friday. We should talk sometime and compare notes. I'm at the point where I'm ready to quit all together.

Since everyone answered your questions I only add this. RAISE YOUR RATES!! and have a written contract. 15 years is too long and I can't see how you could afford it this long. Especially as you go the extra yard with txts,e-mails and pictures throughout the day.

I have used a home daycare for both my children although my now 4 year old recently switched to a preschool. Most of the questions you posted should be addressed in your handbook/contract. They warrant pointing out as well as having the contract signed and each parent having a copy of.

I was always charged for the day regardless of if my child attended because that spot is theirs and the provider is limited on the number of children they can have in their care...if they are allowed five children and have five children enrolled, they have to turn number six away...parents have to pay for thier child's spot. The only exceptions to this were when/if the provider had a policy where there was a one week each year that you could schedule an unpaid vacation week (for instance, planning a family vacation and you give proper notice that your child would not be there thus allowing the provider to fill the spot for that week or plan their own vacation) and/or if they exceeded their paid vacation/sick days.

Of course I don't like paying for days they miss but I understand it...just like my job, they get paid leave days and holidays. The ones I have the most trouble with is the extra holidays (my most recent provider had all the "state" holidays some that even the schools were closed for) or excessive extra days. Those days more than ate up all my leave time so then when you added her sick or emergencies days I was missing a lot of time, not to mention if/when my child was sick. If I didn't miss work, it cost me time and money to transport my child somewhere else.

On the rare occasion I was late, I was not charged because it was only a few minutes and I would call before I was late. It was always because of getting out of work late or a traffic issue (I worked on an Air Base and sometimes it would go on lock-down). She chalked that up to an emergency and didn't charge; however, she did charge for late pick-ups as a rule but rarely implemented it.

If I was out sick, my daughter still attended but would get picked up a bit early. If the parent is sick, the child is better off being at daycare and the parent getting rest....besides, they are paying for childcare and that spot so unless you stipulate you only care for the child while the parents are "at work" then how/why would you not let the child come if they parents were home sick?

If they are late picking up due to "goofing off" (especially if you are charging for late pick up) the only thing you really can say is "I don't mind the occasional late pick up if there is an urgent issue like work or an emergency or if you schedule it ahead of time but this is getting to be an all too often occurance and it needs to stop". I can get why a parent would make a quick errand on the way home or stop to do something at home but the other things or being late for any of the rest is beyond me.

sounds like it is time to revise your contract. My daycare providers contract stated that I had 1 week of vacation that I didn't have to pay for, she had 2 weeks of vacation that I didn't have to pay for. If my kids were sick, I still had to pay for those days. If I picked them up late, I had to pay extra. She got holidays off and I still paid for the whole amount for that week. I think if you are going to raise your rates, you have two options. #1 - you raise them as new people come in and you filter out the kids as they grow older OR #2 - you post a sign up a let people know maybe 30 - 45 days ahead of time that your rates will be increasing and you have updated your contract. Give them a copy of the new contract and ask that they read it and ask any questions that they might have about it. After 30 or 45 days whatever it is that you have decided, they need to turn in a signed contract and abide by the new rules (or maybe the same rules as you already have) maybe I should say abide by the new contract? Anyways, I think those are your two options. And if you decide to go with option #1, you can still revise your contract and have them read and sign it. If they feel it is unreasonable then I guess that they can find someone else to watch their kids. It is not easy to find good care, and if they are happy with your services, I don't think that you will have any problem initiating new guidelines. Good Luck ~

my daycare lady gets 2 paid weeks off, and we get 2 unpaid weeks off. That works well for us, so I can schedule, say, a long weekend and not pay for the 2 days she isnt there, and if something comes up, sickness, or whatever, we can use it as one of our vacation days.

You need a contract, and it needs to state explicitly your rules/compensation. I like our daycare lady's system, which is totally fair, because it's not her fault the kid is sick, she still has to pay her bills.

I dont pay if I'm late, which is usually only for traffic accidents, but I do call to let her know that I'm running late. This has only happened to me 3 times in 3 years, once for a random huge snowstorm, and twice for really bad car accidents. She was totally understanding both times. If it was consistent, though, I would expect to pay extra.

I think you have bills to pay whether they are there or not. I think you have the right to charge a weekly rate for 10 hours per day. Parents are at work usually 8 hours plus 1 hour for lunch, therefore work is 9 hours per day. Then travel time to and from work should be less than 30 minutes. So that's the 10 hour window of care.

Late fees are there for a reason, to encourage them to be on time or as close as possible. When the time comes for them to pick up their kids and they are not there a phone call should be made to ask why they are not there yet. Explain there is a late pick up fee and stick to it. I would let an occasional slip get by because I know sometimes no matter how fast we try to do something things can happen. But if I am staying open late day after day then I am going to get to a point where I am on the phone calling their alternative pick up people and getting the kids picked up. Then I would go to the grocery store or somewhere to hang out so I would not have to deal with them when they finally showed up and their kids and I are no where to be found. I would just tell the parents that I had plans and closed and had to call someone else since they didn't come. They can call any number of people to pick up their kids if they can't. That's what the alternative pick up list is for. There is no reason for multiple late pickups.

I don't care if my parents are at work, the neighborhood spa, their backyard, etc...if they are paying me to watch their kids it's my job to watch the kids no matter where the parents are. That's their business. My business is to take the best care of the little ones I can and to make the living out of it that I deserve.

Explain to them that they are holding their spot for their child when they pay for that week. That it doesn't matter if their child is there or not, if they want that slot they must pay for it. They are not paying a babysitter they are paying a professional child care provider. If they want to find new care then let them, they will find that they will have to pay in advance every week and if they don't they have to take their child with them when they leave. I always had a waiting list of people looking for care so I know it is a much needed service you are providing.