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My child goes to an unlicensed daycare in her home which we love but recently she did up a new contract with policies in question. She wants to charge us a flat rate. Which means she can close her daycare 3 days out of the week (if she wanted) and we still pay her for 5. Does she have the right to make us pay for days that SHE cancels on us? Like a sick day (I know she gets sick too) or just a personal day (to go camping), which she has, are we required to pay for those days? So either mom or dad have to take the day off and lose money or find alternative daycare which is hard last minute and pay for two daycares. Is there anyone I can call to ask if she's allowed to do this.

Find a new day care. There should be places that don't charge you for days that she wants to take off. Send me a pm. I have a spot open if you are interested.

From experience and knowledge of the field. *Usually* The daycare provider is entitled to a paid vacation. (1-2 weeks out of the year) and a certain amount of paid days. Personal and sick days are usually not paid for by the parent. If YOUR child is sick and cannot attend, you pay. If your daycare provider is sick/has an appointment and is forced to close - you DO NOT pay. Vacations should be posted and be well aware of in advance giving parents adequate time to secure other care for those days. Whether or not, if she can do that? Probably. She is unlicensed and can make her own rules. I personally would not be comfortable having my child in a daycare that could close any day at any time.

Sending a PM

Her contract her rules.  
 
Does she have a set amount of days that she will close for the year? It should and if not I would certainly question her about it as unlimited vacation/sick days would be a concern.

From what I know and have been told/read, private daycares can make their own rules/policies/contracts and if a parent doesn't agree to the terms than they have no choice but to find another provider. The laws about ratio are pretty much the only rules we need to follow, to my knowledge.  
 
Personally, I don't charge if I close but I can see why some do. However, there should be a maximum number of days stated IMO. It's one thing to know you will be paying for 10 days (for whatever reasons the provider wants) but the possibility of paying for 10+ days would be too much for me.  
 
I think your only choice is to inform her that you don't agree to the new contract and give your proper notice of withdrawal and start looking for a new daycare. Making her change her contract isn't a good idea and likely won't end well IMO. It's her business so her rules but she may find this new change might backfire on her

When I first read, accepted and signed a contract for my childrens current unlicensed daycare provider I had the same thoughts. But then the realization came to me:  
Daycare providers are stuck without sick pay, without benefits, without vacation pay and they care for our children when we work.  
Why should they NOT get paid?  
I'm happy my daycare provider gets paid for vacation, for everyday so that she can provide for her family.  
The alternative is being at home, with no income.  
If my children being happy means the daycare provider gets 1/2 to 2/3 my paycheck and educates, feeds, plans field trips and builds her business - so be it.  
I'd rather live below my means, so my children are happy and in a good environment, while pursuing a career that allows my children the opportunities to learn and play that otherwise would not be afforded to them just staying at home with one of their parents.  
 
Try thinking about this for a moment.... would you operate a daycare where you charged for just the day of attendance? Or would you charge for the expected attendance? What if one week all the children have the chicken pox, and you are now not getting paid... what do you do?  
 
In today's society, we cannot alone go off what people say they will do. We need to expect contracts, and actions to demonstrate follow through. I think I probably just blabbered on here... but what would you do if you were a day care provider? And why would or would you not charge by the day? Just curious.

Private daycare rules/contracts seem to vary alot. On one hand: my job has paid sick days (which some people overuse) and paid vacation and generally daycares don't. On the other hand, a daycare closing for their own sick days means one of us has to either find alternate childcare or not go to work. Now, I get paid family sick days but hubby does not. Knowing how short staffed my work is makes me feel guilty regardless. My daycare charges for Stat holidays but is closed which factors into her vacation. When she takes an actual vacation or closes for her own personal reasons, we do not get charged. I think that is fair because those stat holidays do give her payment for days she is not caring for my child yet I do have to find alternate care for her vacation days (which I generally know well in advance). I don't know if I agree with charging a flat rate unless there is a maximum amount in the contract that she can take off. I read those contracts carefully because if you agree to pay a flat rate and she takes 3 days a week off I'd imagine you wouldn't be happy. There are positives and negatives with private daycares but bottom line you have to trust and agree with your provider on the majority of issues as they are taking care of your most prized possessions

I pay $30/day for 4 days a week min. If my daycare provider needs a day off she let's us know in advance (usually 2 weeks, if not longer). When she is on vacation, we do not pay. I find this perfectly fine. Imagine if 3 days a week she had no kids, therefore no income?

I charge for days the child is sick or on holidays. I do charge for stats but not my sick days or vacation. I would be worried if you pay a flat rate that there is the possibility of the provider taking advantage of unlimited paid time off if her contract does not specify. I have interviewed many families who were leaving their daycare due to her being unreliable

In the end it's her daycare and she can run it how she chooses. If you don't like it don't sign the contract. To me that sounds like an excessive number of paid days off. I can understand having to pay when your child misses a day due to illness or you are on holidays as daycare providers have bills to pay and rely on you paying for a certain number of days but in my opinion you could really get stuck paying for a LOT of days for her just closing because she feels like it and still being stuck with no daycare. Start looking for a new place and don't forget to check references.

I have a opening in my DayHome for August,my contract is straightforward!

The daycare provider is allowed to have their own rules and guidelines, they aren't licensed. And even licensed ones have their own rules and contracts. Most licensed contracts are more strict than unlicensed. Late pick ups, late payments, etc. If you don't like the new contact, find a different daycare where the contract better suits you. Some unlicensed daycares take weeks off at a time for vacation, and yes, it sucks to find an alternative but that's just the way it is. And last minute sick days happen.  
Have you talked to the daycare provider and tried to find a solution? Most are accommodating to a point. Or maybe time to look for another once for your child and you.

As mentioned above, private day cares are small business. The policies by which they conduct business are up to them. As a customer at a business it's up to you to choose an establishment that suits your needs best.  
 
Licenced daycares have governed policies they have to abide by, and like mentioned are strict with things like late pick ups, payments, sick kids ect.  
 
That being said I feel the need to add some additional facts to this post as I'm fairly certain it is MY day home in question.  
- My flat rate policy is $100 a week. Which works out to 20$ a day. I provide breakfast, lunch, snacks and supper during that time. We also do field trips and attend town events at MY expense.  
- I DO NOT take week long hollidays throughout the year. My vacation days are the day before long weekends. In which case I have the stat plus one extra day off. My thoughts were that finding alternate care for 1 day is easier then finding care for an entire week, this is only done during the summer, and yes this day, I do use to take my own kids camping.  
- My dayhome has been open 3 years and i have taken under 5 sick days in that time.  
- the contract states If I'm to take more then 1 consecutive day off due to illness, the client DOES NOT have to pay, but yes. 1 day off I still require, just as others have a handful of sick days a year.  
 
I can understand that technically this means I could take a Monday Wednesday and Friday off, and you would still have to pay.  
Tho given I have been extremely lienent with late pick ups, and late payments Rarley charging for these occurrences, I would hope that if my clients felt that the contract was taking advantage of them, they would simply approach me, at which time I would either explain that I would absolutely NOT take 3 days a week off and expect them to pay, and/ or re word the contract reflecting the same.

 
 
Edited by Ju5t_bre4the, 2016-07-06 18:31:28

Would maybe adding a clause in your contract stating that the max amount of sick/holiday days that require payment will not exceed 10 days a year (or whatever number you decide). That if your sick/holiday time exceeds 10 days parents will be deducted accordingly. That might help ease the parents fears. Any new client won't know that you don't take a lot of time and it will help put them at ease. Just a suggestion.  
 
Also just FYI if you are only charging $100 a week for everything you offer you are not charging enough! Just my 2 cents

My child does not go to your daycare. I don't pay $100 a week. Almost double that but thanks for your input.

Absolutely. I remade the contract to avoid situations where my flexibility was being taken advantage of. I've had several people sign it with no complaints. However, had it been brought up to me I certainly would of reworded it, and I will take your suggestion and add a max number of days to the contract for future.  
It's my goal to be at home for my kids, earn a bit of $, but provide a home based environment. If I take my kids to a BBQ we all go, McDonald's, playtime ect, how I would want my kids to be treated if they were attending.

Maybe I should switch my daycare to yours.

I guess it was coincidence, I redid my contract 3 weeks ago, and also enjoy camping, ive have had everyone but 1 family return it to me. It was effective for July first, and supposed to be returned before then.  
Despite the cost difference it sounds like I need to add a max number of days to my contact, to make things clearer for further clients so I'm glad I responded anyways!  
Hopefully the family returns the contract, I do enjoy their child, if not I guess I'll have an opening! Lol

I agree with lovemygirl....you aren't charging enough! Lol. I'm just curious how you make any money charging $20/day and offer 2 meals, 2snacks and outings?? Even if you had a full daycare with 4 paying clients, that's only $800 biweekly. By the time you pay your extra insurance, deductions (supplies, food, toys, outings), money for taxes, higher household bills etc, I just can't imagine there would be much leftover. That's not even taking normal day to day bills we all have I to consideration.  
 
I know some want to stay at home with their own kids and make some extra money or their spouse makes enough for both but IMO, low rates just devalue your services and are also detrimental to providers who do this as their sole income.  
 
All the power to you though if you can offer quality care on just $20 a day!! I need to learn some of your tips!! The cost of healthy food alone takes a good chunk out of my income lol

And it must be that time of year. My daycare provider is a single mom and although she's great, she is not always thinking of how inconvenient it is to us when she cancels last minute. I don't mind paying her the extra but not when it ends up costing us more. Good luck with the family and I hope they don't lose out.

It sounds like you've been running a great daycare and you have the children in mind and that's what counts. Keep it up.

A business that doesn't make money will not be in business very long.

So she must be doing something right.

I've been on the opposite end of daycare. I know how frustrating it can be. At the end of the year, I don't make any money from my business. However I'm lucky enough to have a husband that can provide for me.  
That being said, my home daycare allows me the option to be home for my children, having a child in school with a chronic illness makes this a necessity.  
That being said, when I see my tax lady at the end of the year I can write off things like hydro, and home insurance, and other things we would be paying for regardless of me working from home or simply staying home.  
At the end of the day my daycare allows me to spend time with kids, whom I like way better then most adults, allows me to be here for my own children, and helps cover those expenses that we would pay for otherwise.  
Do I make money? No. But the money I make to cover things like hydro and insurance puts less stress on my husband, allows us some cash flow Inbetween his pay days, that we can use to take our own kids camping, ect.  
All my meals are homemade. Which is far cheaper then convience foods. In the winter many of our activists include things like making fresh bread, or perogie S, or canning speghetti sauce. It does save a ton of money in the long run, and these are skills working mothers and schools often don't have time to teach.  
I'm not in it for the $, it's not a cash grab, and I'm not the type of person who can sit in my jamies drinking coffee and put a movie on for the kids.  
However I like having that option if I am under the wheather. So I can still be open, where as if I was licenced I'm afraid movie days wouldn't meet the required curriculum.  
I rely on good parents. Those who appreciate what I do, pay on time, and understand that my 20$ a day should entitle me to a few paid vacations. I feel like it makes up for the alternative , being to pay close to double that, pack your own lunches and find alternative care during week long holidays.  
I've been operating this way for 3 years and don't see a need to change anything at this time. With price inflation on groceries in the future I may charge additional 5$ a day but that's not required at this time.  
Being home with family, and taking some burden from my husband is payment enough for me, that is when people actually pay me.

I wasn't going to reply because I do truly believe that there are many ways to run businesses (any business, not just hdc's) but your last sentence made me change my mind.  
 
I have been in childcare for over 12 years, 18 if you include teen babysitting, and have ran my own business for almost 5 years. During this time, I have known quite a few people who dismiss our job. They think it's easy, nice to stay home or go to work and "play" everyday, not important and we don't have a hard job because there's not a lot of "thinking" that goes into it. Some just call us babysitters! My goodness, even the gov't dismisses our career, just look at the last time childcare providers have had a wage increase or daycare fee's increased.  
 
So when I read your last sentence, it makes me sad! If we don't value ourselves and charge an appropriate fee for our services and quality care, who will? We need to take pride in what we do, stand up for what it is fair and expect to make money from our business. Do you know anyone else who goes to work just to break even?? IMO, that is not a successful business.  
 
I am quite passionate about my career choice and will always advocate for it and for the providers. I completely understand that you want to stay home with your children and offer affordable care but at the end of the day, it is YOUR family that is losing out. If you charged even $5 more per day you would still be offering affordable care but you would also be making money...money that could go towards YOUR children's activities, education and future. It's great that your husband can support you but wouldn't it also be nice if you could support yourself? Have rainy day money? Have a nice chunk of savings put away for emergencies? You need to value and respect yourself if you want others to do the same. If you have families not paying you on time or at all, than they don't value or respect you and that is NOT fair.  
 
I charge a higher rate than you but it includes quality care, food, supplies, outings and also goes towards my holidays because they are technically unpaid. I find that this goes over better with parents than charging for my holidays and a cheaper daily rate.  
 
It is obviously your daycare and you can do what you want but I just wanted to give you another perspective. It makes no sense to work as hard as we do and not make money at the end of the year...at least not in my mind

Sammy I couldn't have said it better.

I also tried to stay out of this, but I always try to clear up misconceptions about being licensed. We still run our own business the way we want. I have a movie morning one or twice a year. There's no forced curriculum, so I'm not sure why you said you couldn't have movie day if you aren't feeling well, if you were licensed. Also, my rates are $20/day, on average. But I wouldnt be making any money charging that, if I didn't recieve provincial funding. I don't serve convenience food either.

It is possible to LOVE your job AND make money doing it. Why should we (providers) not make a living because we LOVE working with children. I feel sorry for your provider if this is your thought of her.  
 
I charge $30 a day. Out of that I provide 2 snacks, lunch, crafts, the occasional outing. My water bill is double, my hydro is up, I pay for daycare insurance, I buy toys. Kids are hard on my home/furniture. I work 9.5 hours a day. I don''''t take many sick days or holidays. My job has next to no flexibility, I can''''t just decide that I want to leave work early tomorrow - families are counting on me. I am always buying paper, markers, printer ink. I provide my kids with lots of fresh fruits and veggies. If I didn''''t charge enough I would have to scrimp and save and where would that come from - the things I provide the children I care for!  
 
It is possible to be in this job for both - money and the children. I don''''t make a pile of money but when all is said and done my bills are paid, my family doesn''''t suffer and everyone is happy.  
 
Justbreathe - please don''t sell yourself short. You do not deserve to be taken advantage of and if people are not paying your low rate then that is what they are doing. I agree wholeheartedly with what Sammy said. Maybe look at increasing your fee by $5 and don''t charge for sick/vacation time. Nobody needs to work for free - regardless if they love their job or not. Also start charging a hefty late payment fee and enforce it!  
 
Edited by lovemygirl, 2016-07-07 13:58:20