Originally Posted by Indoorvoice:
Those of you who say to term while I'm on maternity leave, I love you, but does your opinion change if I told you she was having trouble finding care to cover my leave? She doesn't want to pay for summer while she is home so she has been telling providers she only needs 5 weeks of care to cover may through first part of June and of course no one is interested in her as a client. I know that's not technically my problem, but if I would just grow a pair and tell her she's done here, maybe she could find care easier for may. That is where I'm struggling. Though I suppose there won't be many who will let her have the summer off for free anyway...She got lucky with me.
I would tell her now and allow her to look for a long term new provider. I always give them a note AND tell them in person. I give the letter because when someone tells you bad news people often shut down. They can't fully listen, process, remember etc. I termed a set of twins a few months back. I loved the parents. Kids were ok. But I had a golden family with an infant wanting the spot and it was a fulltime trumped part time situation too. I told mom "I am so sorry, ___ is the last day I will be able to provide care. I am not offering PT anymore. I will miss G and L very much. You are a wonderful family to work with. Everything I just said, plus some resources for finding care are in the letter. Please don't hesitate to email me with any questions." They were sad, but understand this is a business.