Sick Day Policy

Hi,

I was wondering what you guys think of this potential policy. So, I allow my full time clients to take one sick week per year (per child). I charge weekly rates so it’s easier for me to do it by week. If a child was sick for 2 or more days in a week (documentation required) I would reduce the parents rate by $30 bucks for their child. This is only applicable if they keep their child home and I don’t have to send the child home for being sick. It also can’t be used during holidays or termination periods. The sick week rate would be applied to following week of care because they pay in advanced.

So you guys think this is an okay policy to have. I also use the same reduction during the thanksgiving and Christmas holiday because I’m close three days for each of those. (Only applies to full time)

Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated!

[Cat Herder]

What is your goal?

@catherder

Sorry if it wasn’t clear. I just wanted to know if you all thought it was an okay policy to have. Point out negatives or potential misusage. If anyone has something similar or a better way of going about it. I haven’t begun daycare yet so I’m not sure how it works in practice. I want to be as prepared as possible after reading some of the experiences on this forum.

[Blackcat31]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

@catherder

Sorry if it wasn’t clear. I just wanted to know if you all thought it was an okay policy to have. Point out negatives or potential misusage. If anyone has something similar or a better way of going about it. I haven’t begun daycare yet so I’m not sure how it works in practice. I want to be as prepared as possible after reading some of the experiences on this forum.

Some providers charge for attendance while others charge for the slot (child's space) with no discounts or credits towards tuition. Some charge for sick days, some don't. Some providers give credit for a child's absence and some do not. Some charge for holidays and vacations and some providers don't.

Which option a provider chooses is usually based on a couple things;

The provider's budget
The provider's ability to meet/adapt to community needs
Length of time in the business

I am sure there are several other reasons that influence providers to have the policies they do but there is no one right or wrong policy to have.....ONLY which policy is right for you.

You can always have a policy and then remove it or you can not have a policy and add one. That is the beauty of self-employment. You get to make the changes that work for you.

[Cat Herder]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

@catherder

Sorry if it wasn’t clear. I just wanted to know if you all thought it was an okay policy to have. Point out negatives or potential misusage. If anyone has something similar or a better way of going about it. I haven’t begun daycare yet so I’m not sure how it works in practice. I want to be as prepared as possible after reading some of the experiences on this forum.

Got it. I think you are probably like most of us in the beginning, wanting to be fair and sweet. Problem is clients can smell that like sharks sensing blood in the water. There is no reason for you to lose income when their kids are sick, you will need a stable income to be able to stay in business. "Fair" is a dependable paycheck to be able to provide a dependable service. Sweet is caring for their kids when they are with you.

Please join the forum so you can see tags at the bottom of each thread, they lead to old threads and a lot of information. Stick around.

[Homebody]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hi,

I was wondering what you guys think of this potential policy. So, I allow my full time clients to take one sick week per year (per child). I charge weekly rates so it’s easier for me to do it by week. If a child was sick for 2 or more days in a week (documentation required) I would reduce the parents rate by $30 bucks for their child. This is only applicable if they keep their child home and I don’t have to send the child home for being sick. It also can’t be used during holidays or termination periods. The sick week rate would be applied to following week of care because they pay in advanced.

So you guys think this is an okay policy to have. I also use the same reduction during the thanksgiving and Christmas holiday because I’m close three days for each of those. (Only applies to full time)

Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated!

So, I just recently changed my policies to include sick days after having to deal with certain parents trying to bring in their child when sick. They only get a credit if they provide a doctors note proving the child was sick. My hope is that if they are not charged for the day then they will be more likely to keep their child at home, and avoid getting my own kids sick, myself, and husband. We had to shut down the daycare a year ago because we all got sick at the same time, which was a huge loss of income. I would rather lose income of one child being absent then lose the income from all my clients from being shut down. I also raised the rates by $10 per week to help cover the loss of any absences. The number of sick days they receive is based on the number of days of attendance. So if they come 5 days they get 5 sick days, or if only 3 days they get 3 sick days.

I haven't had anyone use sick days yet, since I just recently changed it. So, we will see how it goes. I can always change it back if I start to have any problems.

[LysesKids]

Originally Posted by Homebody

So, I just recently changed my policies to include sick days after having to deal with certain parents trying to bring in their child when sick. They only get a credit if they provide a doctors note proving the child was sick. My hope is that if they are not charged for the day then they will be more likely to keep their child at home, and avoid getting my own kids sick, myself, and husband. We had to shut down the daycare a year ago because we all got sick at the same time, which was a huge loss of income. I would rather lose income of one child being absent then lose the income from all my clients from being shut down. I also raised the rates by $10 per week to help cover the loss of any absences. The number of sick days they receive is based on the number of days of attendance. So if they come 5 days they get 5 sick days, or if only 3 days they get 3 sick days.

I haven't had anyone use sick days yet, since I just recently changed it. So, we will see how it goes. I can always change it back if I start to have any problems.

I offer half credit on next months fees (for days missed) if a child needs to be out 5 or more consecutive days for illness; that said I need the Dr's note provided within first 48 hrs otherwise I assume they were just trying to take vacay days if you know what I mean lol. No note, no discount regardless of reason (I get paid monthly)

[Homebody]

Originally Posted by LysesKids

I offer half credit on next months fees (for days missed) if a child needs to be out 5 or more consecutive days for illness; that said I need the Dr's note provided within first 48 hrs otherwise I assume they were just trying to take vacay days if you know what I mean lol. No note, no discount regardless of reason (I get paid monthly)

That's a good idea to have a certain number of consecutive days missed before they receive a credit.

[AmyKidsCo]

It's a fine policy to have - it's your business so you can have whatever policy you want.

I personally don't give any sick days because my expenses don't change just because 1 child is absent. I do give credit if I close because I'm sick.