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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>This Is Why I Don't Like Teachers
midaycare 10:08 AM 12-12-2017
In June I had a current client refer someone to me for September. We had the interview. The dcm is a teacher and they asked about holidays and summers. They were not happy that they had to pay for those times and I would not hold a spot. But they signed the contract.

Fast forward to today...I get notice that they are giving their 2 weeks notice, dcg will be home with dcm over Christmas, and starting somewhere new after the 1st.

They have zero care for how many daycares dcg has been in. It is so not fair to her. She clings to her blanket and hat and everything she brings with her with hands of steel...no wonder!

On the bright side...I kind of saw this coming. I scheduled them in on my calendar as an "extra" client while I was waiting for another current dcm to give birth. She gave birth 2 weeks ago, and baby will be here in 10 more weeks, taking teacher dcg's place.

So I suppose in 10 weeks I would have done the same to them, but seriously, I could smell this move on them coming from a mile away.
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Annalee 10:12 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by midaycare:
In June I had a current client refer someone to me for September. We had the interview. The dcm is a teacher and they asked about holidays and summers. They were not happy that they had to pay for those times and I would not hold a spot. But they signed the contract.

Fast forward to today...I get notice that they are giving their 2 weeks notice, dcg will be home with dcm over Christmas, and starting somewhere new after the 1st.

They have zero care for how many daycares dcg has been in. It is so not fair to her. She clings to her blanket and hat and everything she brings with her with hands of steel...no wonder!

On the bright side...I kind of saw this coming. I scheduled them in on my calendar as an "extra" client while I was waiting for another current dcm to give birth. She gave birth 2 weeks ago, and baby will be here in 10 more weeks, taking teacher dcg's place.

So I suppose in 10 weeks I would have done the same to them, but seriously, I could smell this move on them coming from a mile away.
My aunt knows a grandma of one of my dck and the grandma is always talking how the mom is complaining about paying me for my time off. I am to the point I don't even care anymore...it is my business. This client will probably call you back and then you can say "no thank you".
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midaycare 10:21 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by Annalee:
My aunt knows a grandma of one of my dck and the grandma is always talking how the mom is complaining about paying me for my time off. I am to the point I don't even care anymore...it is my business. This client will probably call you back and then you can say "no thank you".
Probably I won't hear from them until September. They were pretty clear that would not need me for the summer, which is why I was going to let them go in March. I would have found alternative care for them, but wowzee they are going to the absolute worst center. They must be running out of options.
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CityGarden 10:21 AM 12-12-2017
That completely sucks but now you avoid having to term them when the new baby comes and it is the middle of the semester for dcm. Poor child.
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storybookending 10:21 AM 12-12-2017
My SIL is a teacher and my niece is in my dc. She teaches summer school so I have her half days for 6 of the 11 weeks of summer and I charge her full price but I do not charge at all when she is not here. I told her Friday night that I’m not going to be able to afford that when she has another (she’s not pregnant yet but talking about trying again). She said she understood and said that’s even more motivation to quit teaching and get a year round job. She has a masters degree she isn’t currently using. Time will tell.
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midaycare 10:47 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by CityGarden:
That completely sucks but now you avoid having to term them when the new baby comes and it is the middle of the semester for dcm. Poor child.
It worked out but I have yet to have a good experience with a family that has a teacher in it. I know two providers around here that cater only to teachers and I just think... I couldn't stand them.

I say this as someone who was a teacher
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Cat Herder 10:52 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by midaycare:
dcg will be home with dcm over Christmas, and starting somewhere new after the 1st.

I say this as someone who was a teacher


I have had four calls this week looking for care starting Monday (schools out 2 weeks, most daycares here align with school calendar). I have not returned a single call.
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amberrose3dg 11:09 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by midaycare:
In June I had a current client refer someone to me for September. We had the interview. The dcm is a teacher and they asked about holidays and summers. They were not happy that they had to pay for those times and I would not hold a spot. But they signed the contract.

Fast forward to today...I get notice that they are giving their 2 weeks notice, dcg will be home with dcm over Christmas, and starting somewhere new after the 1st.

They have zero care for how many daycares dcg has been in. It is so not fair to her. She clings to her blanket and hat and everything she brings with her with hands of steel...no wonder!

On the bright side...I kind of saw this coming. I scheduled them in on my calendar as an "extra" client while I was waiting for another current dcm to give birth. She gave birth 2 weeks ago, and baby will be here in 10 more weeks, taking teacher dcg's place.

So I suppose in 10 weeks I would have done the same to them, but seriously, I could smell this move on them coming from a mile away.
That is pretty lousy. To avoid paying you for your vacation time off they term? I have a few teacher families and they are ok. They do not come over summer and I do not guarantee a spot to return to. I usually have openings as my summers are mostly school age that don't come back or only here in the mornings for an hour or so. They do pay every day for the school year including holidays and vacations.

I have a grandma that picks up and is a teacher. She seems to be annoyed each time I tell her they have to pay no matter what. She asked at the interview and kind of expected it yet asked at thanksgiving and now for Christmas. Be lucky that im taking my vacation week during Christmas and not another time. You have to pay for even more time off.
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daycarediva 11:14 AM 12-12-2017
I DO NOT like teacher families, either.

I give them TWO contract options. One is a higher daily rate by $5. This lets them take off ONE week for Christmas, ONE week for spring break "free" or pay the regular rate.

I ALWAYS receive notice for summers from them. They pull for UPK/free.
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midaycare 11:17 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by amberrose3dg:
That is pretty lousy. To avoid paying you for your vacation time off they term?
Yes and I knew, I just knew it would happen. At the interview I saw the pattern of daycares trailing behind them and knew I was next.

I only took dcg because I was holding a spot for an infant for months (about 6 months, from the time dcf told me). They were paying for it, but I found dcg to "hold" the spot instead. I'd rather have someone here than an empty spot, if possible.

It's all good, I mean I knew it would happen Still, how about not hitting me up on the day I have a raging sinus infection...
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midaycare 11:20 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by daycarediva:
I DO NOT like teacher families, either.

I give them TWO contract options. One is a higher daily rate by $5. This lets them take off ONE week for Christmas, ONE week for spring break "free" or pay the regular rate.

I ALWAYS receive notice for summers from them. They pull for UPK/free.
I did charge my highest rate for this family, even though they didn't use a full day. It ended up being a $25 per week difference, so that equals out to your $5 a day.

I generally have a "no teachers" rule, but this family was referred by my very favorite dcf.

Going forward, I'm going to ask on the telephone is either parent is a teacher. If so, they are not getting through my front door for an interview. Ha!
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daycarediva 11:28 AM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by midaycare:
I did charge my highest rate for this family, even though they didn't use a full day. It ended up being a $25 per week difference, so that equals out to your $5 a day.

I generally have a "no teachers" rule, but this family was referred by my very favorite dcf.

Going forward, I'm going to ask on the telephone is either parent is a teacher. If so, they are not getting through my front door for an interview. Ha!

Right? I feel badly for your dcg though. Her parents don't value consistent caregivers enough to pay for time off. That's insane to me. They KNOW it's bad for their child, as teachers themselves.

Also- teachers have some of the worst behaved kids (ime) they're like nurses- who NEVER have a sick kid.
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Ariana 12:19 PM 12-12-2017
I am someone that caters to teachers children BUT I only work part time and I like having lots of time off. I also provide my vacation for free. I do this because there is no way people will take time off and pay. In a sense it helps me retain clients and I get lots of time off. I have both of my own kids at home during the holidays and would prefer kids stay home...but if I charge we all know where they would be...with me :/

I completely understand why this doesn’t work for some providers but why aren’t these teachers seeking out care with people that cater to their needs. It is ridiculous to just quit every time a holiday comes up because you don’t want to pay. Unreal

And sorry about your sinus infection. That sucks.
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amberrose3dg 12:29 PM 12-12-2017
I know where I am there are only a handful of decent providers. We have a problem with quality daycare. With that said this time last year I received notice from two families over a couple of days closed. I don't get parents trying to save a few bucks and end up with crappy care.
I will not interview or take on new people this time of year.
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Blackcat31 02:16 PM 12-12-2017
I have a couple teacher parents but they have been with me so long that they aren't an issue. I do however, have a policy that says notice periods can not include ANY vacation days or closed days. This might be unfair but I also have a 6 week notice period for teachers. Others must provide a minimum of 2 weeks per child. This helps a bit so you don't get shafted right before the holidays or summer vacay.
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midaycare 05:11 PM 12-12-2017
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I have a couple teacher parents but they have been with me so long that they aren't an issue. I do however, have a policy that says notice periods can not include ANY vacation days or closed days. This might be unfair but I also have a 6 week notice period for teachers. Others must provide a minimum of 2 weeks per child. This helps a bit so you don't get shafted right before the holidays or summer vacay.
Ohhh...I like it!
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Snowmom 07:21 PM 12-12-2017
I used to despise those looking for "teacher friendly schedules". If they email me, I usually won't even reply. Mainly because I don't like enrolling families who feel their entitled to "special" because of their vocation.

But, if they simply tell me they're teachers, give me their hours for a quote, and don't push for "special", I have no problem offering them my school year only contract if they want it.
It's much higher that my standard full year contract (which I don't divulge) but gives them the option of taking off winter and spring break for 1/2 rate as long as they're gone the entire break. Plus, it has a definite end date in June. It's not guaranteed to start back up in September unless I have availability.
It's more of a win for me than them.
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Unregistered 08:23 PM 12-12-2017
I have a teacher schedule daycare, as it is is a great fit for my family. Where I get baffled is the school support staff interviews I have had. There are 10 weeks a year my clients do not have to pay. Works for me, and a pretty awesome deal for them I would think. The rest of the year is the typical if you are contracted for it, you need to pay whether your child is here or not.

I have had support staff say that they do not have to attend the professional development days, and will be wanting to spend that time with their child of course. They argue they should not have to pay those days. When I point out they will need to pay, they scoff and say they will be sending their child then! They also argue the week before school starts that I am open. They do not have a class to set up, so don't need it. One even pushed for me to operate illegally and go over in numbers, saying it would be okay as their kid was easy.

I have not enrolled any school support staff so far.
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Josiegirl 02:05 AM 12-13-2017
I've had teachers before and never worried about the summers/vacations because I always filled that time with older dcks. The current teacher dcf pays for the breaks during the school year and if they want to come back in the fall, they need to give me a nonrefundable holding fee before they leave for the summer.
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Play Care 05:25 AM 12-13-2017
I have a love/hate relationship with teachers. I have a separate teacher contract and they all choose the "teacher special" which saves them money and gives me more time off. But then it comes to vacation time and they are asking me if I'll be open for them so they get "me" time. Um no, YOU chose the teacher special. You don't have that option.
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Annalee 07:31 AM 12-13-2017
I really like the six week notice posted earlier.....that is a wonderful idea. I have one parent teacher and she has been here four years. I can't imagine a parent taking a child out of a daycare every christmas break and summer. Poor kid! These parents
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Indoorvoice 03:12 PM 12-13-2017
I recently started catering to teachers more because my kids still count in my ratio when they're home from school so I really have to close for all school breaks for right now. I take 10 weeks out of my typical yearly tuition and spread it evenly over the entire year so I get paid the same every week. So they are getting a big discount but I get guaranteed time off and pretty great hours. The stipulations are that when they are on breaks during the school year, they must keep their kids home, and they can use up to2 days a week in the summer with at least 48 hours notice. That gives quite a lot of time off with a guaranteed paycheck and no questions about paying over time off because they get that their time off is built in to their tuition. Haven't quite figured out if this screws me over if they leave mid year, but so far I haven't come across that.
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HappyEverAfter 06:49 PM 12-16-2017
I have two teacher families. One is a non issue and understands I am running a business. The other one of them started in August and has already tried push my vacation policy. I allow parents two, non consecutive weeks of vacation per year where they only have to pay half the normal tuition rate. They first tried to break their weeks up into individual days. No. Then they tried to use their weeks consecutively for the last two weeks of the year. No. On top of that they wanted a slightly lower rate for the week of Christmas since I’m already closed one of those days. No.
So next year, new policy is that teachers can drop to part time (I normally only do full time) of 2, set days per week for 8 weeks in the summer but cannot have vacation rates any other time of the year. And they have to let me know by January 2nd if they plan to do this. I’m announcing this on Monday and I’m sure they won’t like it since they’ve already told me they want spring break off but I feel it’s more than generous on my part. They also have the option of leaving care completely for the summer but I will not hold their spot and it may or may not be there when they need it at the end of summer. (It won’t)
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hwichlaz 08:36 AM 12-18-2017
Here, teachers get paid year round too, so it REALLY bugs me when they dicker over breaks.
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amberrose3dg 08:42 AM 12-18-2017
Originally Posted by hwichlaz:
Here, teachers get paid year round too, so it REALLY bugs me when they dicker over breaks.
They are also paid for the year here and get over 20 personal days to use during the school year. It is far more than we get.
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storybookending 10:19 AM 12-18-2017
Originally Posted by amberrose3dg:
They are also paid for the year here and get over 20 personal days to use during the school year. It is far more than we get.
I’m not sure about personal days but the local district here does not get paid year round. SIL complains about it constantly. The smaller districts in the neighborhood “farming towns” have options for teachers to get paid year round or on a 10 month plan but the big ole division 1 too big for their britches, thinks they’re above everyone else district I live in doesn’t treat their teachers with respect at all. I do not see SIL teaching much longer, at least not in this crappy district.
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Blackcat31 11:22 AM 12-18-2017
Originally Posted by storybookending:
I’m not sure about personal days but the local district here does not get paid year round. SIL complains about it constantly. The smaller districts in the neighborhood “farming towns” have options for teachers to get paid year round or on a 10 month plan but the big ole division 1 too big for their britches, thinks they’re above everyone else district I live in doesn’t treat their teachers with respect at all. I do not see SIL teaching much longer, at least not in this crappy district.
Whether they are paid year round or not is irrelevant.

They are still paid a YEARLY salary.
A salary they agreed to when they accepted the job.

I refuse to lose money due to someone else's career choice. If I did that (gave discounts etc) Id have to do the same for all the loggers and other professions in our area that also work seasonally.
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storybookending 07:36 PM 12-18-2017
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Whether they are paid year round or not is irrelevant.

They are still paid a YEARLY salary.
A salary they agreed to when they accepted the job.

I refuse to lose money due to someone else's career choice. If I did that (gave discounts etc) Id have to do the same for all the loggers and other professions in our area that also work seasonally.
Oh yeah I wasn’t speaking in terms of daycare really at all, just in defense of the teachers. It just kind of sucks that this big fancy act like they are above everyone else district doesn’t have the option for them when the “lesser” important smaller schools treat their teachers a million times better. Either way it’s the same salary, they just need to budget better during the year to make up for it. SIL has never once complained about paying me, although I do give her special treatment, I was just speaking about my local district in general. Frankly I’d watch my niece for free if I could afford it. I went to a school in a neighboring town that is considered “lesser” the education I received was no different than the one the kids at the big fancy school received. At least my teachers were happy and turn around wasn’t as crazy as it is at the big school.
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