Missjaime 08:02 AM 05-24-2016
Hi all! I am totally full and have a little waiting list and have been considering going to a large license, hiring an assistant and adding just SA kiddos. I currently have to bring all my preschoolers and babies on our walk to take the Kindergarteners to school and it is such a hassle! I would be hiring an assistant to take the school kids to school and pick them up, and to help me with preschool activities in the morning. However, I am super nervous about hiring someone - payroll, taxes, etc. Those of you who have a large license and an assistant, how did that work for you? What made you make the change? Is it better or worse? More or less stress?
AmyKidsCo 12:49 PM 05-24-2016
I don't have a large license because WI doesn't allow it, but if I could, I would! My biggest concern would be if I could bring in enough income to pay the assistant (plus social security, taxes, etc) and still make it worthwhile. My next concern would be reliability of the assistant. You wouldn't want her to quit and leave you hanging.
I've been self-employed my entire life, (a long time), and most of the time I worked alone. I had employees a couple times, but it does bring stress and headaches. It can work, but be thorough in your choosing employees, and in cases like daycare, you would almost have to have a family member or friend you can call for emergency backup. Take your time in calculations too. Figure out all costs, how much extra income you get, figure out how much more you will make, then decide if it's worth the extra work.
Laconetta 05:53 PM 05-24-2016
I have a license for 10 kids. It's very important to hire responsible assistants to come to work everyday. If they are sick, I need to turn away kids in order to be in regulation to ratios. Therefore, I have a few approved assistants I can call on if my assistant us not coming to work. But that's not easy to accomplish , as most people you trust that are willing to be an aporoved assistant, have a regular job!
spedmommy4 09:53 PM 05-24-2016
I'm in central California too. I have a large license and I have found that school age care is not ideal with a large license. I couldn't take the kids with me to pick up and I would have to have two assistants during school pick ups. (One to stay and keep me in ratio and the other to pick up kids).
In my area, the going rate for full time care is about $150 a week. With the extra kids from a large license, I average about $800-900 extra a month after paying my employee and other expenses.
Of course, this is if I stay full. I still have to staff if I'm even one child over 6. You would want to make sure you have enough kids before increasing capacity. Otherwise, you will see a huge loss.
California also just increased the minimum wage for all employees. Unfortunately, I fear this will slowly phase out the profitability of having a large license.
Missjaime 07:14 AM 05-25-2016
Originally Posted by Laconetta:
I have a license for 10 kids. It's very important to hire responsible assistants to come to work everyday. If they are sick, I need to turn away kids in order to be in regulation to ratios. Therefore, I have a few approved assistants I can call on if my assistant us not coming to work. But that's not easy to accomplish , as most people you trust that are willing to be an aporoved assistant, have a regular job!
This is my biggest fear. How would I find a back-up for my assistant? It might not be worth the hassle.