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winkiedee 04:20 AM 04-25-2013
i am having major issues with employees, constantly asking off so then a floater has to take a class and that is confusing the child. Most of the ones i am having trouble with are the ones that have been with me for a while. They say they are not having "fun" here any longer and dread coming to work. I have asked what was "fun" before and no one can anwser me. I asked them what should i let you do clock in go to the bathroom and then go visit other teachers? they said no! there is a new center opening soon and i have a feeling i will lose a couple to them. I told them in a meeting monday that going to another place to make more money i wont be mad at them for that. But if they leave just because i probably will not hire them back. You can tell they dont care alot of the employees, having alot of problems with biting, had to suspend two kids yesterday due to biting. I am in a tough position and not sure what to do. I have 16 employees not including myself.
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sahm1225 06:54 PM 04-26-2013
Have you ever read the book 'dream manager'? It's a great book.

You need to do morale boosters. Come up with ways to show you appreciate what they do, ask them for ideas/suggestions for the curriculum, come up with a reward/recognition program.

Good luck!
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JSBaker 09:57 PM 04-26-2013
Originally Posted by winkiedee:
i am having major issues with employees, constantly asking off so then a floater has to take a class and that is confusing the child. Most of the ones i am having trouble with are the ones that have been with me for a while. They say they are not having "fun" here any longer and dread coming to work. I have asked what was "fun" before and no one can anwser me. I asked them what should i let you do clock in go to the bathroom and then go visit other teachers? they said no! there is a new center opening soon and i have a feeling i will lose a couple to them. I told them in a meeting monday that going to another place to make more money i wont be mad at them for that. But if they leave just because i probably will not hire them back. You can tell they dont care alot of the employees, having alot of problems with biting, had to suspend two kids yesterday due to biting. I am in a tough position and not sure what to do. I have 16 employees not including myself.
From reading this, I quickly had flashbacks as your set-up seems really similiar to mine. Although I recently sold, I also had 16+ employees on a license of 127 kids. The long time employees with negative attitudes will were you down, ans as the owner, you will even get to where you dread coming to the center. They will also quickly ruin new-hires that you bring in with their bad attitudes.
I don't think I ever solved this because I'm not a miracle worker! But, I would eventually get tired of the problems that stemmed from employee issues. Like pissed parents, due to bites, fighting, behavior issues, not following curriculum, and so on. I would call each teacher that is giving you problems and have a serious talk with them-with an "imporvement" time table consisting of Immediately. If they continue, clean house and make a statement by terminating the worst offender.
The new school being built in your area is just a greener grass theory that is fueled by the hope of what? Maybe a quarter or on the high side a 50 cent per hour increase in pay? For a new, un-established center?
And if they leave to seek out greener grass, consider it a blessing and hire replacements. I made the mistake many times of hiring folks back, and almost always regretted my decision. It's a business based on children. Most importantly, it's your business. Don't allow others to steal your joy.
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julie 12:54 PM 04-27-2013
Yes this. In order to get your position of power back, you really need to clean house. I would totally fire the worst offender on Monday, seriously the ones who are telling you that they are cutting work because it isn't fun anymore do not respect you the way a boss needs to be respected. They are telling like you are a friend and that needs to stop.

I would just seriously say that you had a long think on the weekend and you want to bring back the positive energy into your workplace. This will include high expectations for your staff and you only want the best working here, that still consider it a fun and inspiring place to be. Then I would call the worst offender into your office either give them one final chance and put them on probation OR let them go, citing the times they have told you they have cut work because it is no longer "fun", and you agree that they are no longer a fit for this workplace. Give her two weeks and wave goodbye to that negativity. Take the floater who has been picking up most of the slack and promote them to a regular teacher position. Let it be known that you reward hard work and no longer have time to help the ones who are whining. Then I would call all of the other "offenders" separately and let them know the drill. They have regular shifts that they need to be present for and that is their responsibility as an employee. If they are sick, they need a doctor's note. Three strikes and they're out. You find out they are lying and missing work, they are out. No exceptions.

For positive team building, how about divide the staff into teams of two. They each get one week of summer to design a "summer camp" for every room in the center. They need to think of ideas for babies, for toddlers, for preschoolers/whatever ages you have and they will be the "Camp directors" for that week. Pick 8 themes for the 8 weeks of summer and toss them in a hat and then let them pick at a staff meeting. Maybe even let the teams be chosen by hat so the more familiar staff members may have a chance to work with the new staff and may be inspired again by their ideas. I found when I was director at a school that giving the employees agency over their own destiny and job duties improved a lot of my relations with them rather than just trying to be their friend. Basically it told them that I valued their opinion and I thought they were doing a good job when I made them in charge of something, especially doing it in front of other people. And as a nice added bonus, when I made people in charge of the next event, it sort of spurred their competitive nature to be better than the first event, which resulted in a lot of awesome events for me and my school and happy employees to boot! Then at the end of summer take them out for a dinner and thank them for all their hard work.

I know you'll figure it out. Hopefully my novel of a post helped you some.
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AmyKidsCo 04:56 PM 04-28-2013
There's a reason it's called "work" but it can't hurt for you to try some of the suggestions listed here. Also, make sure your staff knows that you appreciate them - even a Thank You note can brighten their day.
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Leigh 01:58 PM 05-01-2013
I certainly do NOT want to offend you, but the fact is that people most often quit MANAGERS, not jobs. If a person works for someone they like and respect, they often stay even if pay and benefits are better elsewhere.

Consider hiring an outside consultant to assess your staff's engagement, find out what needs to be done to make the job a place people don't want to leave.

I know a local employer that pays just $1.50/hr over minimum wage who has VERY low turnover-people just like working there. There are other jobs that pay 3 times the minimum wage that have huge turnover.

As far as time off, what do you consider excessive? Remember that this is kind of a high-stress field-more days off may be necessary to keep your staff at their best-allow them to stay "fresh". Perhaps encourage them to take time off to attend work related training, as well.

Best of luck.
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missheather 10:28 AM 09-26-2013
I know this is an old post but I was seaching threads regarding staff and found this so I thought I would share.
At my work (government office job) we were having issues with staff calling in, coming in late and other issues. The supervisors now give out raffle tickets as rewards and at the end of the month (or every couple of months) they raffle off gift cards, lotto scatchers, baked good, coupon to leave work an hour early, movie tickets. So if you are on time all month with no call-ins you get a raffle ticket. If you exceed your monthly "quota" you get a ticket... and so on,
Also every 4 months or so they treat us to lunch (or do a potluck) and always have extra "games" where they give out prizes.

These little things have really boosted moral.
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Abigail 11:24 PM 05-20-2014
I know this is an older thread, but I also was searching STAFF. I want to know more ideas on boosting morale! I am expanding and hiring more staff and want to keep it great from the start. The last few months I say at least daily something "nice" because we are the only adults here. I make sure to say compliments on things they come up with like a dance/song, game, or art project. I also try to brighten the mood after a tough day or rough/chaotic situation, maybe like a loud and not-so-good at listening transition time for example. I am also trying to ASK them questions about themselves so I remind myself to get to know them as they are getting to know my business. I love my job and I say I eat, sleep, and breathe daycare but I need to remind myself that staff have a life. LOL
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sahm1225 08:39 AM 05-21-2014
I replied a long time ago with the book 'dream manager'. I haven't read it in years, but it has lots of ideas on how to boost morale. Plus, what the other pp said that people quit managers not jobs.


A few things that I do to boost morale :

- I make coffee every morning and have their coffee cups ready to go. It costs me about $10/month. I try and find out their favorite coffee creamers and get those when I can.

- One of my assistants is very creative and likes to do a lot of projects. I will sometimes let her pick out the projects that we are going to order and have her be in charge of going through it when the package arrives. Something about getting a box in the mail makes her happy

- I don't offer sick hours or vacation days for my assistants. But I do offer birthdays off paid.

- One of the girls loves my cooking. So if I have the chance I will make her lunch. (rarely happens, but she is in heaven when I make her a plate!)
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Annalee 08:52 AM 05-21-2014
Originally Posted by sahm1225:
I replied a long time ago with the book 'dream manager'. I haven't read it in years, but it has lots of ideas on how to boost morale. Plus, what the other pp said that people quit managers not jobs.


A few things that I do to boost morale :

- I make coffee every morning and have their coffee cups ready to go. It costs me about $10/month. I try and find out their favorite coffee creamers and get those when I can.

- One of my assistants is very creative and likes to do a lot of projects. I will sometimes let her pick out the projects that we are going to order and have her be in charge of going through it when the package arrives. Something about getting a box in the mail makes her happy

- I don't offer sick hours or vacation days for my assistants. But I do offer birthdays off paid.

- One of the girls loves my cooking. So if I have the chance I will make her lunch. (rarely happens, but she is in heaven when I make her a plate!)
My mom, which is who I have always worked with, took off one yr to be with my brother's family due to my nephew having a bone marrow transplant. I hired an early childhood college student. Anyway, we paid her for 40 hrs a week even if we were closed for vacation, holidays, prof days, pers days. She was that important to us. I think it is vital that employees feel appreciated. It would NOT have worked if I had sent her home every time I was low on kids for the day. I just utilized her time, sometimes letting her re-organize or clean on those days. Granted, my brother helped with her pay due to this being a need of his as well, but we had a meeting together with the student and had everything in order before actually beginning work together. Clear expectations are a must!!!! Paper contract is also a must to refer back to!!!! This was 7 years ago....but like I said on another post, hiring someone is not my cup of tea....if mom retires, I will go back to 7 and work alone! I LOVE family child care and being my own boss!
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