Assistants Babysitting DCK's.........

[CheekyChick]

I have several assistants and they are often asked by my DCF's to babysit. I've read on here that most daycare providers look down on this as it is a conflict of interest.

1. How do I tell my parents this?

2. How do I tell my assistants this?

3. Does anyone have this policy written into their contract? If so, can you give me an idea of how you wrote that up?

Thank you in advance for your help.

[cheerfuldom]

read Nans blogs if you havent already.

Tell your assistants that they are not allowed to babysit for daycare families outside of daycare hours. This should be part of the job description and grounds for immediate termination if they do not follow the rules.

Tell your daycare families that they are not to ask your assistants to babysit and if they do ask 1. your assistant will say no and 2. asking is breaking a part of the parent contract and is grounds for immediate termination (add it to your contract now if need be)

[CheekyChick]

read Nans blogs if you havent already.

Tell your assistants that they are not allowed to babysit for daycare families outside of daycare hours. This should be part of the job description and grounds for immediate termination if they do not follow the rules.

Tell your daycare families that they are not to ask your assistants to babysit and if they do ask 1. your assistant will say no and 2. asking is breaking a part of the parent contract and is grounds for immediate termination (add it to your contract now if need be)

Thanks...

Do you have a link to Nan's blog on this subject?

[dave4him]

seriously? i dont see a problem with it

[nannyde]

https://www.daycare.com/nannyde/the-daycare-home-staff-assistant-part-4.htm

[CheekyChick]

https://www.daycare.com/nannyde/the-...ant-part-4.htm

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

GREAT series. I learned a ton.

[cheerfuldom]

seriously? i dont see a problem with it

you should read the blog too. I think you might change you mind if/when you actually do have to hire an assistant and face the reality that one of your parents might like your assistant so much, that they try and offer them a job outside of your daycare.....after you have spent hours training the assistant Or that the assistant bonds with the families in way where she can start her own home daycare and have a ready set of families willing to leave with her. Thats the reality of it.

[Unregistered]

I see where it is conflict of interest, but really these assistants typically make less the minimum wage. Seems kind of petty to ask some one to work has hard as they do for what little pay they get, then expect that they not take on side work........

[CheekyChick]

I see where it is conflict of interest, but really these assistants typically make less the minimum wage. Seems kind of petty to ask some one to work has hard as they do for what little pay they get, then expect that they not take on side work........

As far as I know, it is ILLEGAL to pay assistants less than minimum wage. My assistants start at $8.80 per hour and move up from there.

Secondly, they are WELCOME to take side jobs - just not with our DC families. There are thousands of families looking for an experienced, trust-worthy sitter that comes with an excellent recommendation from their boss. Me.

[nannyde]

I see where it is conflict of interest, but really these assistants typically make less the minimum wage. Seems kind of petty to ask some one to work has hard as they do for what little pay they get, then expect that they not take on side work........

Nobody is saying they can't take on side work. I don't care if my staff assistant babysits every minute she's off the clock here. I could care less.

I just don't want her having a relationship with MY eight families. There's a half a million people in my city. She can do without my eight families.

My helper is very well paid. She gets as much as any center assistant director in this county and she gets 18 paid days off. Last year my assistant got 400 bucks in bonus money at Christmas from my famiies.

Let me give you some math:

I have one family here that between their two kids have paid me over 70 grand in the last eight years. I have another family with one kid that have paid over 40 grand in the last five years. I have one family with two kids who pay 16 grand a YEAR to have their two kids here.

Now you get the money? That may not sound like a lot to you but it is to me. That's the money that feeds my kid, puts clothes on his back and a roof over his head year after year.

I'm NOT going to allow a staff assistant to put that kind of money at risk. It's WAY easier to find a staff assistant than it is to find a family that will fork out over 70 grand in eight years. Believe it.

It seems petty to you but then again.. it aint your money.

[wdmmom]

The last thing I would want to happen is for my assistant to work for one of my families and piss them off, or steal, or mistreat their child. Something that could happen could potentially affect my business. I don't want a dcp mad at my assistant and taking it out on me. Or pull their kid because of something my staff assistant may or may not have done.

In the end, she could lose me money and I could lose my assistant too. I've already had a dcd try to bogart my old staff assistant. I'm not going down that road again.

[dave4him]

you should read the blog too. I think you might change you mind if/when you actually do have to hire an assistant and face the reality that one of your parents might like your assistant so much, that they try and offer them a job outside of your daycare.....after you have spent hours training the assistant Or that the assistant bonds with the families in way where she can start her own home daycare and have a ready set of families willing to leave with her. Thats the reality of it.

Guess i still disagree. Oh well

[My3cents]

Guess i still disagree. Oh well

Dave,

Once you get going and have a full house and an income coming in that you depend upon, you will feel differently. It's a conflict of interest. So many possibilities of different things can go wrong.

My daughter babysits for some of my parents. I was upfront, with both my daughter and the parents. She is learning. I completely trust her. Daycare and babysitting are two different things and I want to keep it that way. She gets paid by far more then I do. My parents are very generous with her. It gives her great experience. but.... in the back of my head, I worry what if something goes wrong and the parent takes it out on me. What if my daughter says something that doesn't jive or upsets a parent. She is a teen after all. I tell them that. I am not my daughter, my daughter is not me. We are two separate businesses. My daughter also helps me, and I help her. For me this works out. I do worry- but for someone else that would be working for me. No way. It does happen. A daycare closed here because the assistant started up her own daycare, bad talked the provider she was working for and took all her kids with her. Not the first time I have heard of this happening either. If your lucky enough to have a paid assistant, then it is in your best interest to put this in your policy book and keep things separate.

[dave4him]

Hope so