Would You Let This Go Or Say Something

[Regular but logged out]

OK thanks to everyone here and many providers in my area, I have gone to a weekly flat rate from a monthly. Saw a new beginning in the future and thought it was going to be great till last week. I have a couple of families that now want their child here all day long from open to close. This way they can work longer hours and I guess get their moneys worth.

I know many of you do contracted hours or hours where the parents actually work. Well these parents have the oportunity to work this many hours! So what would you guys do because they can say they are working and they are.

[Blackcat31]

I do things like this:
Say my flat rate is $150. This is for a 3:00 pick up. If a parent wants longer days then the flat rate is more per week.

If you want a 4:00 pick up time then the rate is $170 per week.

If you want a 5:00 pick up time then the rate is $190 per week.

I don't allow one day to be 3:00 and one day to be 4:00 etc, the parent has to pick ONE pick up time and stick with it.

The flat rate is based on whatever there pick up time is. Anything over there stated pick up time is treated as a late pick up and late fees of $1 per minute apply.

I thought about doing rates based on half hour pick ups but that is too much work for my tired, not-good-at-math brain so I go with full hours instead.

I don't care what time the parent drops off as I am not concerned with that part of my day...only what time I will be getting done.

[Unregistered]

Well since I handed out contracts already and everyone turned them in last week, I'm not in the position to revamp already. I guess I was more venting because parents are leaving their children all day long because of rate scheduling.

[Blackcat31]

Well since I handed out contracts already and everyone turned them in last week, I'm not in the position to revamp already. I guess I was more venting because parents are leaving their children all day long because of rate scheduling.

Yeah, but there is nothing wrong with going back and saying "Hey parents when I went to a flat rate system it wasn't intended to be an open invitiation to use the entire day. If you would like to use the entire day of care then we will need to re-visit what your rate will be."

I mean just because you gave a new rate doesn't mean it should back fire on you and now you have every kid from open to close when that wasn't the case before...kwim? That is just more work for you and little or no compensation and in that case you might as well not have bothered to raise your rate or change them at all.

[familyschoolcare]

My flate rate has a 10 hour limit

You could go back and say when I moved to a flate rate it was intended to have a X hour limit I did not thinkof bringing this up since no one was using the day cay for longer that that at the time. If you need to use the day care for longer than X hours a day that will be $X per hour per day (mine is $10, funny everyone finds away not to need more hours)

[rbmom]

I also do a flat rate with a 9 1/2 hour day for that price. Stay longer and you pay more.

[countrymom]

I have a flat rate for 9 hours anything after that is extra but I'm also only opened from 7 to 5 so after 5pm its extra but up to my descrestion. I also wrote on my contract that its for parents who work and that I need hours. So they can't say one day they want to work late and the next day they don't, it needs to be consistant (things do come up but most of the time its consistant)

what are the hours you are open.

[daycare]

I also do a flat rate with a 9 1/2 hour day for that price. Stay longer and you pay more.

ditto this...

Also, there is no reason why you cant retract something or hand out new polices. I would hand out the new contracted hours and tell everyone that the way things are right now are not currently working and that you will be implementing a new policy of contracted hours. give each family 14 days to accept the new terms and if they choose not to sign, then unfortunately, there is not much you can do but try to replace them.

or you can tell them that each family can use 9.5 hours of care however they want and after that it's $_________ much more per hour or whatever you like.

I love the way cat does it and plan to do it that way at the start of the new year.

[saved4always]

I agree with what everyone else is saying. I don't think there is anything wrong with you going back to the parents now and saying that, when you changed to a flat weekly rate, you based those rates on the amount of houirs that were being used by each family at that time. It was not meant to extend the number of hours you work per day/week. Due to everyone now extending thier hours since the contract change, tell them you need to revisit their rates and add $xx per hour over whatever hours you wish to work per day (or whatever you feel is fair for you or you are willing to do).