Paid Vacations/Holidays vs Parents

[Lianne]

I get paid to be available to provide care during the times my families contract to need care. If I'm available to provide that care then I get paid for it, whether a family uses it or not. If I'm not available then I don't get paid. The only exception to that is Federal (statutory in Canada) holidays. If I'm paying taxes on my measly income and providing you with receipts so you can get a deduction, you bet I'm getting paid for the days the government tells me I don't have to work.

[Country Kids]

Where I live, all full-time employees are entitled to 3 weeks of vacation per year (after working for a company for 1 year; after 5 years you are entitled to 4 weeks)! Most of my parents have 4 (or more) weeks vacation. All of my parents use vacation time when we close (and most plan vacations when we close for ours - I send out a schedule each January so parents have time to plan) and are not double paying. Almost every child of mine is gone an additional 1-3 weeks per year during family vacation with parents... so I certaintly don't feel bad
In a two parent home, the majority of my families have 8 weeks (40 days!) vacation and 20+ days paid sick/personal time compared to the 15 I have. For me, it was a no-brainer to charge for vacation time and to not allow free/discounted vacation time to families. This is the norm here.

I would never continue doing daycare if I didn't have paid time off. I feel very sorry for those providers who don't earn an income when they close or simply never close because they can't afford it.

All I can say is WOW!!!!

Most companies here=2 week vacation for the first 5 years, 1 week sick time (which can go so quick) and 5 holidays. Thats it-no more. My hubs worked for the same company 16/17 years=3 weeks vacation, 1 weeks sick time, 5 holidays and a so many hours personal time (not much). He rarely took vacation though because he was higher up and always needed.

[littlemissmuffet]

All I can say is WOW!!!!

Most companies here=2 week vacation for the first 5 years, 1 week sick time (which can go so quick) and 5 holidays. Thats it-no more. My hubs worked for the same company 16/17 years=3 weeks vacation, 1 weeks sick time, 5 holidays and a so many hours personal time (not much). He rarely took vacation though because he was higher up and always needed.

Yes, our Labour Standards Act is really excellent here. My dad and I were comparing to what he's offered in his province in regards to holiday pay, vacation time, etc and it wasn't nearly as great as what we get.
Because these standards are the norm where I live, I feel that I am entitled to them as well. I would likely do things differently if the area I worked/lived in did things differently

[EntropyControlSpecialist]

If we didn't get paid for our vacation time, we would have to get different jobs. This is our only source of income.

[Unregistered]

I take all the holidays that our local schools are closed along with 2 weeks (10days) of vacation, 5 sick days and 5 days of continuing education (conferences etc) all of which are paid. I allow my families to pay 1/2 of their weekly tuition when they go on vacation, but only one vacation a year, all other parent vacations are to be paid. They also cannot take their 1/2 week payment while I am on vacation. I also make it clear to all potential families what my vacation/holiday policy is. If they are unable or don't agree with it then they are welcome to obtain childcare elsewhere. A majority of families in my area move their child from home based care to a larger facility based preschool program when they are about 3.5-4yo and most all large facility based preschools follow the same type of vacation/sick policy as I do. I feel like I'm just prepaing them for the realities of preschool in our area.