I Feel My Business Has Been Harmed By Slanderous Statement

[coolconfidentme]

I’ll try not to make this too long, bare with me though. I feel my business has been harmed by slanderous statement.

DCG acting up with new kids here. No biggie. DCP asked Head Start (home study) teacher for advice on redirecting her child. Head Start teacher tells her to pull her from my program cause I let the kids run wild here & she heard it from a good source. (all untrue) If she is volunteering this to my parent she is probably saying it to others. Parent has been with me forever & was pissed the teacher would say that.

I thought about it for a week before I acted. I called the director of Head Start & informed him of what transpired. I stated his employee was over stepping her position & her comments were very detrimental to my business. She has NEVER stepped foot inside my daycare & I said I wanted a plan of action on how he was going to handle it. He was going to look into it & get back to me.

Within an hour of our conversation the parent got a voicemail from the teacher TELLING her to call her ASAP about the situation. Parent didn’t call & is ready to pull her child from Head Start & can’t believe the unprofessional-ism of the teacher.

Side info: I have a tenant (in one of my rental properties) who is on the parent/teacher board of Head Start. Chronic complainer about everything, always late on rent, dog not on lease, etc & was given eviction notice. Probably the source of the information.

How do I handle the rest of this sticky situation? Please & thank you!!!!

[Starburst]

I don't really have any advice

But that was really unprofessional of a teacher to say that about a program they have never even seen or been to Maybe you can talk to your licensor and see if there is anything you can do like make a complaint that the center (or at least one of their employees) is spreading rumors (maybe they can write them up). Sometimes centers try to down play or trash talk home-daycares because their enrollment may be low and the teachers are afraid of being laid off. If I was a parent and heard an employee at a center critisize another program based on what they heard from one person without any personal expierince with it I would leave right away because 1) it's so NOT professional and 2) if they like gossiping- there is no telling what they would others about you, your child, or your family.

I think there should be an ethics committee when it comes to the daycare field that if you have multiple complaints about spreading rumors/lies about other providers or targeting certain providers, that you will get written up and possibly lose your liscense (or get suspended/fired if at a center). Parents have the right to pick whatever program they feel comfortable with and not risk feeling judged or someone telling them there choice is wrong!

[coolconfidentme]

But that was really unprofessional of a teacher to say that about a program they have never even seen or been to Maybe you can talk to your licensor and see if there is anything you can do like make a complaint that the center (or at least one of their employees) is spreading rumors (maybe they can write them up). Sometimes centers try to down play or trash talk home-daycares because their enrollment may be low and the teachers are afraid of being laid off. If I was a parent and heard an employee at a center critisize another program based on what they heard from one person without any personal expierince with it I would leave right away because 1) it's so NOT professional and 2) if they like gossiping- there is no telling what they would others about you, your child, or your family.

I think there should be an ethics committee when it comes to the daycare field that if you have multiple complaints about spreading rumors/lies about other providers or targeting certain providers, that you will get written up and possibly lose your liscense (or get suspended/fired if at a center). Parents have the right to pick whatever program they feel comfortable with and not risk feeling judged or someone telling them there choice is wrong!

Head Start is the half day pre-school for lower income families. It's federally funded. Some children have a weekly home visit to see if they are ready for the in-school environment as in the case of my DCK. This teacher doesn't know me or has never been to my daycare. I feel like sending a cease & desist letter or something.

[Blackcat31]

Head Start is the half day pre-school for lower income families. It's federally funded. Some children have a weekly home visit to see if they are ready for the in-school environment as in the case of my DCK. This teacher doesn't know me or has never been to my daycare. I feel like sending a cease & desist letter or something.

I worked for Head Start for 5 years before opening my own child care. I was the one who did the weekly/bi-weekly home visits.

Our agency gave us STRICT rules about talking about any other program and/or family. It went against the confidentiality rules and the professionalism that our Head Start program wanted to always demonstrate and uphold.

If I were you, I would call the agency that over sees the Head Start program in your area. Sometimes it is licensing and sometimes it is the Health & Human Services department. I would file a compliant with them. Our Head Start is licensed by the same people that licenses family child care.

The licensor would handle it the same way they would if someone filed a complaint about a child care provider.

[daycaremom76]

I had a similar situation happen to me, I let a parent go and she decided to search the internet for all my ads and post negative reviews. Complete lies, and she did it under a phoney name so it's not like I can prove it was her. However I have never had a disgruntle parent except her and it happened right after she left. This time of year is slow and the calls have been slow, i don't know if it's because of the reviews or it's just slow. Fortunately she isn't to smart so the reviews sound like the ramblings of a toddler so anyone with any bit of common sense wouldn't listen to them and with me being licensed with a clean record they can be verified as all lies if someone takes the time to check me out. But in the long run it pissed me off and still does, that someone say and do something so childish knowing that our business relies on our reputations! I get calls from people that have seen it and question it but it still annoys me. I have tried to get them removed as well with no luck.

[Blackcat31]

I had a similar situation happen to me, I let a parent go and she decided to search the internet for all my ads and post negative reviews. Complete lies, and she did it under a phoney name so it's not like I can prove it was her. However I have never had a disgruntle parent except her and it happened right after she left. This time of year is slow and the calls have been slow, i don't know if it's because of the reviews or it's just slow. Fortunately she isn't to smart so the reviews sound like the ramblings of a toddler so anyone with any bit of common sense wouldn't listen to them and with me being licensed with a clean record they can be verified as all lies if someone takes the time to check me out. But in the long run it pissed me off and still does, that someone say and do something so childish knowing that our business relies on our reputations! I get calls from people that have seen it and question it but it still annoys me. I have tried to get them removed as well with no luck.

Perhaps you could have current families who love and trust you post comments or reviews about you so that the one bad review is overshadowed by al the great things other say about you.

Sadly we are never going to be able to stop people from saying bad things about us even when they aren't true.

What I do is just try to focus on the positive and make sure that the people who do like my services and program tell others. Just like bad mouthing can run rampant and spread like wild fire, so can positive statements!

[Meeko]

I had one of my DCM's go through a nasty divorce. To get at HER, the ex said nasty things about my business online. It said my daycare was filthy and that his children were always covered in bruises. He wasn't actually out to get ME. He wanted to make it look as though the mom was a bad mother and didn't care how her children were treated or where they were left. The mom was the only person who had even seen my daycare.

I came right out and told ALL my current parents. They ALL wrote scathing replies and left glowing reports about me....including the dcm who added that she had since won full custody of the children due to her ex's drug use and criminal record. She added a link to our state's 'right to know" public records, so people could see for themselves the kind of person that left the bad review. It lists theft, drug use, giving false information to police, and much more. She made sure his review wasn't worth anything!

He was livid...because she named herself...and him....but the information is public record. He will probably think twice before trying to paint HER in a bad light!

I added a link to our state's licensing records, so people could see my record with the state too.

I must admit, I hated having to do the damage control. I don't think it effected my business at all in the long run, but it's a horrible feeling to have someone bad-mouth you.

Don't sit on it. Hit back hard.

[MarinaVanessa]

I’ll try not to make this too long, bare with me though. I feel my business has been harmed by slanderous statement.

DCG acting up with new kids here. No biggie. DCP asked Head Start (home study) teacher for advice on redirecting her child. Head Start teacher tells her to pull her from my program cause I let the kids run wild here & she heard it from a good source. (all untrue) If she is volunteering this to my parent she is probably saying it to others. Parent has been with me forever & was pissed the teacher would say that.

I thought about it for a week before I acted. I called the director of Head Start & informed him of what transpired. I stated his employee was over stepping her position & her comments were very detrimental to my business. She has NEVER stepped foot inside my daycare & I said I wanted a plan of action on how he was going to handle it. He was going to look into it & get back to me.

Within an hour of our conversation the parent got a voicemail from the teacher TELLING her to call her ASAP about the situation. Parent didn’t call & is ready to pull her child from Head Start & can’t believe the unprofessional-ism of the teacher.

Side info: I have a tenant (in one of my rental properties) who is on the parent/teacher board of Head Start. Chronic complainer about everything, always late on rent, dog not on lease, etc & was given eviction notice. Probably the source of the information.

How do I handle the rest of this sticky situation? Please & thank you!!!!

I think at this point you should wait and see what the director of Head Start says about the situation and see what their actions will be against the teacher. If it takes more than a few days I would call back if anything so that they know that you are not going to easily let it slide. I would also mention it to them (with your clients permission) that within an hour of talking to the director your client received a phone call from the teacher and left a voicemail. Ask DCM to save it. I would also deffinetely file a complaint with the main department as BC suggested and with their licensing board if possible.

Check your privacy laws in your state and in your contract with your tenant. If there isn't anything against you doing so you can explain the situation with your tenant on the board. I wouldn't give specifics either way but you can simply say that you have reason to believe that the teacher got her info from a tenant that is currently on the parent/teacher board that you are currently in the process of evicting due to breach of contract and that because of that you have reason to believe that the teacher got her information from that person. I would strongly push them to ask the teacher to give the source of where she got her information and if you are successful and if it is your tenant I would also file a complaint with whoever is in charge of the teacher/parent board and file a complaint with them too. I would even go as far as to ask that she be removed from the board for unprofessional and slanderous behavior.

If they try to brush it all under the rug I would suggest getting an opinion of a legal professional.

[Childminder]

I had one of my DCM's go through a nasty divorce. To get at HER, the ex said nasty things about my business online. It said my daycare was filthy and that his children were always covered in bruises. He wasn't actually out to get ME. He wanted to make it look as though the mom was a bad mother and didn't care how her children were treated or where they were left. The mom was the only person who had even seen my daycare.

I came right out and told ALL my current parents.

I just got a text yesterday from a DCM that is going through a custody battle. Baby daddy slandered my name all over the place saying I wasn't licensed, that my home is filthy, that his son sits all day doing nothing while I watch tv, and that she is a bad mother for bringing him here. He doesn't want to pay child support.

Just wait till the a$$#*!& picks up next time he's going to hear from me.

[MarinaVanessa]

I just got a text yesterday from a DCM that is going through a custody battle. Baby daddy slandered my name all over the place saying I wasn't licensed, that my home is filthy, that his son sits all day doing nothing while I watch tv, and that she is a bad mother for bringing him here. He doesn't want to pay child support.

Just wait till the a$$#*!& picks up next time he's going to hear from me.

A friend of mine went through this with his ex-wife ... they were going through a divorce and his wife wanted primary custody of their son and for my friend to have him only every other weekend but my friend wanted to share him 50/50. She claimed in court that he wanted that because he didn't want to pay child support and when that didn't look like it was going to stick she tried the old "his daycare is filthy and he's neglected" tactic too ... only thing was that they had been using the daycare since he was born (he was 4yo at this time) ... oh and the fact that the DC provider was her ex-husbands mom .

The provider herself called licensing to make a report and they came out and found nothing wrong. She was crushed of course because of all the nasty things that the ex said after caring for their son for so many years FOR FREE!!. Well karma bit his ex in the @$$ and the judge split the custody 50/50 and she didn't even get alimony. Oh and of course my friends mom wouldn't take her grandson for free anymore (during the time that he was supposed to be with his mom). The ex was really huffy about who she would leave her son with so she didn't want to take him to anyone she didn't know so she ended up just paying her ex's mom for DC after that.

On the last day of the divorce process the judge excused my friend but asked his ex to stay. My friends brother stayed behind to be nosey and the judge reamed her good for about 15 minutes and even told her she was a disgrace and tha he should have had her arrested for lying in a court of law. He told her that the only reason why he didn't give my friend more than 50/50 was because that was all that he had asked for, other wise he would have given more custodial time to him seeing as to how she was more concerned with her own selfish needs than her son's needs. She left the courtroom crying.

I wish that all cases similar ended like this.

[Starburst]

Head Start is the half day pre-school for lower income families. It's federally funded. Some children have a weekly home visit to see if they are ready for the in-school environment as in the case of my DCK. This teacher doesn't know me or has never been to my daycare. I feel like sending a cease & desist letter or something.

I know what head start is, most of the things I was saying were in general. But in this case the teacher should at least be held responsible.

[Meeko]

Wow...I actually feel a bit better about my experience. Sounds like several providers have been used as pawns in custody/divorce disputes