Ugg..What is Wrong with Parents Paying??

[My4SunshineGirlsNY]

5 months into my registration and I completely fed up!! With parents. I'm NOT having good luck at all and wonder where are the good ones are???

I have watched my sister in law's boy (I call him my nephew but he's not blood related..she split from my husband's brother and had the boy with another guy) for almost a year (will be a year in April). I have had the same rules from the beginning, payment if he's here or not with 10 non paid days per enrollment year.

Well the boy was VERY sick this week and was only here on Monday and 1/2 day Thursday. She was here today to pay me and asked what she owed this week and said she doesn't remember how many days he was here. I said she has one non paid day left for her enrollment year and she can use that if she wishes this week...then she said so what would I owe you? (ummm...duh one non paid day...do the math!).....so I said if you use a non paid day it will be $100, if not it's a full week....then she said..."so he was here all week" (she knew darn well he wasn't here all week so I think she was upset that I was charging her the whole week). She wrote out the check for $100 and didn't say anything to show she was upset but she was also quiet and the way she asked how many days he was there this week leads me to believe she wasn't happy, yet we have been through weeks before where he was absent a couple days and she asks every time what she would owe. Why don't people just get it???

I don't get it...I have my contract that ALL parents sign and it is VERY specific...word for word that I expect payment for all days hired even if the child is not here...the only time I don't charge is if I call off and for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

THEN I just took in my friends school age boy before/after school full time as she just started a new job 3 weeks ago...she was late on week number 2 and shorted me $5 and said she would pay it up this week and said that shouldn't happen again because she would start to get a paycheck and would pay me either on Thursday evening or Friday morning. WELL guess who didn't pay me yet after that promise???? So I text her today saying I was going to the bank and if she was home so I could get the daycare money. She wasn't home and said she would drop it off in the afternoon. Well it's almost 9pm. and she NEVER showed.

I'm getting so upset with this business I could just cry.

[gbcc]

It's hard because you are new. Once you get your name out there and referrals you will become full and can be a bit choosier about who you accept into care.

My theory, not sure if it's right is that they know what they owe. The reason they ask us is because they dont want to offer up more money than they have to. So they think that we just might say. Oh, well he/she was really sick, poor guy, just pay me the $25.

Do you have late fees in your contract? If so, enforce it. If not, add an addendum for March 1st.

[My4SunshineGirlsNY]

My theory, not sure if it's right is that they know what they owe. The reason they ask us is because they dont want to offer up more money than they have to. So they think that we just might say. Oh, well he/she was really sick, poor guy, just pay me the $25.

Do you have late fees in your contract? If so, enforce it. If not, add an addendum for March 1st.

You probably nailed it on your theory...it just frustrates me...I hate thinking I upset someone and they will leave because I made them mad..but I just wish they would for once put themselves in my shoes. She took sick days and gets paid for her time off.

I have one mom that is just AWESOME about paying me what is owed, never any questions, she just knows...and has NEVER been late...even if her girls are not here on a Friday she makes it to me to pay me. I wish they ALL would be like this, then I wouldn't be so stressed.

No, I have no late fees in my contract and I was just talking to my husband about it and said I HAVE to change that. I have had too many parents feel it's ok to casually swing it by when it's conveinent for them, making me wait around and they never show...and say oh I'm sorry, we got busy, or whatever the excuse. I'm tired of it. I'm retyping my contract to add late fees in there.

[tymaboy]

I dont know what your policy all entails but the more wholes you can cover will save you lots of headaches (trust me I learned the hard way). If you accept state aide have something in there thats states they the state will not pay any other fees accumulated (late fees etc) Registration fee (good for new families) late payment fee, inconvenience fee (late or early pickup/dropoff) Be sure to cover your vacations & their vacations. The supplies that they need to bring & if you will charge a fee if you they do not bring the supplies (I charge $40 a week if they do not supply what is needed.) I also have a change of clothe fee, I had too many of my backup clothes disappear cuz parents did not supply change of clothes & did not bring them back (if they bring the clothes back by end of week I do not charge them) A hefty Late sick child pickup fee, I had parents come well over an hour to pick up their child when they could have been here in less then 20 minutes.

[gbcc]

Also, regarding late fees. I only allow payments during business hours. So if they don't have the payment to you by 5:30 or closing time on Friday the late fees begin to accrue and they are charge the fee even on wkends. They can bring it by Monday during business hours. I refuse to make my family sit around on a Saturday just in case you show up. Most of my parents pay me automatically through minute menu now.

[My4SunshineGirlsNY]

I feel my contract is pretty specific...it is 3 pages long...I used a sample contract I found on the web and switched it up a little to make it my own. I know there is a couple things now I need to change as I run into different situations...but it is very cut and dry with the rule that payment is expected if they are here or not...all reserved days are to be paid...so these people wanted me full time....they just apparently didn't read my contract.

I have a feeling I will have to send them an invoice for 2 weeks' pay because I don't think they will be back, I haven't heard anything from them, and my contract states if they leave my daycare I need a 2 week warning OR 2 weeks pay.

[originalkat]

I'm just offering my 2-cents

I guess I just dont understand why you don't require payment upfront. I have been doing home daycare for two years and have never had an issue with people not paying. If they are required to pay BEFORE the week of care then there is no question about how much they owe. They owe the full week's tuition. Period. That way if they dont give you notice, were out sick all week etc...you still have your money. I have one kid who's dad works in construction so if it rains/snow/windchill too low etc...he does not work. He keeps her home with him. They still have to pay me. There has never been an issue. Another child is a police officers daughter and has Mon and Tues off. He often keeps her home at least on of those days each week. They always pay in full because that is what is required.

I run my place kind of like a school. There is a weekly tuition and you pay in advance and there are no discounts for sick days etc...
I also think you offering 10 non-pay days is too generous. I would think 5 max.
This is what I do:
-1 week vacation with no tuition each calendar year but must be taken in 5 consecutive days--not redeemed by the day.
-I take 2 weeks per year for vacation but they do not have to pay
-I have 5 personal sick days paid I can take throughout the year.
-and then all paid holidays (I think I have 10)

I really think there are a couple of things to keep in mind. The more you run your place like a business and the more professional you are the better off payment issues will be. If people see you as a business owner in the way you dress, the way your home is presented, in your contract and parent handbook, in the way you address issues (being kind but assertive and direct), in the activities you do with the children... people will tend to respect you and your policies. It takes practice and you learn from your mistakes. I know this has been the case for me.

See, the problem is since we run our businesses in our homes, somehow people think you should give them some slack, feel bad for charging them and therefore not make them pay in full. That can be so frustrating. But they need to realize this is how you make a living. I think we cant really tell them that but we can show them through professionalism.
I recommend the book "From Babysitter to Business Owner" by Patricia Dischler. It is a great book. Whenever I feel like I need some encouragement I get mine out again.

Good luck my4Sunshine. Things will get better. But you are the one who can get them there.

[Persephone]

I know the feeling. I'm having a hard time just finding kids here. I've ran my ad a few times in the paper already. Right now there are a ton of ads for other people looking for kids also.

I only have 1 family right now who is bad about paying on time. He was out all last week sick. Of course she didn't come by to pay me.

I had another family of two kids but the hours and the youngest were just not working out. I hated to be picky when I need kids but I have to think of my family first.

[AfterSchoolMom]

I feel your pain! I had one Dad that came every Friday for months, asked me how much he owed, and then tried to argue/question the amount or my policy (they pay whether or not they're here, unless I'm sick and have to close). Finally, I wrote out a "childcare payment overview" and spelled it out for him, quoting form the contract. I gave it to him the next day and offered to print out another copy of the contract for him as well. I haven't had any more problems since then! Sometimes I think you have to hold parents' hands as much as their children!

[mac60]

The problem here is fly by night providers opening up because they got laid off. Legally they can not open a daycare registered or not, because if they earn over 20% of their unemployment earnings, then their unemployment earnings start being deducted. I just got an email from another provider that someone she knew was laid off and she wanted to start dc again.....uh no, you get unemployment and can not legally operate a registered or unregistered dc.

[Persephone]

The problem here is fly by night providers opening up because they got laid off. Legally they can not open a daycare registered or not, because if they earn over 20% of their unemployment earnings, then their unemployment earnings start being deducted. I just got an email from another provider that someone she knew was laid off and she wanted to start dc again.....uh no, you get unemployment and can not legally operate a registered or unregistered dc.

As long as they are turning into unemployment that they are earning money they can earn money while on unemployment. You can earn so much before they start cutting out your money.

[momofboys]

I'm so sorry you have to deal with this! Keep us posted on what happens. I can't imagine having my kids at any provider & not paying in a timely manner.

[mac60]

In Ohio, if you receive $280 on unemployment, you can not earn over $56 or they will start deducting your unemployment. You can not earn over 20% of your benefit amount. Pretty much tells me probably not doing it legal.

[momofboys]

I feel my contract is pretty specific...it is 3 pages long...I used a sample contract I found on the web and switched it up a little to make it my own. I know there is a couple things now I need to change as I run into different situations...but it is very cut and dry with the rule that payment is expected if they are here or not...all reserved days are to be paid...so these people wanted me full time....they just apparently didn't read my contract.

I have a feeling I will have to send them an invoice for 2 weeks' pay because I don't think they will be back, I haven't heard anything from them, and my contract states if they leave my daycare I need a 2 week warning OR 2 weeks pay.

Any news from them?