Wanting To Close A Little Early (Help With Wording) PLEASE!!!

[MARSTELAC]

I worried for nothing....

....I sent a note home telling everyone what I wanted and told them to talk to me if it was an issue...everyone said no problem. Major shocker! I feel so much better. Thank you everyone! I did not offer a discount. Oh happy day!

[momma2girls]

I actually started working less hrs. when my child entered swimming lessons, softball, soccer, gymnastics, etc. otherwise I would have missed everything!! I am not going to miss my own children's things, because of parents that can definately be here on time. They are all school teachers, and there isn't any reason they can't be. I had a couple of teacher's over time, ssay they couldn't be here for pick up til 5 or 5:30- sorry, school dismisses all over here @ 3:30!! I live 5-20 min. from every school here in town!

[jojosmommy]

I like that idea- I agree to tell them with plenty of warning, post a note, etc. You could offer to open 15 min earlier that day if a parent would need to get a certain number of hours in at work. But not necessary.

This is what I have done in the past. Just yesterday I closed early to bring my son to the circus. 1 other family decided it would be fun to go to the circus too , we saw them there. I offered to open 30 min early if they needed to work XX hours per day but not one person complained. I contract hourly but if someone says something is going on this day I need to pick up X amount late I always comply (as long as its not past my closing hours which it has never been). I figure they have dr appts and meetings etc too. I think kindness is usually appreciated and have never had one peep about closing early.

In fact, I close at 4 two days a week every week of the school year to teach an evening class and only take families that can comply. I think in this job you need to have some access to time for your family too!

[Unregistered]

follow-up to closing early for sports

(MARSTELAC here)....just a follow-up to my closing early for sports......ended up only being 6 weeks. First week went fine. Tonight, not so much. One dcp calls and asks what time do I absolutely need to leave because he is going to be 1/2 hour late. I know his wife cannot make it as it is her late week at work but there are MANY relatives in town who could get the kid. I offered to take kid with me and even feed him dinner so we wouldn't be late but he said no and that he would just get the kid and take him back to work with him.
Finally, last parent is a no show. I tried to call. No answer. Voice mail never came on. I waited a few minutes....had my kids get in the car with all of their gear and wait. Texted parent. No response. A few minutes later went back in house looking for emergency contact number to come and get kid. Then dcp shows up. 15 minutes late. We barely made it to lessons. If we would have been late, my kids wouldn't have been able to participate. Late is not an option. DCP never apologized. I said I closed early today and now we are late. Have a great weekend. DCP said phone didn't work and left. I wanted to charge my late fee but cannot since I really don't close at that time normally. I am just still livid about this. Thanks for "listening". What would you all have done?

[MARSTELAC]

Having a bad Monday so far....

(MARSTELAC here)....just a follow-up to my closing early for sports......ended up only being 6 weeks. First week went fine. Tonight, not so much. One dcp calls and asks what time do I absolutely need to leave because he is going to be 1/2 hour late. I know his wife cannot make it as it is her late week at work but there are MANY relatives in town who could get the kid. I offered to take kid with me and even feed him dinner so we wouldn't be late but he said no and that he would just get the kid and take him back to work with him.
Finally, last parent is a no show. I tried to call. No answer. Voice mail never came on. I waited a few minutes....had my kids get in the car with all of their gear and wait. Texted parent. No response. A few minutes later went back in house looking for emergency contact number to come and get kid. Then dcp shows up. 15 minutes late. We barely made it to lessons. If we would have been late, my kids wouldn't have been able to participate. Late is not an option. DCP never apologized. I said I closed early today and now we are late. Have a great weekend. DCP said phone didn't work and left. I wanted to charge my late fee but cannot since I really don't close at that time normally. I am just still livid about this. Thanks for "listening". What would you all have done?

UGH!!!!!! I want to go back to bed. SOOOOOOO....this same family.....asked me to open 40 minutes early today and was a no show. 10 minutes after I opened for them, they texted and said someone would bring the kids in an hour! Now this screws up my close time....I had planned on 5 p.m. (since they only get 10 hours within the 10.5 I am open) and they would've had 40 minutes overtime. I charge 10.00 per family per 15 minutes for overtime outside of my working hours. I made plans for tonight since I knew I'd be done early. Now I'm working until 5:30 and going to be late AGAIN! What would you all do about this total lack of disrespect? I need a hug.

[Country Kids]

You need to have set open and close hours, put them in a new contract and stick to them. Parents don't run us, we run our businesses. I'm getting a hard shell because even though I have GREAT parents it just takes one to make you change your mind on a whole bunch of stuff. I gave my parents a 3-4 months notice on a time change and you would have thought it was going into affect that day! I was just getting tired of hearing I will be there at ******** and then it would be 1/2 hour to 45 minutes later. Even though I was still opened, it would only be for one child and I had missed being able to get my own children places.

So even though they may need you earlier, tell them impossible and go on. They wouldn't ask the mall to open earlier, stay late, or open on a day off. Why should they ask you. When they get there tell them you will be closing earlier because you had made plans based on the time you gave them and it won't be happening again. I know its hard but once you do it, it feels great!

[MarinaVanessa]

Yep, I agree with Country on this one. I would have everyone sign a contract with a set schedule of hours, that's what I do too. I may be open from 6am to 6pm but every family that I have has their set schedule of 10 hours. Family A is 6am-4pm, Family B, C & D are 8am-6pm. If they come late they lose out on their hours that they miss and they are not credited and aren't allowed to stay later to make up the hours that they missed. If they want to come earlier, they pay extra ... even if they pick up earlier. If they stay later, they pay extra ... even if they arrived later.

If they ask me to open earlier for them or to stay open later for them I don't accept UNLESS they pay me up front for it at the time of the request. If they find alternative arrangements and they cancel with at least a MINIMUM OF 24 HOURS then they get a full refund. If they cancel with less than 24 hours notice I give a refund minus $10 per child for the incinvenience. If they cancel after the start time of the request (I call it the reservation) then they don't get a refund at all. I've had plenty of clients ask me to open earlier or to stay open later only to have them either not show up or tell me last minute that they don't need it afterall. Now it's not a problem.

[MARSTELAC]

Oh thanks guys. I do have that I am open 7-5:30 and you may come to daycare for 10 of those hours. Everyday I get different schedules. My one family that is divorced, one parent drops at 7 and the other drops at 7:30. It is different everyday. My other family, the parents drop at 7 even tho they don't start work until 8:30 and it's only a few minutes away from here. Another family comes three days per week and the times vary every week. I never know when someone is coming or going! No wonder I have gray hair!!!! If I made them do contracted hours, then the ones that only need me until 3:30 each day would let the kids stay until 5:30 to make sure they got every last penny worth of daycare. UGH!!!!

[MARSTELAC]

I'm bbaaaaaacccckkkkk... :-( So, I billed the parent my overtime fee and they came today with a normal check disregarding the overtime fee. Now my check is short. I just wrote up another invoice and now included a late fee since the check was short. Is that okay?

[momofboys]

I'm bbaaaaaacccckkkkk... :-( So, I billed the parent my overtime fee and they came today with a normal check disregarding the overtime fee. Now my check is short. I just wrote up another invoice and now included a late fee since the check was short. Is that okay?

Ughhhh! Did you check the check when they gave it to you or how do they pay you? I wouldn't have accepted it or I would have said you still owe me the overtime & now there is a late fee tacked onto that. I hope you get your $$$.

[AnneCordelia]

Yes, that is how to do it. Add the late fee. Also make sure to include a copy of your contract where it (should) states that habitual non-payment/late payment is grounds for termination.

Also, make it clear at pickup that payment in full is required before their children will be accepted back into care. And that every day is another late fee tacked onto the total.

That's nervy!!

[MARSTELAC]

I don't look at the checks...

I just take the checks and go set them on the counter. I enter them and do receipts after the parents are gone. I was so disgusted that this one was thirty bucks short! I just want to cry at the disrepect some days.
It's been a bad two weeks...

[wdmmom]

In the future, I would verify the amount before they leave. I always glance at the amount to make sure it's correct. If it's not, I'll stop them in their tracks and they will give me another check or cash to cover the difference or they won't have daycare that day.

[MARSTELAC]

will do this!

In the future, I would verify the amount before they leave. I always glance at the amount to make sure it's correct. If it's not, I'll stop them in their tracks and they will give me another check or cash to cover the difference or they won't have daycare that day.

I will have to start. I just found another that overpaid by almost 20.00 bucks. My invoices are printed right from MMK.....very clear and easy to read.

[MarinaVanessa]

Wow, one shorted you $30 and one overpaid you $20 :confused:

I bet you'll have a helluva week ::::