Appreciation and Days Off
Do you feel as though your clients take you for granted? Do you wish parents would express appreciation just a little more often for the service you provide?
You are not alone. The goal for this tip sheet is to help you to understand where these feelings come from and then to show you how to have some control and power to change these feelings into constructive actions.
“Childcare” is categorized as a human service profession. Burnout and turnover in human service professions is a major industry concern. Pay scales tend to be higher in the private sector. Benefits tend to be better in the private sector. And, I would venture a guess that as childcare providers, we could match our burnout and a high turnover statistics with any other human service job, let alone with other occupations. Why? Childcare providers typically have no one contributing to their retirement plans. Rarely do providers have health insurance unless their spouses have it at their places of employment or they are paying out big bucks for their own insurance. Providers who have disability insurance are few and far between. Good for those few who have the forethought to build disability coverage into their budgets. Childcare is a human service. Providers care for a very demanding, dependant, vulnerable, under valued, section of the human population – small children.
Providers are in a professional category, nationally, of low paid individuals. National statistics show that family childcare providers average about $6.00 an hr. Head teachers in childcare centers average less than $10.00 per hr.
As caregivers, providers have a difficult time asking for rate increases. As business people, providers are terrible record keepers. Rarely do providers analyze their bottom line. This is why in home childcare is a targeted population for audits by the internal revenue service. Most providers started out in business with the idea that they would take in a few kids to bring in a little money to help their families out while they stayed home to raise their own children. I have never met a provider who sat down and prepared a business plan, anticipated a particular budget with predetermined income, estimated annual expenses and an approximate net income before she opened her doors. Such a person may exist; I have never met her.
What does this have to do with appreciation? Well, as a rule, providers hold spots for clients on maternity leave without any holding fees or compensation. As a rule, providers keep children and work with families through all types of challenges. We keep children who destroy our property. We keep trying to work with families who return home late, drop off early, and with clients who forget to bring their checkbook to childcare when our payday arrives. One wonders how long that same client would continue at their place of employment if their boss forgot when payday was
We haven’t even talked about the service we provide or the cost of that service. What about all the educational materials you provide their child with? What about the all the times you played Candy Land over the years with countless children besides your own? Or what about the love, hugs, and nurturing you provided. And to think, these parents get all of this for less money than they pay for a “babysitter” at night when they go out for an evening. Many providers notice this. It is often the provider’s own child that the client hires at night, because of the experience the provider’s child has had caring for young children with the provider. The child comes home having been paid a couple of dollars an hr. more for “babysitting” in an evening with a sleeping child than mom made all day caring for, feeding, and teaching things to the same child. You would think the least such a client could do is to recognize the efforts such a provider puts forth, wouldn’t you? What is wrong with these people anyway? Or, what is wrong with this picture?
The parent may set aside a certain portion of their income into work-related expenses and so much of their budget into entertainment. Even if they don’t conscientiously budget that way, they are comfortable spending the money that way. The parent may feel the need to reward him/herself for their hard work by a night out. As a stress reliever and personal need, they plan to pay so many of their dollars for their personal time away from responsibilities. This is good. We all need this.
The same parent has no control over what the grocery store charges for groceries. The parent may change slightly how the parent shops, or how many extras the parent purchases at the grocery store because prices go up. Take the price of coffee for example. Everyone says they will stop drinking coffee because prices go up? Do they? Studies say no. Coffee sales drop for a short time as the market adjusts to the price increase, but coffee drinkers are still coffee drinkers and sales shortly resume to their previous level. It may seem to be a slightly less sensitive comparison, but childcare consumers are still going to be childcare consumers. Our employment statistics are at an all time high. The number of working parents requiring childcare is at an all time high. Resource and referral agencies all over Minnesota cite the need for childcare is greater than the availability. Never has the time been more right for providers to analyze their bottom lines.
Ask yourself these questions and make changes to have them happen:
- Would I like to use more convenience foods like Roxy’s muffin batter but feel I can’t afford to? I have actually heard providers say how they could only afford to feed their own kids a certain product, like the French toastix because they did not make enough to give it to all the kids. What is wrong with that picture? If kids like it and it is good for them, what parent would not pay more so their child could eat those foods too? Increase your rates so you can afford the good foods that kids like and the tools you need to make your job easier.
- Do I need more days off, including even some personal days off with pay? Build them into your contract. Ask your rep at Roxy’s for our Contract Sample to help you write a better contract. Taking care of you protects your client’s childcare slots by preventing your burnout and preventing your business from closing.
- Do I have bills that are “guaranteed” to occur each month and effect my business: utilities, curriculum, and food? Is my income guaranteed? Why not? Is confrontation difficult for me? Perhaps the answer is a “Guaranteed Fee” which is due on Monday Morning. Ask providers who do this. It reduces confrontation regarding paying for sick days or days the child spends with grandparents, etc. They wonder why they did not do it long ago.
- Can I change my policy now? Why not? No policy is written in stone. Redo your rates, days off over the holidays, give everyone 30 days notice and then quit feeling guilty or angry about what you wish you got. Enjoy your next holiday or personal day off because you really got paid what and how you feel you should.
