Do I have to still pay when childminder takes a holiday?

[colacubes]

Obviously this isnt just a money issue as child minder is a trusted professional who takes care of my dd, so dont want to upset the applecart, but.

I go to pick dd up and the cm informs me she is having a 2 week holiday in 6 weeks, so fine,obviously I will have to make other arrangements, so I mention the situation in regard to fees, to which she replies, "Oh I still get paid, its my holidays"

So my question is, I pay for her service, she is not an employee, so why do I have to pay for her bloody holidays. I am self employed and no bugger pays me. I of course said nothing, my mind ticking, slightly bemused, and trying to think about the bigger picture.

Until today I get a text informing me she is booking another day of later in the year as a holiday and I will have to pay for this day also. So I will either have to pay for her day off and then pay someone else to care for my dd, or pay for her day off and take one myself to care for dd, and not get paid, because, I am self employed!

Is this a normal arrangement with childminders ?

Sofia, so sorry you are so emotional about this, please try not to take it personally, it was a query I had in regards to cm, and self employment, really not worth you getting upset about

Colacubes, obviously I think it is worth getting upset about, otherwise I would have not gotten upset about it. You had a query, but you didn't listen to the answer that everyone gave you which was READ YOUR CONTRACT and honor what you agreed to. Instead you chose to disparage the setup that the woman who looks after your child has and that childminders in general have. That irritates me A LOT and I have expressed that irritation.

this subject never fails to rustle feathers - it is a sure cert for a row.

Sofia, alot of cyber shouting going on I feel, really not needed, if you read the thread you will see I asked a question and was given answers either for or against, I have my opinion, as you have yours.

Think you must have some issues with this subject yourself that you are transfering on to me, I will leave it there, and I thank you for your comments.

Out of interest....what DOES the contract say?

Hiya,

It can all get confusing, but it all depends on the contract you signed with your childminder...

You might want to visit www.lookforchildcare.co.uk for help on this...

I have been paying off a bally computer for 4 years now, and have in the meantime got a new one (paid with cash) and am no longer using the old one even... but am still paying for it... when I bought it I did not notice in the small small small print that I was stuck with the instalments and couldn't pay it off in one lump sum if I so wished.

It was MY mistake and wouldn't put me off buying an appliance again...

What people fail to realise is that childminders are their own boss, and fee structures do vary. Seeing as she/he will be such an important part of your life... do your homework!

NMCA are ENCOURAGING childminders to ask for paid holidays and I was even encouraged to ask for paid sick leave by my local borough Early Years advisor.

Many childminders do not take holidays or sick leave (and they NEED it, believe you me... do you realise how many holidays teachers get??? And from 1 September we are supposed to be more like nurseries ourselves with EYFS...), because they do not get paid enough through the year to be able to afford not being paid for holidays/sick leave.

I do not get paid sick leave and do charge pro rate for holidays, ie: if I mind a child one day a week, I ask for 2 paid holiday days annually.

I think this is more than fair, and none of my parents have had a problem with this. They read their contracts thankfully...

I'm surprised anyone wouldn't use a good childminder because of the holiday (assuming the alternative is nursery). A nursery won;t charge you for holidasy becasue they keep the place staffed for the whole year and charge you for that in the fee as a result they are (in our area at least) significantly more expensive. A childminder needs holidays the same as anyone else so she either take it and charges you or she doesn;t cahreg and includes the cots of it in her hourly fee. Swings and roundabouts. Most childminders (that I know) don't earn enough to take their hlidays unpaid and a good childminder in our area will always find parents to take her on her terms simly because they want their children to be there.

If they were rolling in dosh and taking the piss I might be annoyed about it but they're generally not.

It's a few years since I was a childminder - I never charged for my holidays and charged half for the parents holidays. The consequences of this being that I hardly ever took holidays because I couldn't afford to. My bills still needed paying if I wasn't working. My mortgage company don't give me a couple of weeks holiday a year.

I looked after 4 children from two families and for 4 years running the only time I had off was bank holidays (for which I charged half too) as their holidays weren't taken at the same time.

I never charged if I was off sick - which only happened 4 times in 10 years.

I'm now nannying and am SO happy that I get 5 weeks AND bank hols

well said Jennipenni and Sofia

jennipenni - sorry to correct you, but teachers do not get paid for their holidays. they are paid for 39 weeks of a year and this is split into 12 equal payments.

is that not the same!
teachers earn enough over the 39 weeks to not have to get another job for the other 13weeks surely?

Cascade, I am well aware of this, my close friend is a teacher.. but she is paid WAY more than me.

Nurseries have the same/similar policy, my mum had a nursery.

My contract states that my CM is entitled to take up to four weeks holiday a year, and I pay for it. I am quite happy to do this as she is a worker, a hard worker, and workers need holidays.

She doesn't charge for sick days but I actually do pay her for up to five sick days a year as a/she is hardly ever sick and b/I would hate it if she felt that she had to look after my child while she was sick because she needed the money.

To me, paying for sick days and holidays is a basic form of respect for a worker. (And I am self-employed myself, so I know how hard it can be.)

teachers are paid more as they have greater qualifications

Gosh if only all parents wee like you krang!!!

She must love you/looking after your dc.

i know of a couple of cms who gave up teaching to cm. does that make it ok for them to charge more!! i take 6 weeks a year, and charge half for 4. when i had a "proper job" i was on 6 weeks full pay.

I have 6 yrs nursery teaching experience, my sister has a primary school teachers degree and 10 years teaching experience - and we do not charge more than the average.

I guess my parents are happy they have someone who (perhaps) can do that much more in certain areas of their child's development than say, a mum who started childminding for some extra £££. With the EYFS coming into play my nursery experience has been invaluable, am used to observing, assessments etc.

i did not start minding just because i fancied earning a few extra ££££££££. i had a career before, i gave that up for a career in childcare. i have undertaken loads of training as have the majority of cms that i know.

Jilly, yes you are right, the courses I do now have loads of CMs like that, whether mums or not. I was responding to those that are teachers prior to doing childminding. The courses childminders have open to them are excellent

Hello everyone, I have seen my cm yesterday, she is now off for 2 weeks, but she informed me she wants paying her 2 weeks in advance, I normally pay at the end of each week. In fact she is very annoyed at me, because she wanted her 2 weeks money yesterday, 1 and 2 weeks early!

Honestly, I am beginning to think that it would easier to sell the kids!

I don't pay my childminder, it's a scheme from Sure Start, but they don't pay her for her holidays or sickness, she only gets paid if it is my holiday or sickness.

I agree with you, if they're self employed then they get paid for the work they do. I might have to think about becoming a childminder when I'm in a better place if they're getting employee benefits!

I think Cm seem to want it every which way.

They say they work for themselves, therfore they set the terms, but then they want holiday pay.

To the OP, I actually think 6 weeks notice that you will need alternatice childcare isn't long.

My CM charges for two of her four weeks holiday but not for the odd day off - she has had two odd days booked, and has two weeks hols soon. I was quite happy to pay her for all the hols, vbut apparently this is the first year that she has charged for some hols.

I had this discussion with my Mum who felt |I should not be paying her if she is not providing the service - she could not get her head round the fact that if you dont pay her for hols then she would be charging a higher daily rate - which amounts to the same thing really!

I use childcare vouchers, so whether I pay her £100 that week or £50 that week, it doesnt matter as both DH and I have £200 out of our wages taken to the voucher companies.

Colacubes, did you ever find out what it dd actually say in your contract?

I have a prob at minute with notice for leaving, one parent told me last night he would have to give x weeks notice...when in actual fact our contract clearly states y weeks(longer), they are also clever, proffesional individuals,..sometimes i wonder?, i have ahd probs time and time again over parents expecting to do something totally opposite of contract, demeaning to cm's tbh...oh and I HEART SofiaAmes ..so nice to have someone stick up for cm's