Childminder holiday entitlement - 5 weeks full pay?!

[lizzie0975]

Hi everyone,
First time poster here, shout if I'm doing anything wrong!
Sorting out a childminder for my 9month old. She's asking for 5 weeks full holiday pay, plus bank holidays, plus 10 days sick pay should the need arise.
This seems unfair to me. Aren't I using her services and if she can't provide it because she's on hols I shouldn't have to pay? Would obviously expect to pay if we went on holiday when she's available. Really don't want to be difficult as she's great!

I think the sickpay is a good idea. The thing with being ordinarily self-employed is that your clients don't normally make you ill. Every illness I've had whilst minding has been brought in by the mindees themselves. It's tough enough trying look after all the kids without feeling like death, too.
I wonder if the sickpay is designed to make parents think twice before dosing up sick children and sending them in to spread their germs around. I'd be interested to know if it works!

OOOO I think I would like 5 wks paid holidays and 10 sick days a year and bank hols too sounds fab

Never come accross a CM with that many perks before, I would strongly suggest you have a ring around and see what the going rates are, as a very wise MN said it is going to cost you a pretty penny if you need to double up on care not to mention your own time of work.

Tanith sounds like you get disguised poorly mindees as well might think on the sick pay thing myself, although I might be tempted to chuck a sicky if I was getting paid anyway only kidding.

Hi, My childminder told me she can't look after my daughter from september. I decided to end the contract earlier because she is away for 2 weeks in the Summer, and anyway my husband is home to look after the children. I gave her 6 weeks notice as per the contract, and now she says I have to pay her holiday pay because she is 'owed' it. She says she is entitled to 28 days holiday - my daughter only attends 3 days per week so in effect that would be 9 weeks paid holiday per year. I told the childminder surely she means 4 weeks? But she disagrees. Now, because the CM has only had 7 days so far, she says I have to pay her 21 days. My sums indicate that if I paid her this sum it would be the equivalent of 7 weeks pay and there's only 9 weeks left to the end of the contractual year! With only a week to go until the end of the notice period, I'm really worried about how to broach this with her. She is a very business-like person and can be very unreasonable at times. She sends text messages whilst I'm at work, repeating them 2-3 times until I reply; Also, she charges FULL PAY for all time off - both hers and ours, incl. sick leave and bank holidays. So I have actually paid in full for every week of the contract, and what she is asking for sounds like I have to pay her twice? Has anybody had a similar experience and have any advice for me, please?

Your contract should answer the question - see what it says

Every childminder is different. If your childminder offers holiday care, then they are entitled to have at least 4 weeks off and bank holidays if they want.
If you don't want to pay for your childminder's holidays then you need to find a childminder that only does term-time care and does not charge a retainer.
But of course you won't have cover for holidays.
Swings and roundabouts comes to mind

Hi i am a childminder and just reading these threads im a little confused as to some people saying childminders are entitle to sick pay if you read the small print on the ncma contracts as far as im aware you cant charge when the childminder is ill because you are closed and can not provide childcare for your mindee's.

Also some people say were not entitle to holiday pay what a load of rubbish it states this on the back of the contract ,plus its then up to the childminder if they charge full/half/or no fee at all for holidays everyone is different.

Please tell me different if i have got it wrong!

Some childminders actually make their own contracts and don't use NCMA or Morton Michael, so they can basically say what they like as it's their business.
I prefer to use NCMA myself

dd's cm charges a 50% retainer when not being used and doesnt ask for holiday pay or sick pay at all!her daily rate is £25 and she is superb[an ex Norland nanny].

I think its a case of you pay for what you want, and if youre not happy then look elsewhere.
My CM gets 4 weeks paid hols plus BH, but no sick pay (although in 4 years think she has been sick once).
FWIW she normally offers to have ds even in her holiday time if im stuck and as shes going away for her hols in august her daughter and her mother have offered to help with ds
She works long hours for me, and sometimes days shes not contracted to work so I grin and bear the 4 weeks full pay because we help each other out IYKWIM

Lizzy, are you from Wandsworth ???

mummy369 - you should only owe her 3/5ths of the holiday pay and if you have been with her for less than a year than that should be pro-rata. Not sure if that helps!

Well my CM won't accept holiday pay. But the same token, we still pay if we are on holiday, so it probably works out OK in the end because we are away for about 6 weeks a year. No sick pay either - though of course I still pay if ds ill and staying at home.

I think I pay about £4 an hour.

Surely her 28 days per year is prorated for non full time children so she would be owed 28/5x3????? You need to check through your contract carefully what does it say with regard to paid holidays.