Late for Aftercare PU

[Anonymous]

My child is in 4th grade and has done aftercare since Kindergarten. I think we've been minutes late for pickup maybe 5 times in 5 years. Even though we are talking a minute or 2 late depending on whose watch you look at, we cheerfully pay the $1 a minute late fee that they are diligent about imposing. This week I totally forgot spouse mentioned that I would need to pu (usually his job) one night b/c he had an important meeting. I am a DCPS teacher and was busy with end of year responsibilities at my own school when my principal decided to call an impromptu end of the year meeting that lasted 1 hour. Knocked me off. I forgot all about p.u. and received a phone call while still working at school. It was one of my DC's Aftercare teachers asking when I was going to arrive. It was 6:20. I was shocked! I apologized profusely and said I would leave immediately but that it would take close to 40 minutes to get there.

Aftercare person, who I'm friendly with and who lives down the street from school said "no worries. It's fine. I'll take him to my house and he can play with my son". Fine. Great! She is a sweetie anyway. I arrived at her house at 7:15 and asked how to resolve the fees and she said she didn't know. That my kid was a pleasure and having so much fun playing with her kid that she wished they had an extra hour together. (I sensed she know this would be a problem for management and was uncomfortable with it) I asked if she would get all the money from my late fee and she said "no. Aftercare gets half". That got me upset.

Fast forward to today when my husband goes to pick from aftercare and one of the people who I barely know, I think she is 2nd to the director (strikes me as cold and bossy) tells my husband he owes a dollar for every minute...$75. He said that the other Aftercare teachers were reluctant to discuss this issue with him (probably because we've known them for years and they like us and our DC and they know this has never ever happened before) .How can there be a $75 fee if our DC was only present at the school until 6:20 when the aftercare person got my permission to bring him home! I was going to buy her a thank you gift certificate, but if I have to pay this stupid fee, I will not do it. What would you do? Am I missing something here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is in 4th grade and has done aftercare since Kindergarten. I think we've been minutes late for pickup maybe 5 times in 5 years. Even though we are talking a minute or 2 late depending on whose watch you look at, we cheerfully pay the $1 a minute late fee that they are diligent about imposing. This week I totally forgot spouse mentioned that I would need to pu (usually his job) one night b/c he had an important meeting. I am a DCPS teacher and was busy with end of year responsibilities at my own school when my principal decided to call an impromptu end of the year meeting that lasted 1 hour. Knocked me off. I forgot all about p.u. and received a phone call while still working at school. It was one of my DC's Aftercare teachers asking when I was going to arrive. It was 6:20. I was shocked! I apologized profusely and said I would leave immediately but that it would take close to 40 minutes to get there.

Aftercare person, who I'm friendly with and who lives down the street from school said "no worries. It's fine. I'll take him to my house and he can play with my son". Fine. Great! She is a sweetie anyway. I arrived at her house at 7:15 and asked how to resolve the fees and she said she didn't know. That my kid was a pleasure and having so much fun playing with her kid that she wished they had an extra hour together. (I sensed she know this would be a problem for management and was uncomfortable with it) I asked if she would get all the money from my late fee and she said "no. Aftercare gets half". That got me upset.

Fast forward to today when my husband goes to pick from aftercare and one of the people who I barely know, I think she is 2nd to the director (strikes me as cold and bossy) tells my husband he owes a dollar for every minute...$75. He said that the other Aftercare teachers were reluctant to discuss this issue with him (probably because we've known them for years and they like us and our DC and they know this has never ever happened before) .How can there be a $75 fee if our DC was only present at the school until 6:20 when the aftercare person got my permission to bring him home! I was going to buy her a thank you gift certificate, but if I have to pay this stupid fee, I will not do it. What would you do? Am I missing something here?

Look, she did you a favor. As a teacher you know that it probably wasn't her doing. Pay the fee AND STILL get her a little something for her trouble. It was on oversight and you inconvenienced people. Be nice about it. It will come back to you.

[Anonymous]

IANAL, but guessing that since the aftercare person took your child home, they may have still had legal liability. Ergo you are charged.

It hurts, but lessons learned the hard way don't get forgotten.

Don't be late.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is in 4th grade and has done aftercare since Kindergarten. I think we've been minutes late for pickup maybe 5 times in 5 years. Even though we are talking a minute or 2 late depending on whose watch you look at, we cheerfully pay the $1 a minute late fee that they are diligent about imposing. This week I totally forgot spouse mentioned that I would need to pu (usually his job) one night b/c he had an important meeting. I am a DCPS teacher and was busy with end of year responsibilities at my own school when my principal decided to call an impromptu end of the year meeting that lasted 1 hour. Knocked me off. I forgot all about p.u. and received a phone call while still working at school. It was one of my DC's Aftercare teachers asking when I was going to arrive. It was 6:20. I was shocked! I apologized profusely and said I would leave immediately but that it would take close to 40 minutes to get there.

Aftercare person, who I'm friendly with and who lives down the street from school said "no worries. It's fine. I'll take him to my house and he can play with my son". Fine. Great! She is a sweetie anyway. I arrived at her house at 7:15 and asked how to resolve the fees and she said she didn't know. That my kid was a pleasure and having so much fun playing with her kid that she wished they had an extra hour together. (I sensed she know this would be a problem for management and was uncomfortable with it) I asked if she would get all the money from my late fee and she said "no. Aftercare gets half". That got me upset.

Fast forward to today when my husband goes to pick from aftercare and one of the people who I barely know, I think she is 2nd to the director (strikes me as cold and bossy) tells my husband he owes a dollar for every minute...$75. He said that the other Aftercare teachers were reluctant to discuss this issue with him (probably because we've known them for years and they like us and our DC and they know this has never ever happened before) .How can there be a $75 fee if our DC was only present at the school until 6:20 when the aftercare person got my permission to bring him home! I was going to buy her a thank you gift certificate, but if I have to pay this stupid fee, I will not do it. What would you do? Am I missing something here?

Look, she did you a favor. As a teacher you know that it probably wasn't her doing. Pay the fee AND STILL get her a little something for her trouble. It was on oversight and you inconvenienced people. Be nice about it. It will come back to you.

Agree 100%. You pay fee as u were late. You also get thank you for teacher that took your child home. She did you a HUGE favor. I think technically she could call police 30m after closing. You need to separate the fact of who gets the fee. It is not relevant. What is relevant is you were 75m late and owe $75. Additionally a teacher did a major favor by not calling police when grace period was up. You got very lucky and should be gracious....and rushing to pay fee from embarrassment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is in 4th grade and has done aftercare since Kindergarten. I think we've been minutes late for pickup maybe 5 times in 5 years. Even though we are talking a minute or 2 late depending on whose watch you look at, we cheerfully pay the $1 a minute late fee that they are diligent about imposing. This week I totally forgot spouse mentioned that I would need to pu (usually his job) one night b/c he had an important meeting. I am a DCPS teacher and was busy with end of year responsibilities at my own school when my principal decided to call an impromptu end of the year meeting that lasted 1 hour. Knocked me off. I forgot all about p.u. and received a phone call while still working at school. It was one of my DC's Aftercare teachers asking when I was going to arrive. It was 6:20. I was shocked! I apologized profusely and said I would leave immediately but that it would take close to 40 minutes to get there.

Aftercare person, who I'm friendly with and who lives down the street from school said "no worries. It's fine. I'll take him to my house and he can play with my son". Fine. Great! She is a sweetie anyway. I arrived at her house at 7:15 and asked how to resolve the fees and she said she didn't know. That my kid was a pleasure and having so much fun playing with her kid that she wished they had an extra hour together. (I sensed she know this would be a problem for management and was uncomfortable with it) I asked if she would get all the money from my late fee and she said "no. Aftercare gets half". That got me upset.

Fast forward to today when my husband goes to pick from aftercare and one of the people who I barely know, I think she is 2nd to the director (strikes me as cold and bossy) tells my husband he owes a dollar for every minute...$75. He said that the other Aftercare teachers were reluctant to discuss this issue with him (probably because we've known them for years and they like us and our DC and they know this has never ever happened before) .How can there be a $75 fee if our DC was only present at the school until 6:20 when the aftercare person got my permission to bring him home! I was going to buy her a thank you gift certificate, but if I have to pay this stupid fee, I will not do it. What would you do? Am I missing something here?

hey, after care closed at 6pm, so you should have been there no later than 5.55pm. you arrived at 7.15, one hour and 15 minutes later! And not because you had a car accident or a major emergency, but simply because you "forgot". I hope you understand this is not really a good reason for such a delay. If I did something like that I would be so ashamed that I would pay the school AND give the teacher a gift of similar value (giftcard to movies or something similar she can enjoy with her child). the teacher was not your personal babysitter who picked up your child for you, she was stuck with your child until 7.15 because you could not come sooner, it seems perfectly normal that the school is charging you for the full time. Giving the teacher a gift seems just a decent thing to so given the major problem you gave her. BTW schools charge a steep price for delays otherwise people would just consider it an extension of daycare that could use when convenient, instead of realizing that daycare workers have families and obligations too and cannot be stuck with kids because parents "forget". I am just appalled that you are a teacher, you should know better. what you did is really bad and paying is the least you can do.

[Anonymous]

Why do you have to go there? Really? Thanks for the admonishment. Yes. You nailed it Einstein. I'm a terrible person and don't deserve to live. Feel better?

[Anonymous]

It sucks. But you are lucky. They could have called CPS.

Our school charges more than than $1 a minute.

[Anonymous]

I disagree - the aftercare person who offer to take your child home was then acting as a babysitter - not aftercare.

The $1 a minute is while at aftercare. When your child left - clock stops. If something happened at the persons' house - aftercare would not be liable.

[Anonymous]

Of course you pay the full fee to the aftercare program. And the kind aftercare person took your son home so that she or some other aftercare staff person wouldn't have to stay at school waiting with him. Yes, it was kind but it was still aftercare. Plus, think about your child. It's much less traumatic for him to wait for mommy at the home of someone he likes than waiting at school where all the other children have gone. Much less stress Causing fo your boy. THAT is why you get her a gift in addition. Your childish declaration that if you have to pay aftercare $75 you won't get the aftercare "friend" a gift is so ridiculous and petty.

[Anonymous]

I would right a check with the date and time that your child was at aftercare - Late fee for June 2nd 6:01 - 6:25, and give it to aftercare tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I disagree - the aftercare person who offer to take your child home was then acting as a babysitter - not aftercare.

The $1 a minute is while at aftercare. When your child left - clock stops. If something happened at the persons' house - aftercare would not be liable.

Don't be so sure. I'm sure the aftercare program would be named in such a suit. Even if the program is found not liable, they'd spend thousands on legal fees proving it.

[Anonymous]

Pick your battles carefully, OP.

[Anonymous]

Your friend only took you son home so she (or any other staff member) could avoid sitting at school with him for an hour. They did you a favor by giving your son a different environment in which to wait. I'm guessing the after care director instructed the staff member to pay attention to what time you finally arrived so they could charge appropriately. They really did do you a favor and coming up with this alternative. Dont take a stand and be petty. Next time this happens just let your kid sit waiting for you, full of anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Pay and get a small gift/gift card for the after care worker who took your child home. $100 is a small price to pay for your child having been well cared for (unexpectedly) for more than an hour.

[Anonymous]

Don't nickel and dime them, OP--not worth it. Just don't be late next time.