Why Do Daycare Centers Not Have 2nd Shift?

I am a little confused. I have been doing a search for daycares since this is now my only option since my family isn't available to care for my child. But I have noticed that where I live in NC there aren't any daycare centers that provide a real second shift (3pm to 11pm). Why is this? The only daycare service I can find are in-home daycares that are very dirty and unprofessional and 1 church daycare that is in an awful neighborhood. I am unable to change my work hours due to me having classes in the morning.

[pingaa3]

Because most really good daycares open between 6am and 7 am and close around 6-7pm. That is when the majority of parents need childcare, so that's when most providers are open.

After a 12 hour shift do you want to keep working until 4-5 more hours? Most in home providers have families and young children themselves. It's hard to find that kind of provider who is not burnt out and asleep by 11pm. I know I'm out by 10pm minimum and 9pm on a day that is really active and rough.

[lilbiddapopcorn]

I offer the second shift but i'm starting to rethink it. I've only gotten one client who needs care for her children that late. Most parents are off by then or have family who's off by then that can watch them for free. And after running around all day, it's nice to have some time off.

My husband and I started a child care business last August with the premise of offering second/third shift care. We were very excited and still are.

However, we've had a lot less interest then we had thought there would be. We have one child who comes and her mom is a nurse. We had a parent who worked third shift for awhile but she ran into money problems and even with state assistance couldn't afford child care anymore so now her family is helping her out. I think that factors in too.

When people look at okay so here is after hours care costs or here is seeing if I can get family to help out. They go towards family. Especially since a lot of family would be available at night since a large group work during the day and those who work at night or some work a retail/fast food job make only minimum wage and that means not much money to be able to afford child care. Its a crazy situation.

We're still offering second and third shift but have just recently opened up to saying we'll take daytime too. However, we're going to limit how many daytime children we take on. Because as someone else mentioned we have a family and don't want to "work" 24 hours a day. We run our child care out of our home and are keeping it small. Thankfully our current after hours child is part time so that will help if we take on days.

I'm sure the economy is also a factor. We had our rates a little higher since well our orignial thought if you work a second/third shift job in a factory you get paid a bit more so in turn care woudl be a bit more. However, we changed that quickly and went back to matching up with the average of the local daytime care around here.

Just wanted to offer what I had found as well. We're in Michigan.

Originally Posted by pingaa3

Because most really good daycares open between 6am and 7 am and close around 6-7pm. That is when the majority of parents need childcare, so that's when most providers are open.

After a 12 hour shift do you want to keep working until 4-5 more hours? Most in home providers have families and young children themselves. It's hard to find that kind of provider who is not burnt out and asleep by 11pm. I know I'm out by 10pm minimum and 9pm on a day that is really active and rough.

Why not get a second shift team at the center? I do not think the parent is expecting one worker to care for the kids for twelve or more hours, that would require another person taking over to relieve the day shift worker.
Some parents have special needs children and have to work an alternate schedule to take care of their kids, or for the employer to accomodate their needs.

[jen]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Why not get a second shift team at the center? I do not think the parent is expecting one worker to care for the kids for twelve or more hours, that would require another person taking over to relieve the day shift worker.
Some parents have special needs children and have to work an alternate schedule to take care of their kids, or for the employer to accomodate their needs.

I think what the poster was saying is that many IN HOME providers don't offer second shift because they have already worked a 12 hour day and centers don't usually offer it because there isn't enough interest to make it profitable.

Try contact your local Child Care Resource and Referral, they may be able to point you in the right direction.

[Kaddidle Care]

Originally Posted by LuckyOnes

I am a little confused. I have been doing a search for daycares since this is now my only option since my family isn't available to care for my child. But I have noticed that where I live in NC there aren't any daycare centers that provide a real second shift (3pm to 11pm). Why is this? The only daycare service I can find are in-home daycares that are very dirty and unprofessional and 1 church daycare that is in an awful neighborhood. I am unable to change my work hours due to me having classes in the morning.

Have you considered hiring someone to watch your child in your own home? That way the child can be put to bed at a normal hour. I'm trying to figure out when YOU get a chance to sleep.

[nannyde]

There's no money in it and it's a very unstable population of clients and workers. You can make money but it's a lot of work to get the RIGHT clients to make money.

There's a lot of issues of blending day shift into evening shift.... meaning clients needing both day hours and evening hours.

Lots of issues with clients when they are off of work still bringing the child and then going out... then not returning at the right time.

Parents want kids up until they get there however late that may be.

And on and on...

It's a tough shift. I did it for about fourteen years and had to really be very picky about who I took to make it work.

I did an early bedtime and charged additional fees for the earlier afternoon arrivals.

[cheerfuldom]

yes it is a really hard shift and plus, a lot of centers don't even offer it or only offer it if the demand can cover the overhead plus profit. Staying open for one kid is not even going to pay the worker let alone the extra electric bill, etc. It seems so easy for a parent to say "why can't someone do this for me?" but the bottom line is that daycare IS a business. It does not make business sense to offer a service that is not profitable.

I can't say that I've ever even heard of a center that does 2nd shift. I would think that there would be too many problems with it. Besides, who would want to work at a daycare center with 2nd shift hours?

I'm a home provider and I only do 1st shift. I used to do 3rd shift, too, but between those 2 shifts, I had very little time for myself and my family.

OP, you would be better off trying to find someone to come to your place and provide care. I just don't think that you'll find a center to meet those needs.

[Childminder]

I used to be open 24/7, only occasionally had call for 3rd shirt so I am only open for first and second now. I'm here anyway and the kids are in bed by 8ish or they don't come. There are very few of us that are open whether it's a center or family home. Like nanny said the group of people that work 2nd aren't as stable as we would like and personally they are the ones I am traditionally taking to court for payment. Second shift is usually bar waitstaff or some one that works retail and doesn't have a regular shift each and every week.

Definitely call your local Child Care Resource and Referral, they should have a data base for you to find hours you need. Not all homes are 'dirty and unprofessional' and all centers aren't perfect either. Maybe you could try craigslist or contact your church. Some little old lady might just love to watch your little one for a few extra bucks. Good luck.

The responses to the original post/question are so typical of people who have no understanding of lifestyles outside of their own. Working at night is a necessity for some people. Not everyone is married. Not everyone has family that has nothing to do but babysit for free. There is nothing at all wrong with not working a 9-5 job. The woman asked a simple question and got ridiculous judgmental comments. Be a little more open-minded, especially when someone is asking for help/resources. After all, it isn't 1950 anymore.

[christinaskids]

The people on this forum were merely explaining this as a business sense. If it don't make money, then it don't make sense right? You wouldn't want to go to work for an employer that you heard didn't pay you half the time.

I offer 24 hour daycare during the week and haven't had too many problems. I have one family with 3 little girls that is on state assistance and they are very well behaved. I have had a few drop ins but nothing as stable as a daytime fulltime child. It is ok as far as extra income, but not very stable at all. The only parent Ive had that had a problem paying so far was at night also. I really enjoy the night shift and really wish it was more stable so that I could only do the night shift and have the daytime free for appointments and my spending time with my son and taking naps but it just isn't happening so far.

As several people have stated, demand drives supply. We live in Ohio and send our son to an excellent daycare that provides service until 9pm. If you live in Vegas you can find plenty of 24 hour daycares. Once again it all comes down to demand.

[frgsonmysox]

My husband is military and we live in a military community (obviously) where mid shift and swing shifts are common. I'm planning to open up daycare in June and I'm considering advertising 24 hour care, in case my kids parents switch shifts. I'm only taking 3 kids in so I think it would work out okay.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Why not get a second shift team at the center? I do not think the parent is expecting one worker to care for the kids for twelve or more hours, that would require another person taking over to relieve the day shift worker.
Some parents have special needs children and have to work an alternate schedule to take care of their kids, or for the employer to accomodate their needs.

I agree. I live in northern VT and there is NOTHING in my area for 2nd shift child care. It's crazy! Parents work all different hours, so just because most parents work 9-5, I can't work because my job requires me to be there from 1pm to 8pm.

[itlw8]

if you are in large city you may find something near a hospital

[Ariana]

In my city of about 1 million people there are only two 24 hour care centres. Thats shows how low the demand is for this type of care. I also heard that staff turnover for the night shift is extremely high which would worry me as a parent.

I think you should keep looking for a home daycare that you like.

[AllDeezBabies]

I surely wished you lived in Chicago. I have second shift and it is hard finding clients. Try the Resource and Referral. I hope it works out for you.

[Childminder]

I have second shift and it is hard finding clients. Try the Resource and Referral. I hope it works out for you.

Me too. Keep reading all these requests and articles about lack of 2nd shift and just don't get it. I rarely get a call.

[Solandia]

I get a call for second shift about once/yr.

I am the ONLY licensed daycare that is licensed for second in my surrounding area, population of about 20-30K. There is virtually NO demand for second shift/third shift care for and we have 2 huge 24/7 factories, a distribution center for a major company, and a hospital in my area. I require the same payment & rules as my dayshift. $30/shift on contract or $40 drop in. These parents, in general, feel that is too much to pay to 'watch the kid sleep', and I am completely unwilling to do it for less. Especially since the odds of getting another kid on the same schedule is virtually impossible. Barely profitable( unprofitable if you calculate my time being worth anything whatsoever)..it is a stupid business decision that even I offer it at all.

[cheerfuldom]

We live in a University town that has a half dozen hospitals. There is a demand here but still, not much supply with home providers, very little with facilities. A lot of people do not like working 2nd and 3rd shift and that includes daycare workers. Owners might be willing to do it but you also need the staff necessary to provide this service.....it is not just about parent demand.

[Abigail]

My sister lives in a smaller sized town. They have one daycare center which does all day and evening shift. What they do is pretty neat. The daytime routines are typical of any traditional daycare center. Then once children start leaving around 4-5 pm they start condensing the rooms and sending home the workers. Parents are required to let the daycare center know how late they will be attending in advance with a 9 or so hour limit per day so they can schedule the correct amount of employees for the evening. 9 pm is the latest they stay open, but somedays they are closed at 6 because that is when the last child is scheduled to depart for the day.

I believe their is a need for evening childcare but a few factors keep it a hush hush topic. Parents don't want to pay extra for evening care and I completely understand. Parents also would prefer their family or friend to watch them because in the evenings it's nice to have the kids home and in their own bed so they're on schedule. Parents only ask a few daycares in town and give up looking. I've never heard of anyone locally bring evening childcare at an affordable price to the city board...........why not?! It's worth a shot and I think this is the only way to do it! I bet opening a daycare in any city like my sister's smaller-sized town would work. Like I said, parents just need to find what works and not jump through hoops trying to get a daycare professionally to stay open later hours.

Originally Posted by pingaa3

Because most really good daycares open between 6am and 7 am and close around 6-7pm. That is when the majority of parents need childcare, so that's when most providers are open.

After a 12 hour shift do you want to keep working until 4-5 more hours? Most in home providers have families and young children themselves. It's hard to find that kind of provider who is not burnt out and asleep by 11pm. I know I'm out by 10pm minimum and 9pm on a day that is really active and rough.

It's a shame though. We need 2nd shift childcare centers though. That is what I am going to school for. I am going to school for Early Childhood Education, and if I need to business. I want to open up my own childcare center for first and 2nd shift parents. I grew up in a home with a dad who worked literally 20 hours a day so, I know how it feels to be passed from babysitter to babysitter. My Grandma would watch us during the day but, she couldn't watch us @ night so in the brief window of time that he had before leaving to start his other job he would drop us off at home and then call whatever sitter he could get.
If there were more second shift childcare centers I don't think it would've been so hectic for him or a lot of the other parents who have try and find babysitters so they can go to work. Even that at times is frustrating because not many of them are really reliable.
Me I get up when my alarm gets me up. I do not go to bed until like midnight and then if I have to get up early I set my alarm. I think I have insomnia, I can't fall asleep unless I read or make myself tired.