This Could Be A Long One....

[Guest]

I shall set the scene:

 

I am the manager of a day nursery with 3 rooms;

I am not the owner, and the nursery is owned by a large company;

When I started at the setting it was, to be perfectly honest - awful!

It still has a long way to go, but it's tons and tons better than it was. I have put a lot of hard work, sweat and tears into it, and continue to do so;

My line managers know this, and are continually thanking me;

Another senior staff member is doing a uni course 1 day a week. She is allowed this day out of work, and still gets her full wages - which are huge. This was agreed before my time;

She is not coping with all the work she needs to do for her course, and it is clearly showing in her work, and more in particular, her attitude. She has had 4 complaints made about her by other staff, and has had a verbal warning;

She has gone above me and requested a 2nd day out of work to study from home. This has been allowed - and her wages remain the same;

This has put a lot of pressure on the person who she works in the room with, who is only an assistant, and has put a huge pressure on the whole team, as we are now a staff member down 2 days a week;

The company I work for are known country wide to have the child at the centre of everything they do. Where is the child in all of this??

 

My assistant wrote her worries down in a letter, and I took it to my line manager who said that she had no sympathy for the assistant, and if she didn't like it she could leave. I also put across my point of view quite strongly, and was told that she could see my views, but it has been agreed so can't be retracted;

Today was the study day, and apart from her being off, we had 2 more staff off due to sickness, but I have been told that I can't call her in on her study day, as it would be unfair. So instead, the children's safety was compromised - which I will not tolerate. I rang the staff member on study leave at 10am to ask a question about a child, and she sounded like she had just plopped out of bed.

 

I am furious about all of this as it has left the nursery scrabbling through the day 2 days a week - with everyone stressed out, and hoping that 6pm will come without any critical incidents. How are we ever going to get good quality when we have to operate like this??

 

Anyway, things get worse:

 

I started the EYPS last week. It is the validation route so I only have 4 days at uni and 1 setting visit. It was all agreed and my transformation fund application posted. Last week I started day 1, and it all went well (a little daunting in the timescale allowed perhaps, but nevertheless);

 

THEN... on Monday, my line manager comes into nursery, and starts to talk to me whilst I am changing a child's nappy, and says that she 'suggests' I defer as I have too much work to do at nursery.

 

I am LIVID. I cannot abide unfairness and inequality. I have made the decision as an intelligent adult that I would like to do the course, and that I am able to do it. And how good would it be for the nursery to have an EYPS so early on in the course, etc, etc, etc.

Not only that, but the uni pay for supply coverwhilst I am on the course, so the nursery won't be left short staffed. We're not getting supply cover for the other staff member when she is at uni or on study leave.

 

Once my line manager said her piece she walked out, leaving me opened mouthed in shock. I have always conveyed to my staff that interaction with the children is paramount, and I think she was bang out of order to 'drop the bomb' whilst I was engaged with a child.

 

Apart from being livid I was also tremedously upset. I came home that night and wrote a brilliant letter of complaint to her, and then got up the next morning and went to my uni course!!!! If she disputes it further then I will go above her. A precedent has been set in the nursery already and I am not going to have inequality in my setting.

 

I have yet to see her, and may well be sacked by the end of the week - but there is no way I am going to let her treat me like that. If another staff member said that they wanted to attend uni, I would fully expect them to be granted permission - seeing as 1 staff member already has.

 

Thank-you to those of you who managed to make it all the way through to the end of the post (!!). I feel better already.

[Guest]

I really sympathise with you Shelley. I think that unfairness is so frustrating and you are right to voice your opinion. I think all too often we keep quiet and things don't change. I hope by using your voice things will change for the better... and if they don't you know you have been true to yourself by making your point known. Good luck with it!

[Susan]

Dont have any words of comfort for you Shelley except to say that I understand why you feel as you do.

Hope things sort out as you dont need this on top of the other stresses. Good luck.

[Guest]

I can see why you are so livid

 

Quite a few issues here.

 

1/ Decisions made by senior level have not been discussed / agreed with day to day managers, thus leaving a feeling of resentment by whole staff team because of their implications to day to day work.

 

2/ Confidentiality, does the whole staff team know about the differences between company and management, this will cause upset. Even if decisions are wrong, they should not be widely known for everyone to discuss. best handled only by people ( management) concerned.

 

3/ inequality and unfairness is unjust and should be challenged, however, the 'company' know why they made their decisions and shouldn't always have to justify them. The issue of your EYPS should be addressed as an individual you should challenge the way that agreements about you have not been supported and ask for clarification and staff cover and the company to honour the agreement they have with you and the T. fund payers. This shouldn't be linked to the other persons issues. try to keep it seperate otherwise they will see your complaints as sour grapes, which they are not.

 

4/ The ratio should be maintained to cover any absence, whether it be sickness or training.

 

5/ The other senior member has paid uni time and paid study time, the issue here is whether this is available ( under whatever conditions such as length of service etc) to others under the companies training and professional development policy. If this is not, then there is a case for complaint under the equal opportunities policy. How she spends this time is up to the 'company' to monitor, unless they have given you this responsibility. if they have, then they should listen to you if you feel she/he is not keeping to the terms of her contract.

 

 

I am trying to offer an outside view, not to critisize or undermine your genuine and understandable feelings of being totally unnapreciated and dealt with unfairly. I am only suggesting that you take each issue as a seperate one and handle, challenge, ignore or query each one in it's own unique aspects, otherwise it just builds up into a long string of lots of bad things that equal total dissatisfaction.

 

taken seperately some issues can be dealt with quickly and then staff can 'move on' so to speak, others can be discussed ( such as policy review) and amended and others may require more challenge and possibly formal complaint.

 

You are cross for yourself and as an advocate for your staff team, this is hard, and sometimes the 'bosses' don't, for whatever reason let you see the full picture behind some of their decisions.

 

Reading your last paragraph, i don't beleive all staff should be offered the same training opportunities,however, your company should have clear policy on criteria for study etc, some of my staff I will support through certain studies, others I won't this is not about equality of opportunity but about the needs of my preschool, I also know which of my staff are commited to the setting and which ones would gladely get paid time off to study only to leave once they have their qualification. I am not a training centre I am a business which can't afford to train people for them to 'move on'. However, I make my training policy very clear to all my staff so there are no misunderstandings or feelings of preferencial treatment.

 

Have a 'seperate' chat to them about ratio's being maintained during sickness and study times.

 

sorry if i've gabbled a bit, I hope you get everything sorted soon, and keep up with your EYPS, the company should have to support this now the T funding has been allocated.( I would think).

 

Peggy

[Guest]

That does not sound fair on you Shelley - well done for sticking up for yourself, I'm sure everyone on here is behind you. good luck.

[Guest]

Wow Shelley I remember when you first started posting on this forum and you had such brilliant, enthusiastic ideas and seemed excited and eager - to hear this from you now is really horrible. I personally think they don't deserve you at that nursery and I cannot believe that you are not being encouraged and supported fully to pursue the EYPS.

It seems preferential that the other member of staff is able to have a study day, what is that all about?? As an outsider it appears that there are other issues going on there, is the manager unaware that the decisions she has made could be detrimental to the provision you are offering?

 

Shelley I really feel for you, you have worked sooo hard and this is unfair, be strong and stick up for yourself, I am sorry that any professional direction is lacking in my post, but I feel emotive tonight and I am MAD for you, so I am sending you empathetic rage and sympathy and strength to keep fighting your corner, and don't forget time does it's stuff and tomorrow it may seem a little less maddening and by this time next week, you may hopefully of resolved the whole issue.

 

Good luck.

[Guest]

Sometimes Shelley the "bosses" are unaware of the true situation and leave it to the managers. Perhaps put your concerns in writing as you have done so here so well and send it to them -if you know who the bosses are. Is there a regional manger you can approach. Stick in as I think you are right and do not give up on the EYP -the time is right for you now.

[hali]

i agree with the others - keep at it and them

[Marion]

It does seem very unfare! Good Luck let us know how you progress

[Guest]

Went back to my line manager after much crying at home (my boyfriend really does put up with a lot!!), and said that I want to continue with the course, and that I believe I am able to achieve the EYPS.

 

I said that it would not affect my work - and that I felt hurt that she would even suggest that it would, as I take my job very seriously and put more than 100% into it - both at work and often at home too.

 

I was waiting for her to say 'no' and was going to go down the equal opps route, etc, but it didn't come to that, and she said (whilst breaking out into a sweat), that as long as I was sure, then that was ok.

 

I still feel like my staff would like to know what the policy on training is, as they are all feeling both confused and somewhat agrgreaved about the other staff member getting both a uni and a study day. I am going to ask for one at my next supervision - should be fun as it is quite obvious to me that they are making it up as they go along!!

[Sue R]

Hi Shelley,

 

Sorry not to have responded before, but here's my heartfelt support as well! Good luck with everything,

 

Sue

[hali]

good for you