Causes of Daycare Staff Turnover in the U.S.

 Some of the staff are so hard to deal with.

                                                                           What do you mean?

I don’t know. They just do whatever they want.

    

                                                                         ...

This is a conversation I overheard between my manager and a coworker when I used to work at a daycare.

            This conversation sparked when an earlier incident happened with a little boy who did not understand the manager's directions. She yelled at him and didn’t let him play with the other children. I saw no wrong in his actions, so I let him play with some toys. She noticed my sympathy for him and my choice of allowing him to play. Later, I heard how she was negatively speaking about me and other staff to another coworker, which made me feel frustrated. Being poorly talked about affects people’s mental health and makes them question their abilities and self-worth, especially when they are genuinely enjoying their job and have confidence in what they are doing. Only hearing negative judgments as an employee causes them to feel helpless and trapped which then gives them a desire to leave. Management that does not provide encouragement or direct feedback causes staff turnover in the United States. This should be crucial, especially in a childcare setting. 

     

                Causes of Employee Burnout

Reasons why staff turnover happens 

            Stress and burnout are one of the main causes of staff turnover during the Covid-19 pandemic. Even after teachers needed to work from home post pandemic, they are still building up their programs and trying to get the resources and support they need. This could explain the reason as to why the manager at the daycare was rude to the staff and was easily bothered. In the journal, they created a survey where the most frequently reported topics were health and safety and not so much self-care and equity in the job itself. This is concerning because having high daycare staff turnover can impact levels of experience and training which then leads new staff to be less familiar with established health and safety protocols. This relates back to the stress being caused because everyone is worried about each other's health and forgetting to take care of themselves. When I worked at the daycare we ended up going back to wearing masks due to the amount of children and teachers testing positive for Covid. 

How to fix staff turnover

In a childcare setting, encouraging a we are all in this together mindset helps everyone know they are a team and no one is alone in any challenges they face. When the United States House of Representatives approved the HEROES Act, it included $57 billion to support child care and brought feelings of hope and thoughts of appreciation to child care workers. This includes recognition from media outlets calling teachers and child care workers “essential workers” when talking about their dedication and stable routines along with mentioning parents to go to work or work from home. Creating a high-quality program where commitment to excellence is prioritized at all times is key. This includes involving families and working together as a team. Developing a relationship with your manager and coworker is effective because it demonstrates passion and excitement when coming to work. Including frequent breaks and encouraging self-care moments is important when trying to reduce stress at work. Along with providing mental health resources is helpful for learning to deal with stress. Communicating effectively also plays a major role when working in childcare. Having that communication allows for more ideas to flow and encouragement. For instance, my manager should’ve talked to me directly about my decision of letting the child play with the toys after she just yelled at him. Discussing these topics gives opportunities to view others perspectives and opinions. 

                                                                            Daycare

How daycare staff turnover affects children

            Daycare staff turnover affects the children at the daycare because they can see and hear how the manager talks to the staff. This does not set a good example for them when they start to work later in their lives. After children become comfortable and build a relationship with the teacher, the teacher ends up leaving due to how poorly they are being treated by the manager or even their coworkers. For me, I loved working with children and the other teachers so leaving them after being treated so badly by my manager was heartbreaking. 

     Figure 6

  In 2019, there was a study done to show the rates of high turnover by center director characteristics. The management training within centers with directors and without professional development or any coursework management had no differences in their rates. Although, there are much higher turnover rates in centers with directors that had less experience working with children under 13 years old. These high percentages of staff turnover affects children because it disrupts emotional bonds by continuously having frequent changes in staff. It makes it difficult for them to create a trusting relationship with their teacher if they are continuously leaving. This causes mixed routines for children and challenging transitions. Children get used to expectations, activities, and schedules but once that teacher leaves and a new teacher comes in, those children have to learn a whole new dynamic.