Day care centers at gyms may not be licensed by the state.
Buyer Beware! When signing up for gym memberships, we are often sold on the "quality daycare" they provide while you work-out. You probably even ask all the right questions about care-giver to child ratios, CPR certifications, first-aid certifications, etc and in return, get all the right answers. However, one key piece of information is usually not disclosed during this process because it is not a selling point. Gyms are not regulated and thus are not required to follow the standard guidelines put into place for licensed day-care facilities. It is perfectly within their rights to claim they follow these guidelines, but at the end of the day, they are not required to.
So even if you ask the questions and get all the right answers that make you feel your child is going to be in a safe environment with an appropriate number of care-givers based on their age, think again. This story is a sad one. The parents thought they were paying for quality child-care, but were not given all the information.
The only way we can ensure that our children are in an environment that is regulated and required to meet the same minimum standards as licensed day care facilities is to make ourselves heard. Please take the time to write your State Senator responsible. In California, we can contact State Sen. Leland Yee. He is chair of the Human Services Committee, which oversees the department that licenses day cares.
Childcare is childcare and we must make sure that our children are being well cared for when we are not with them. When we are paying for a facility to provide childcare, we are relying on them to provide qualified care givers that meet certain requirements and to keep our children safe.
