Ensuring the health, safety and well-being of our children, families and team members remains our highest priority. The news, as we all know, is changing rapidly. We are working with state Departments of Health and closely monitoring local, state and national developments pertaining to the Coronavirus.
For more information on the Coronavirus, please visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus.
And please bookmark this page for future reference.
Our Latest Update
Updated June 29, 2020
Dear Teammate,
With the Fourth of July holiday quickly approaching, we wanted to inform all team members of the CDC’s updated travel and quarantine recommendations.
To ensure the safety of our teammates, children and our greater community, The Sunshine House will be observing all CDC and state travel mandates – both for the Fourth of July and through this national pandemic.
What does this mean?
- If you travel internationally, you are required to quarantine for 14 days before returning to work.
- If you are traveling to a known Coronavirus hot spot, you may be required to quarantine for 14 days before returning to work. Please check with your state or local government to determine whether you are required to stay home for 14 days after traveling to a particular area. State and local mandates change rapidly, so please pay attention to local news for the most up-to-date information.
- If you are traveling outside your local community, please adhere to the CDC’s latest guidance on travel, including considerations for types of travel.
CDC Guidelines on US Travel:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/travel-in-the-us.html
CDC Guidelines on International Travel:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/after-travel-precautions.html
For your safety, we urge our teammates to delay travel to Coronavirus hot spots. However, if you are traveling outside your general community during this pandemic, please inform your supervisor. Please help us ensure everyone is safe.
Our thoughts continue to be with our team members, families and anyone in our communities dealing with the impacts of COVID-19, and we wish them a speedy and complete recovery.
If you have team members without access to company email, please ensure this information is shared with everyone.
If you have any questions, please contact your supervisor.
Updated April 13, 2020
Dear Teammate,
As beloved TV personality Mister Rogers said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”
The helpers are you.
Thank you to our essential workers – YOU – who are making sacrifices every day to support our communities and our children during this Coronavirus fight.
You are providing a vital service to families, particularly to critical workers keeping our communities healthy and safe. People are depending on us – on you – and you have answered the call.
Your dedication, commitment and courage deserve our deepest gratitude. Your service to children, especially during these uncertain times, makes an indelible impact on us all. And we quite literally couldn’t keep going without you.
We want to see you and say thank you! Send us a photo of yourself and/or your co-workers, so we can say “Thank you.”
To say the last few weeks have been challenging is an understatement. Please stay safe and take time to care for yourself. We continue to look forward to the time when all our families and teammates can celebrate being together once again.
Updated April 8, 2020
Dear Teammates,
In these challenging times, we realize many of us want to thank one another or express gratitude. Oftentimes, we do this through food.
But for the safety of all our children, families and teammates, we cannot permit ANY outside food to be brought into our schools. This includes cupcakes or cookies for birthdays, thank you lunches or snacks for teachers, etc.
We must observe these strict safeguards and take all possible precautions to keep everyone safe.
If you have any questions, please contact your supervisor or email us at hello@sshouse.com. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during these uncertain times.
Updated March 27, 2020
If you were enrolled in our health insurance benefits and were recently laid off due to the Coronavirus, you will receive a packet in the mail from a company called Wage Works with COBRA options to continue your insurance, if desired.
Typically, eligible employees would receive a packet in the mail in 45 days or less. However, Wage Works is processing an increased number of COBRA mailings due to an historic increase in national unemployment. We’ve contacted our representative to research options and are pleased to inform you there is an online option available!
You will still receive your COBRA packet in the mail. However, you don’t have to wait. The quickest way to elect COBRA is to set-up an online account and make your benefit selections.
How do I set-up an online account?
- Go to the Benedirect website.
- Select Click to Register on the right side of the main page, under Participant Login.
- On the registration page, enter your first name, last name, zip code, and Social Security Number. This information must match your employer records.
- If needed, you can verify your information on ADP.
- If you have lost your ADP user ID or password, just click Forgot Your User ID/Password on the login screen and follow the prompts.
- Click Submit.
- After your username and password are accepted, you will be returned to the main page.
- Enter your new username and password under the Participant Login to access the website.
Once you’ve created your online account, you can review and elect coverage, view health plan information or make a premium payment. Retroactive coverage is also available. This is very helpful if you incurred medical expenses after you were laid off, but before you received your COBRA information.
What if I have issues or questions about setting up my online account?
If you need assistance, please contact the COBRA Client Services team at 866-347-0957 or cobraclientservice@wageworks.com. Unfortunately, The Sunshine House Human Resources department is unable to help troubleshoot the Benedirect website.
Updated March 24, 2020
For employees impacted by a recent layoff or reduction in hours due to the Coronavirus pandemic, please read the following state-specific information regarding unemployment benefits:
SOUTH CAROLINA
We encourage you to apply for unemployment benefits immediately.
- Visit the South Carolina Unemployment website.
- Have the following information available when you log-in:
- Your Social Security Number
- Wage information for the last 18 months
- The Sunshine House's FEIN: 57-1000178
If you need additional assistance, please view the online tutorial with step-by-step instructions.
GEORGIA
If you work in the state of Georgia and your center has closed or your hours have been reduced, your employer may be able to file unemployment for you -- which should expedite your payments.
- We will file an unemployment claim for you to expedite your payments.
- Before you receive your funds, you will need to select how you prefer to receive these funds -- direct deposit to your bank account or Way2Go Debit MasterCard.
- To make your selection, login to the Georgia Department of Labor website.
- A personal identification number (PIN) is required. If you have a PIN with the Department of Labor already established, please use it.
- If you do not have a PIN, the Department of Labor will mail you a letter (DOL-8475) containing your PIN.
If you do not receive the letter or forget your PIN, please do the following:
- Go to dol.georgia.gov.
- Select Claim Weekly UI Benefits Payments. You will NOT claim benefits. This online application allows you to establish a new PIN.
- Enter your Social Security Number.
- Leave the field labeled “If you have already set up a PIN, enter it here” blank.
- Enter a 4-digit PIN of your choice in the field labeled “If you need to set up a PIN, enter it here.”
- Re-enter your 4-digit PIN in the field labeled “Reenter for verification.”
- Click on the Submit button.
NORTH CAROLINA
In North Carolina, you can file for unemployment in two ways. If you are having difficulty filing online, you can file by phone.
- https://des.nc.gov/apply-unemployment
- Or call 888-372-3453
ALL OTHER STATES
This past week, the Federal government enacted changes to unemployment to waive the one week waiting period and speed up benefits for those employees affected.
Links for employees working in other states are provided below.
Links to State Unemployment Websites
CO https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdle/unemployment
FL https://www.stateofflorida.com/articles/florida-unemployment/
OH https://unemployment.cmt.ohio.gov/cmtview/ojic1a.jsp
TN https://www.tn.gov/workforce/unemployment/apply-for-benefits.html
TX https://twc.texas.gov/jobseekers/unemployment-benefits-services
UT https://jobs.utah.gov/ui/home
Updated March 24, 2020
As you know, we are in unprecedented times. After much thought and consideration, we are making the very difficult decision to temporarily close many of our schools.
If your school is temporarily closing, you will be notified individually.
It is our intention to re-open as soon as possible. We will contact you as soon as we have more information on when we plan on re-opening.
We appreciate your patience and understanding during this ever-changing, unprecedented time.
Updated March 23, 2020
Last week was heart-wrenching for our company, teammates, and families. I know you are worried about your health and livelihood, your family’s wellbeing, and your community. In the midst of all this, you have been asked to take care of children, ease parents’ and co-workers’ concerns, and manage a school in the middle of a national crisis.
We have been forced to make some very difficult decisions. Decisions we never thought we would be forced to make.
- So far, we have laid off 90% of our corporate and support staff. Our corporate office is operating at a bare minimum, like you, to continue providing support.
- We have been forced to close numerous schools where virtually no children were attending.
- We have temporarily frozen PTO.
Why? Because we did not have a choice. If we do not have children attending, we do not have income. And without income, we cannot afford to keep schools open or continue to pay employees.
We will inevitably be forced to do more. We will shorten hours or close some schools that lack attendance. We will be forced to temporarily lay off more teammates. I realize this is not the news you want. It is not news I want to share, but it is reality. It is scary. It is devastating. It is not fair. And you did not do anything wrong. No one did.
So why are we asking so much? Because we need The Sunshine House to survive through this, even if we are limping and gasping when we cross the finish line and return to normalcy. We have 2,500 employees and 15,000 families across the country that count on us, on you, every single day. Not just last week, or this week, or a month from now. But 6 months from now. A year from now.
We need a company everyone can come back to when we get past this national crisis. If we shut a door today -- our intention is to shut it TEMPORARILY, so we do not have to shut it PERMANENTLY later. Our goal is to bring everyone and everything back as soon as we can. These sacrifices, while very difficult, are intended to give us all the best chance of survival.
Many of you have asked what you can do to help. There is something you can do, and it will only take a few minutes:
Our lawmakers are currently deliberating on an economic stimulus package. We are urging them to include childcare providers, like us, in this stimulus package.
- Click on this link to contact Congress.
- You will be prompted to enter your name and home address to pull up the contact information for your local representatives.
- A draft email will be immediately generated for your review.
- Submit the email to petition your congressional representatives to support our industry.
We will continue to update you as the situation unfolds. We will get through this together. We need everyone to make that happen. And that means we need you. Please do your best to hang on.
Hang in there,
Wes Wooten
President
Updated March 22, 2020
For many families, we know childcare is essential. And we remain committed to providing care to our families that need it and ensuring our teammates continue to have employment, while making modifications to our programs and taking additional precautions to protect the health of our students, staff and families.
Given the current situation and lower attendance at some of our schools, we’ve made the difficult decision to make a temporary change to some of our operating hours. This change allows us to make staffing and scheduling changes to keep our school open.
If your school's hours are temporarily changing, we will notify you individually. We will also list all operating hour changes and temporary center closings on our closures page located at https://sunshinehouse.com/closings/.
We appreciate your patience and understanding.
Updated March 20, 2020
As we all know, these are truly unprecedented times. And we are being forced to make very difficult decisions today to ensure the long-term viability of our company tomorrow -- on the other side of this.
Effective today, we are freezing all Paid Time Off (PTO). This means PTO cannot be requested or approved. This includes carry-over (PTC) time. If you have already requested and been approved for PTO, we cannot honor that request. If you must take time off, that time off will be unpaid. To request time off without pay, please contact your supervisor.
This applies to all employees.
Please know that this difficult decision, among others, is made in a time of emergency. We are doing everything we can to ensure that our company is here for the next 45 years, serving children and families across the country. We appreciate your understanding during this difficult time.
Updated March 17, 2020
We continue to monitor the latest developments and public health guidance related to COVID-19 (Coronavirus) as the country takes unprecedented steps to control the spread of the virus.
Recognizing the importance of our services to our communities, we plan to continue to operate our schools, unless we are instructed to close by local public health officials.
During this critical time, we are taking additional precautions to protect the health of our students, teachers, staff, and families. These precautions include:
- Individuals experiencing symptoms of respiratory illness such as fever, coughing, sneezing, or difficulty breathing, or anyone that has had direct contact with a person that is confirmed to have COVID-19, will be prohibited from entering our schools. This includes family members and staff.
- Any employee who has come into direct contact with another person who has been exposed to the Coronavirus is prohibited from reporting to work and is asked to self-quarantine.
- Any employee returning from a cruise or a trip abroad will not be allowed to return to work for a minimum of 14 days.
- If employees are unable to come to work due to having no care available for their own children, we will hold their jobs for up to 14 days and will reevaluate the situation as circumstances evolve.
Employee FAQs
- Can employees file for job protection through the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) due to absences related to COVID-19?
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Anyone can file for Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) but, per current FMLA guidelines, they will only meet the criteria for eligibility if they have worked for the company for more than a year, have worked at least 1250 hours, and have a serious health condition (employee or immediate family). Please refer to the Employee Policy Guide for more detailed information about FMLA. Remember, FMLA is unpaid leave.
- Can an employee file for Short-Term Disability (STD)?
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Employees who participate in the Short-Term Disability (STD) plan may apply for benefits, but may not necessarily be awarded benefits. An application must be completed by the employee and their physician stating that there is a serious medical condition and must be approved by Mutual of Omaha. There is also a 14- or 30-day waiting period, based on the plan you selected at enrollment.
- Can an employee file for unemployment benefits?
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An employee may file for unemployment if they have been terminated or resign their position, or for other reasons, such as being out of work for a layoff or similar situation. You are encouraged to check with your local state department of worker services for questions regarding unemployment eligibility related to health. Each state has different criterion to determine eligibility for benefits.
Make hand washing fun!
Follow these tips from our Education Team to practice good hygiene in the classroom and at home.
Hand Washing Songs for Kids