EVANS, Ga ()- A chain of daycare facilities in the CSRA is in hot water with employees and parents.
Some former employees of “Kids and Company” daycare, along with upset parents, contacted us via email and phone to express concerns about the building conditions and the treatment of staff.
“I have a family. I’ve got two kids, a husband, and bills to pay. Not knowing if or when I’m going to be paid,” said Jordin Pittard, a former staff member.
Pittard mentioned that she worked at “Kids and Company” daycare for a year. During that period, she noted numerous issues, including understaffing and unlawful child-to-staff ratios. She also reported the presence of mold at the South Augusta branch.
“They got a dehumidifier, and it helped slightly, but no one addressed the mold. Only one person came to inspect it. They mentioned two more people were supposed to provide estimates, but we never saw anyone nor received any updates.”
The most frequent and alarming complaints are that staff are not being compensated for their labor. Based on Pittard’s account and several social media posts from other employees, the entire South Augusta team staged a walkout last week over unpaid wages.
She told NewsChannel 6 that over the year she worked for “Kids and Company,” five of her paychecks bounced.
“I went to the bank where the checks are issued, and they couldn’t cash it. By her expression, I knew something was wrong, so I asked, ‘I guess you can’t cash this check, right?'” Pittard recounted. “She confirmed, and when I requested more information on why, she said she wasn’t allowed to disclose it.”
There is at least one lawsuit against the owners filed by a church they leased space from for the day care. And another could be on the way.
Nick Carnes, the pastor at Hope Church Augusta, told NewsChannel 6 that they are owed around $200,000 for a broken lease, back rent and damage repairs, among other things.
“There were, I think there was like a total of three non sufficient funds. There was a promise to repay debt that was not fulfilled. We went all the way until about February and could not get in contact with the owner,” Carnes explained.
NewsChannel 6 reached out to “Kids and Company” to get their side of the story. Calls haven’t been returned at this time. We also went to the Evans location where they refused to speak with us.
