Well Grandmas… There is always a soft spot for their grand children and of course spoiling them. Its natural, but could it get in the way of your work? I had a question from a Nanny:

Ive been working as a nanny for the past three months for three wonderful kids. My employer has been great and they treat me great.My problem is that the kid’s grandmother likes to come to the house and “play” with the kids all day which is very frusterating for me because i feel like there is no point in me being there then. Ive talked to my employer about it and she talked to the grandmother so now she comes around less often. the other day one of the kids asked me why grandma doesnt come as much. i polietly responded with “Im not sure, maybe she’s busy.” to which the child says “grandma says its because you dont like her.” i tried to just change the subject. anyway i dont know what to do. i feel like the grandma is trying to turn the kids against me. i feel like quiting but everything else is going great. what should i do? Ive already told my employer and she just laughed it off. thanks

Although it is a sensitive subject with the Grandmother it can be resolved fairly easily. If you have been treated well during your first three months and your employers have actually made changes so that the big “G” would not interfere with your job, that is a good sign. It shows that you can communicate with the family and that is the most important. I think your first decision in asking the parents to the Grandmother to give you more time with the kids is fine. However, you could make it work for you also. Being a nanny can be wearisome and tiresome, so honestly any free time is good time, especially if you’re being paid the same. I think the best solution is to let the Grandmother be with the grand kids during a set time. That way you both won’t “bump heads” because its understandable that she wants to take care and be around her grand children. Since you’ve already spoken to the parents, kindly sit down with them all and make some type of an agreement.

Obviously the kids love being around her, so you don’t want there to be battle between you and Granny, who has been there with them all of kids lives!

Good luck!

I received a question recently about a nanny who is working in the home of her friend after the second child was born. Like with most times when you work for family or friends, some rules can go out of bounds. Check out the question and read my response.

I live with a friend and work as her Nanny. She just had her second child and isn’t working at the moment so I am just extra help here for her. I am only being paid in room and board and a little money when it’s available which is rarely.

I am sometimes ready to be in my room for some alone time before one or both of the children are asleep and in bed. For example it’s almost midnight and I am ready to go to sleep but I am in the room with the baby and the mommy is in her room. Is there a way I can voice this to my friend. Any tips for making some bondaries concerning time limits on my Nanny services

Firstly, I do believe it is possible to work as a Nanny for a friend. However, like all things, in the beginning there must be a set of rules or agreement as a Nanny. Maybe you don’t want to enter formal contract because you are friends and that is fine but some type of oral agreement must be made. From your personal situation it seems like nothing has been really clear but the room and board. However, with a new born child comes more responsibility even if she is home. To address this issue, is simple but of course more sensitive because it is your friend.

At the same time, it could be easier. At this point, unless you don’t want to end up with lots of frustration and ending your friendship you must speak with your friend. Explain to her your feelings and that you would like things clearly stated. Also, your space is important as a nanny and if you feel like you are looking after both kids 24hrs including during your free time it must be .

How to do it.

Ask your friend if you can sit down and discuss possibilities of actually paying

Ask your friend your exact duties now as nanny, now that she has a newborn and while she is home

Ask your friend her plans when she plans to go back to work

Explain to her that you are debating changing or looking for more work outside of your current environment.

When you state things clear and explain that your friendship is separate from your job all should be fine!

Good luck!

Sara J.

Here are some questions to ask a nanny during the interview process:

1. Verify any and all information provided on an application or in their resume. (or do a background check)

“I see here that you worked for the Nelson’s for the last five years. How did that go?”

2. Ask them about past situations.

“When you were working for the Nelson’s, what was the worst situation that happened to you while watching their children?” “Why are you leaving the Nelsons?”

3. Ask them questions in the “what if” format.

“What would you do if our son called you a name?” “What would you do if there was a fire in the home?” “How do you handle injuries?”

4. Ask them questions about what you are potentially offering.

“We are looking for someone that can provide extra reading help to our son. How can you help us with that?” “We are looking for someone to work part time during the evenings after our son is home from school. Are you flexible during those hours?”

What types of things should you look out for when you are about to accept any nanny jobs?

Well one important thing that I always look at is the contract in detail. Why? If you are knew to nanning then you could be in for a rude awaking because most contracts do not fully benefit the nanny. Most contracts try to sweeze in extra work and not detailed work descriptions living it very open to what your real duties and work responsibility is.

I was hit once with a contract that said well this is just here in case. From what I was told previously it seemed like this particular situation rarely happened if ever and what do you know. It happened more frequently than I anticipated so I worked more and got paid less. Avoid all contracts that don’t say in detailed what work is considered extra. You should ask for extra money for work during overnight periods. Each hour should result in overtime salary which in most cases is higher than your normal salary.

Next, I see what type of children I will be taking care of and full attention to the relationship with their parents. If the children seem like they have no hope and you know your capacity with children don’t accept it. Or you will be left with a very stressful job. I do think all children are innocent and just need to be loved but if they have been bad situations earlier it may not be any hope at all.

These are all of my cautions for now. I will update this page soon.

Do you have any questions?

Ask me anything and I will answer as fast as I can Click here to ask

Perks are great and needed with Nanny Jobs

If you are currently working as a nanny and have had the opportunity to go on free paid trips with the family/employer then you are a very lucky. Sometimes its possible that nannies will never see a vacation perk, however still on duty as a nanny.

Of course perks come and go but they should be cherished. Business trips and vacations where the family wants to be together however spending a little together time with the couple is not uncommon. So they usually offer the nanny to come free, with paid accomodations and food while only you the nanny spend a couple of hours with the kids. Just so the family can have their romantic moments.

If you ever have this opportunity, you should take it, enjoy it for what it is worth because honestly some nannies go through their whole career without benefits such as these vacation perks!

Enjoy!

Perks for working nannies, vacations, bonuses

Au Pair

What are au pairs entitled to?
Au pairs are entitled to a private bedroom, meals, a weekly wage that will increase if the minimum wage increases, one and one-half days off each week, a full weekend off each month, two weeks of paid vacation, and the first $500 ($1000 for EduCare participants) toward the costs of required academic course work.

What are host families entitled to?
Host families are entitled to a maximum of 10 hours a day/45 hours a week (10 hours a day/30 hours a week for EduCare participants) of child care, and they have the benefit of someone from another culture living in their home.

What responsibilities do both parties have?
Either a parent or responsible adult must be present in the home for the first three days that the au pair is with the host family, which may include a weekend. The host family and au pair must attend at least one of their sponsoring organization’s family day events during the au pair’s stay.

There must be a signed written agreement between the host family and the au pair outlining the obligations of both parties. In addition, the sponsoring organizations generally require the host family and the au pair to sign written agreements that outline the obligations of each party to the organization.

How long may an au pair stay with a family, and may the arrangement be extended?
Au pairs may stay with their host families in the U.S. for one year. After that time they are required to return to their home country. The au pair arrangement cannot be extended.

Type of childcare – Nanny Type

In-Home Child Care Providers and Shared Care

Some parents choose to hire an in-home child care provider (often referred to as a nanny, or au-pair) to care for their children. This person may live in or out of your home and may have additional responsibilities such as light housekeeping, cooking, laundry, carpooling and errand-running. Live-in providers generally work for room and board plus a salary. In-home child care is usually the most expensive form of child care.

Parents generally find in-home providers by placing ads in the classified section of local newspapers, using an agency that specializes in child care providers, or reviewing listings at a resource and referral service. The resource and referral agency in your area can provide you with the names of placement agencies and with listings of actual providers. It can also give you specific guidelines for interviewing prospective providers (some offer translation services for limited-English speaking applicants), assist you in writing/placing an ad, and supply you with a sample contract to use when you have made your choice.

You can also place listings, with salaries, for in-home child care providers at the Student Employment unit of the campus Career Planning and Placement Center at 642-0440. If child care is in exchange for room and board, listings can be posted with the campus Housing Office at 642-3644.

When interviewing in-home providers inquire about their level of experience and training in caring for children of the same age as your child. You should ask for references and make sure that you check them. Discuss the caregiver’s willingness and/or special training to care for your child in case of illness or injury. You should also make a point of discussing the time commitment you expect of the caregiver, as well as planning for their sick and vacation requests.

Some families may choose to enter a cooperative care arrangement, referred to as a “share,” in which two or more families pool their resources to hire one caregiver who will care for all their children either in one home or alternating among them. Such an arrangement is often more expensive than family day care, but costs less than hiring an in-home caregiver for one or two children in the same family.

Every Nanny and Employer should write up a contract or work agreement and have it signed.

In this contract or work agreement it will have the hours and days that you are to work and then also a price per hour for overtime pay.

Sit down with your employers and tell them that you feel it is in the best interests to them and you to fill one out.

Remember to look over the contract or work agreement every year and make any changes needed.

I do hope you can make the time for yourself. Visiting others home and a nice hot tub bath probably is best!

Nanny Salary

I think that $10 an hour has become the normal starting salary for one child with no housework. I really do think that nannies should starting asking for better salaries. I think there needs to be a a set starting salary like 25,000/year and up.

Whatever you do in your nanny career always give yourself a raise. If you change families, let the prospect employer know exactly your salary previously and state that you WILL NOT go anything under that.

Yes, it seems harsh but unless they are offering something different than your last job and it out weighs the lower salary you will have to think about what you need personally.

But some people think its better to go to a Nanny Agency to see what the going rate is in that particular area in the world. You have a higher quality of families when you go to an agency.

Make sure you don’t pay the agency anything.

Not only do you not have to, it’s a law! Make a resume with all your past qualification (child care and not). I made a section in my references for childcare references. Maybe someone you’ve babysat for or a mother of one of your daughters friends. You can also ask the family for references if you’d like! Also local book stores have tons of books about being a nanny! Barnes and Nobles has one called The Nanny Kit its orange and about 60 pages! It was my favorite and gives you lots of things to think about including health care and taxes! Also you may be a good housekeeper, but you should get paid extra for housework.

Most nannies are only responsible for childens laundry, playroom, meals and cleanup extra.

Just look in your contract FIRST

Nanny Responsibility

In my opinion the responsibility of every working nanny should be the care of the children whom you are caring over. Many times the employer forgets so much about their children but on their work life. As nanny you have to do all that you can to make sure the children are taken good care of first.

Most times both parents don’t have time for their own children and it can be hard to work with circumstances as these. But as a professional care taker you have to think what is best for the children and show the kids as much love as you can without getting to close. As you time as a nanny most times are short kids will get attached.

Although, this is great because their parents are mostly working they will need some tender loving care (TLC) from someone. Otherwise their adult life will be hard because everyone wants and yearns to be LOVED.