joannqn Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 (edited) (Please excuse the missing word in the title!) The kids and I spent part of the day cleaning the house. The workers are 8 and 10. Some of the jobs (marked by an * are ones that they do normally). Keeping in mind that I separated jobs by room, and our rooms are only about 10 feet by 12 feet, how much would you pay them for the work they did? Adding: My kids don't get an allowance. We normally can't afford it, and we have issues about what it is allowed to be spent on. Part of why they were helping today was to earn money. My son asked because he was given a gift card that isn't quite enough for what he wants to spend it on. DD10 year old did: *pick up school room floor clear school room table & wipe down with cleaning spray sweep front porch vacuum front porch rug (about 5x5 outdoor carpeting) hose down right half of house front (siding/porch/windows) *pick up dining room floor clean toilet inside and out wipe down bathroom shelf, sink, and outside of two cabinets *pick up her bedroom floor vacuum her bedroom water all plants in house *take out recycling 8 year old did: Dust school room computer table and bookshelf * pick up living room floor clear porch, throw away broken toys/trash hose down left half of the house front (siding/porch/windows) wash a sink full of dishes (a difficult job for him that took quite a long time) clean all light switches, door knobs, and stair rail with disinfecting wipe Forgot to say that they also put away their own laundry (that I had folded). They also helped out with baby when she needed attention and I was busy. DD10 helped with baby a little bit more, and helped DS2 with going potty once. Edited February 21, 2010 by joannqn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sputterduck Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I wouldn't pay. That's part of what it takes to keep up a house and they reap the benefits of having a clean house, too. It's part of being a family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smrtmama Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I don't pay for chores. They're part of belonging to a household. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 My kids get allowance. I've learned it makes *my* life much easier for them to have their own, little discretionary fund that they can use for what they want instead of constantly begging for random stuff. They think twice before using their own money for something. Our 8 year old gets $5/week, our 11 year old gets $10/week and our 14 year old gets $20/week. Allowance is not directly tied to chores, as in you get $1 for taking out the trash every day. However, you don't get your allowance until all of your chores are finished. Not doing the chores is not an option. Here are the jobs they do: They all clean their rooms, including making their beds, vacuuming, etc. The older two wash their own sheets. They all help with general tidying around the house. They are responsible for keeping the yard picked up. They help with folding and putting away laundry (not just their own). In addition to those things, they each have their own jobs. 8 year old: tidies the school room, empties bedroom trashcans, helps take care of pets, tidies the family room, helps put away dishes, sorts recycling. 11 year old: cleans the bathroom she shares with her brother and the schoolroom bathroom, helps take care of pets, puts away dishes with her brother's help, clears the bar and counters in kitchen, hunts for dishes around the house, vacuums upstairs. 14 year old: cleans her bathroom (which is also the downstairs bathroom that company uses), does the dishes, cooks 2 meals per week, babysits siblings as needed/wanted, vacuums downstairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted February 21, 2010 Author Share Posted February 21, 2010 Ok, I guess I should have included that my kids don't get an allowance. I've never been able to make an allowance work for us. We provide the kids with needs as we can and wants at Christmas, birthdays, and occasional other times. The other times are like getting a bike the summer they've outgrown theirs; we don't buy those for Christmas and birthdays because they are all during the winter and we think it would stink to be given a gift that you can't use for several months. My son specifically asked for an opportunity to earn money. We wouldn't have them go to neighbors to earn money. This is a low income area, and we aren't friendly enough with most of them to feel comfortable with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Ok, I guess I should have included that my kids don't get an allowance. I've never been able to make an allowance work for us. We provide the kids with needs as we can and wants at Christmas, birthdays, and occasional other times. The other times are like getting a bike the summer they've outgrown theirs; we don't buy those for Christmas and birthdays because they are all during the winter and we think it would stink to be given a gift that you can't use for several months. My son specifically asked for an opportunity to earn money. We wouldn't have them go to neighbors to earn money. This is a low income area, and we aren't friendly enough with most of them to feel comfortable with that. We do the same. My kids are expected to help out in the house, but if they want to earn extra money they are allowed to ask for extra work to do. As far as how much to pay, that depends on how hard they worked towards the job for me. If they really worked hard and did well, they get more. I also tend to base the pay in relation to how much I want them to have the money... Guess that doesn't really help you decide how much to pay, does it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Ok, I guess I should have included that my kids don't get an allowance. <snip> My son specifically asked for an opportunity to earn money. Was this one day's worth of worth? I guess it depends upon what kind of precedent you want to set. If you want them to work really hard one or two days per week then maybe pay them $5 for that amount of work. Or maybe pay them $1-2/hour of work. If he's looking for a way to regularly make money doing chores, you'll need to keep financial compensation low. You won't want to have to pay him $5/day, kwim? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwjx2khsmj Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I figure extra jobs by the hour. I determine how long would it take me to do the job well and then put together what I consider to be an hour (or several hours) worth of jobs. The key is that they have to do it to my standards to earn the money. I usually pay $7 an hour. There is a long list of jobs that my dc do regularly because they are part of the family. There are other jobs I don't mind paying them to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugs Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I am a Dave Ramsey fan, so know that right off the bat. My kids are older than yours but we don't pay them tons; all jobs are part of being a member of the household. But, we want them to learn how to handle money. So some chores they do for "free" like take dishes out of the dishwasher and cleaning their rooms. But here are a couple of chores that pay $0.50 handwashing dishes, $0.25 cleaning toilets and bathroom sinks, $3 for vacuuming whole house, $3 for mopping and dusting whole house (just a 2100 sq. ft. home), $2.50 for pulling weeds (5 gal bucket worth), etc. The point is to teach them that in the real world to get paid you work. THey tithe and save 10 - 20%, then use the rest on whatever "junk" they want. They also have to pitch in to buy gifts for their friends. They normally earn a minimum of $5/week if they do my minimum requirements. My daughter has been know to rack up up to $20 in a week for doing other jobs. If your kids did do the work to earn money then I think that is something to celebrate. I wouldn't pay for the picking up of toys, etc. but maybe $1 for watering down the house, etc. It would be good to come up with a list with chores and their commission price (whatever your family can afford) ahead of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 We don't pay for chores either. Since you and ds both knew he was working for a specified amount of money needed, if he did a good job I would give him the money he still needs for the item. I would either give dd the same amount or a lesser amount determined by her younger age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny Piaaree Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 This doesn't answer your question about how much the jobs your dc did are worth, but since you say they are looking to earn money, here's an idea I like from Confessions of an Organized Homemaker. "Ten Jobs for One Dollar." Or you could make it five for a dollar or ten for five, or whatever seems good to you. This is how it works: Make a list of several age-appropriate jobs for each child. (These are in addition to regularly assigned chores.) Each time a child does a job from the list, s/he gets a check mark. At the end of the week anyone who has accumulated 10 checks gets a dollar. Nine checks earn nothing. Checks do not get carried over to the next week. All jobs are worth the same. Some may be harder, some easier, but they balance out. The size of the job varies by child, but everyone must complete the same number to receive their pay. If you set the "end of the week" as the afternoon or evening of the day you generally need the most help, you get the extra bonus of particularly eager children looking to fulfill their quota on that day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 My son specifically asked for an opportunity to earn money. We wouldn't have them go to neighbors to earn money. This is a low income area, and we aren't friendly enough with most of them to feel comfortable with that. For me, in this particular scenario, it would depend on how much money he "needed", how easily (or not) I could afford it, and how much effort it took for him to complete the tasks. If he needed $5, I could afford $5, and he put a good deal of effort into those chores, I'd give him 50-100% of it for what you described. If he needed $30 and I could only spare $10/wk, he'd be doing that list a couple times a week for the next few weeks. My kids' money comes mainly from holidays, the Tooth Fairy, and the couch cushions. If they "need" extra money, we make whatever arrangement works for us at the time. Sometimes that may mean I hand them $10 with a smile. Other times, that may mean they have to bust their little humps for a while. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted February 21, 2010 Author Share Posted February 21, 2010 Ok, I was wondering if we were planning on being too cheap. I thought I'd get dollar amounts for responses...didn't expect philosophical ones...though I should have expected that. The reason some of their normal chores were included is that I wrote a long list, by room, of what needed to be done. I did it by room to help me organize and to keep it to small, doable tasks. Some tasks were bigger, and I did not think the kids would take those (I was fine with that). I let the kids decide what they wanted to do, provided they did them in order by room because doing them out of order wouldn't work. For example, I put picking up as task one and vacuuming as task three. You can't vacuum before you pick up...I've had kids try to take tasks out of order before. Then we all worked together, and spent probably 3 hours, with breaks, cleaning. Helping DS2 with the potty and giving attention to a teething/hungry/tired baby slowed us down, too. Not surprisingly, DD10 choose mostly the easiest tasks and DS8 chose harder tasks. I realized this and I tried to make it more fair, after the fact, by assigning a value to each job (next time I'll assign a value before hand). 1 being easy, 2 being normal, and 3 being hard. One of DS's jobs earned a 4; I didn't think they'd try to take it on and it took him a long time to do the job, but with a break in the middle, he completed it. DD10 earned 13 points, and DS8 earned 10. I think DD got more points because she works faster and more efficiently due to age, maturity, ability. DS8 earned less points but I think he worked as hard as DD did but is slower due to age, maturity, and ability. DH and I negotiated a rate of 30 cents per point. We asked what the kids thought they should earn per point, and we finally settled on 33 cents per point (wanting to teach them negotiation skills). DD10 earned $4.29 and DS8 earned $3.30. I was wondering if we were being too cheap. It seems like a low hourly rate, and they worked a lot harder than they are usually required to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 When we do out-of-the-ordinary family jobs (usually seasonal , and having to do with planting, chopping, hauling manure, barn stuff etc) to do, we try to make them end on a special /thankful/team note. Take -out pizza, some fancy ice cream at the local summer stand, maybe a movie out (we do afternoon movies as it's less costly), whatever is a bit different. Its nice to enjoy a treat together after working so hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I think that's a little cheap--for the purpose you were aiming for. I totally understand the allowance thing, too, and try to give our kids occasional opportunities for earning money until they are old enough to get a job. I would have given $15 to the older child and $8-10 to the younger one, making sure that they REALLY understood it was a special situation. My kids, as much as I love them and have tried to avoid this mentality, will take something like this and begin *asking* for money for the more usual household chores and I can end up really frustrated! I know that most of it is desperation, though. They never have any money other than birthday or Christmas money and we are strict about our kids not working a PT job until 16 or 17 so that they can focus on school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 If you re looking for a number, I would give them each $5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Lilac Studio Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 My kids each maintain a room in the house and have a few additional chores, and we all pitch in for shoveling, wood stacking, gardening, spring cleaning, but there are always jobs above and beyond the call of duty that they can do for pay. They have to do the work well and completely, and then I give them $3-4/hour, depending on how disgusting the work is. I figure that's what I would give a neighborhood kid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choirfarm Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Well, we don't give allowances either and everything you listed are just regular chores with no payment whatsovever. WE typically start at 3pm everyday and go room by room all together: we all pick up and one person vacuums and one person dusts the playroom while my 7yo cleans the half bath. I am sweeping the hall and kitchen. Oldest mops the hall and kitchen while middle vacuums living room nad 7yo wipes the counters. They must then make sure their rooms and their bathrooms are straight/clean. It takes about an hour and keeps the house tidy. I pay them for big jobs like: Cleaning out, vacuuming and washing dad's car 20 bucks, taking everything out of the pantry, wiping it down and putting it back 20 bucks, various jobs around the farm though many of those are non paid as well. Christine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I don't pay for chores. They're part of belonging to a household. :iagree::iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I wouldn't pay unless it had been agreed upon ahead of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I don't normally pay for chores because they are part of being a member of the family. However, the kids can earn extra money by doing additional chores to the ones they are already assigned. I pay $1 a chore. If it something really above and beyond I will increase the amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 IDK if this helps, but dd9 earns a quarter, randomly, for emptying the cat box, and for picking up and taking out her brother's room trash (usually kleenex on the floor--of course she washes very well after these tasks!). She does everything else for free, and we are like you, OP, in that we buy gifts, clothes, etc. throughout the year. She also gives a nickle or a dime every Sunday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 (edited) I would not pay them for helping out in the house just because they helped in the house. They are part of the household so of course they do additional chores some days, sometimes MANY more chores some days. We "super clean" before grandma comes, for instance. If you just want to give them some money because you appreciate their help, that is different. I have done that (and each of my kids have paid or bartered with each other also). Sometimes it's nice to have a "thank you" and sometimes that is money or an ice cream parlor trip or a special supper or just a thanks. As for how much? I would probably take in consideration how much he needs. If it's a few dollars, then go for it. If he needs $11.55 (if I hear that again! LOL), then I would tell him he's $X closer. Does that make sense? BTW, I went up and read the thread. I wouldn't have done it the way you did but I think the amount is fine. I don't think you're cheap. I just think I would have preferred to "thank" them rather than pay them for doing what they would/should do as part of the household. Edited February 21, 2010 by 2J5M9K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KS_ Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 DH and I negotiated a rate of 30 cents per point. We asked what the kids thought they should earn per point, and we finally settled on 33 cents per point (wanting to teach them negotiation skills). DD10 earned $4.29 and DS8 earned $3.30. I was wondering if we were being too cheap. It seems like a low hourly rate, and they worked a lot harder than they are usually required to work. I haven't read the rest of the thread, but I don't think you're being too cheap (we're cheap here). My kids only get $4 a *month* allowance, and we will pay for extra jobs around the house (such as shoveling the walks in the winter or pulling weeds in the summer). We try to base the pay on being appealing, but also realistic. They can't go out and get a real job yet, so I pay less than what they'd make at a real job (I want a real job to be appealing when they're old enough - if I'm paying minimum wage or above for stuff around the house, they might not be motivated to go out and really work). And there's the fact that it does have to be affordable to us - with our health insurance going up and other things like that, we have to balance that in, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I do not give my children an allowance, but I do keep a list handy at all times of chores that will earn them money if they want it. This way they have their normal chores that are just a part of being in a family/home, and they have opportunities to earn. When we started this a couple years ago they were paid $2 per hour. At this stage both kids are extremely reliable as workers. My ds in particular is a really hard worker--he weeds the garden as fast and as thoroughly as the teens I hire in the summer. I gave both kids a raise this year to $4 per hour. I have hired many workers over the years for cleaning, yard work, and construction/repairs on my house, so I have a pretty specific idea of what to expect at different hourly rates of pay. Once my children are equal in output to some of the adults I have hired in the past, I will pay them the same that I have paid those adults. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted February 21, 2010 Author Share Posted February 21, 2010 I haven't read the rest of the thread, but I don't think you're being too cheap (we're cheap here). My kids only get $4 a *month* allowance, and we will pay for extra jobs around the house (such as shoveling the walks in the winter or pulling weeds in the summer). We try to base the pay on being appealing, but also realistic. They can't go out and get a real job yet, so I pay less than what they'd make at a real job (I want a real job to be appealing when they're old enough - if I'm paying minimum wage or above for stuff around the house, they might not be motivated to go out and really work). And there's the fact that it does have to be affordable to us - with our health insurance going up and other things like that, we have to balance that in, too. This is what I was going for. All of the chores they did (except the ones marked with an *) are above and beyond what they are normally required to do, and they specifically asked for an opportunity to earn money and those jobs are what I came up with because I normally do them. I also didn't want to send them outside to do those chores. I don't like them outside by themselves unless I can go out too. Them going out makes the 2 year old want to follow, and he can't unless I can supervise....so no weeding or things like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinF Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 I am a Dave Ramsey fan, so know that right off the bat. My kids are older than yours but we don't pay them tons; all jobs are part of being a member of the household. But, we want them to learn how to handle money. So some chores they do for "free" like take dishes out of the dishwasher and cleaning their rooms. But here are a couple of chores that pay $0.50 handwashing dishes, $0.25 cleaning toilets and bathroom sinks, $3 for vacuuming whole house, $3 for mopping and dusting whole house (just a 2100 sq. ft. home), $2.50 for pulling weeds (5 gal bucket worth), etc. The point is to teach them that in the real world to get paid you work. THey tithe and save 10 - 20%, then use the rest on whatever "junk" they want. They also have to pitch in to buy gifts for their friends. They normally earn a minimum of $5/week if they do my minimum requirements. My daughter has been know to rack up up to $20 in a week for doing other jobs. If your kids did do the work to earn money then I think that is something to celebrate. I wouldn't pay for the picking up of toys, etc. but maybe $1 for watering down the house, etc. It would be good to come up with a list with chores and their commission price (whatever your family can afford) ahead of time. This is what we do but most of our chores pay $.25 each. Here is a regular list of things we pay for dusting vacuuming unloading dishwasher sweep kitchen/dining area mop kitchen/dining area We pay extra for some things but they aren't done on a regular basis, helping dh in the yard, cleaning out and washing the car. Those usually pay $1 each. What I like about DR's plan is that he also encourages you to have assigned chores that are not paid. Our include cleaning up toys in playroom, making up their beds, setting and clearing the table are all things that I regularly expect them to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachrose Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Much of your lists we just expect our kids to pitch in as part of the family. We can't afford allowances either but we do allow the kids to earn really special things,we don't' give cash. It's going to take my 9 year about a month to earn enough to enough to go see diary of wimpy kid movie and he's done the same thing to earn quite a few books over the year. The only one who has any cash is my 16 year old who has a fantastic work ethic which earned him an internship that usually only collage students get. My opinion ,I wont' give them cash and if you must give very little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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