How much to pay a young teen mother's helper?

[AndyJoy]

I know this probably varies by area of the country, but I'm asking anyway so I have some idea of where to start.

 

I'm looking at hiring a 13 year old homeschooled girl to play with Keaton 2-3 hours a week so I can work on crafts or do housework. She has very limited experience with being home alone with her 11 year old sister. She has never really babysat by herself before. The plan would be for Keaton to get used to her for a while and for me to "groom" her to be his babysitter so dh and I can go out sometimes.

 

What would you consider reasonable pay for when she is watching him with me there supervising ? What would you pay once she graduates to watching him alone?

[Cera]

We pay our mothers helper $8 an hour and our babysitter $12 an hour for 2 kids (3 and 5).

[Tidbits of Learning]

Is this for your infant? If so, I would suggest rethinking a 13 yr old babysitter. I would go with a young college student that needs some extra money and groom them. I would look for someone with references. There are a lot of situations that come up with an infant that wouldn't come up with a toddler or young child.

If it was a 13 yr old and an older teenager or young adult also, then it would be a little different. You are also going to have to sign a medical release for any babysitter should a medical emergency arise while you are out and such. The type that state that your babysitter has the authority to seek medical attention should your baby need it. Think emergency case scenarios where you can't get home in time. I don't think you can sign one over to a minor. You would have to sign one to her parent who would need to be there also. I would think you would need a person that is at least 18 years old or have her babysitting at her parent's house where her parents are available to help should she need assistance.

I would require her to take a cpr class. Also, our local community college offers a babysitter's preparedness class. I would check with my state laws first also.

All of the above is if you leave her alone with the baby. As a mother's helper while you are there seems alright. I just wouldn't leave that young of a teenager alone with a baby.

Edited March 12, 2010 by OpenMinded

[Harriet Vane]

Openminded has some good points.

 

My dd is a mother's helper for a friend of mine. She currently earns $6 an hour, and has been promised a $1 an hour raise if she takes the RedCross babysitter's course.

[Alaska Mom]

When my dc were a bit younger, I had 2 girls (ages 12-13) who I paid $5/hour to "play" with my 2 kids while I was home so I could do other things in the house. One mother told me $5/hr was too much for her 12 yo with no babysitting experience, and flat out told me she wanted her daughter to gain the experience and responsibility and not have her daughter's focus be on the money (it was a shocker to me, but I guess and I can see some benefit to that). I briefly paid her $3/hr, but felt too guilty so I quickly raised her to $5 after she had some "experience". She's 16 now and I still use her :)!

[Dawn in OH]

We pay our mothers helper $8 an hour and our babysitter $12 an hour for 2 kids (3 and 5).

 

No offense to you at all, but there is NO WAY I would pay a child that kind of money. Where I live, that's what real jobs for adults pay. For that much money, I would be willing to babysit.

 

Personally I think the pay would depend on what exactly the mother's helper is doing for you, how much experience she has, and her age. If she's just playing with my children so I can get some work done, they pay would be less than for someone who is going to help with household chores.

[cougarmom4]

My dd10 wants so badly to have someone 'hire' her as a mother's helper. She says she's willing to do it for $2/hr. :D I think it's a great idea to have your child get familiar with a sitter, give you a little time, give her a little experience. But I don't think a young teen should expect to be paid too much for that.

 

I also agree that after a babysitting course, the fee would go up.

[AndyJoy]

Thanks for the input, ladies. I was thinking $3-4 was reasonable for a mother's helper in this situation, then $5 per hour after I leave them alone. I always am amazed when I see higher pay than that for young teens. I babysat 10-17 years ago and usually earned $1.00-2.50 per kid per hour depending on how many kids there were. I occasionally watched only children whose parents paid $5 an hour. I did have one woman with 2 girls who paid $10 per hour because she was so impressed that I would clean her house while watching them!

 

I understand the concerns people have about a leaving an infant with a young teen, but I'm going to see how it goes and see if I feel confident about her before I make my decision. I am planning to have her take a CPR class with me, as I could use a refresher. I wouldn't leave her alone with him until I've spent quite some time with her. Also, since he's breast fed and won't take a bottle, I would be leaving them for very short periods of time. I like the idea of her watching him at her house with her mom there, but they have a small dog. I may talk to her mom about the possibility of keeping the dog in another room.

 

I personally was babysitting on my own at 11 and watched infants from the time I was 13. Some people may think that I was the exception to the rule, but I want to see if this girl could do it. It would be nice to be able to use the same sitter for years, plus the older teens/young adults I know are so busy that it would be hard to make it work.

[Cera]

No offense to you at all, but there is NO WAY I would pay a child that kind of money. Where I live, that's what real jobs for adults pay. For that much money, I would be willing to babysit.

 

Personally I think the pay would depend on what exactly the mother's helper is doing for you, how much experience she has, and her age. If she's just playing with my children so I can get some work done, they pay would be less than for someone who is going to help with household chores.

 

 

I think it all depends on where you live and how valuable your sitter is to you vs. your economic situation. Around here you can't find a teen to babysit for less than $10 an hour.

 

We live in an incredibly high cost of living area (they are getting ready to raise minimum wage to $8.50) with available jobs in the $8-12 an hour category for teens. A three and five year old are a lot of work, our mothers helper is an incredibly responsible 13 year old who bakes with them, walks them to the neighborhood park, plays soccer outside for hours with them and then brings them in and reads to them for as long as they want. She is perfect and I want to keep her. Our babysitter is the same but a few years older and could easily get a job (which would be easier) if she wasn't making enough babysitting.

 

My kids are my most important "possession." It is completely worth it to me to pay someone well who I trust completely, and who will engage my kids, to care for them when I am not here.

[Tap]

I would expect to pay $8-10 for a young, inexperienced teen for 3 hours if you are there with her. You may want to talk to the parent to see what they feel is fair. I pay my kids $2 hr to watch my 3yo because they are only babysitting and not expected to do anything else while they have her. I want their full attention to be on her. When I had a young nanny I obviously paid more because she did more while she was here. I don't think that a 'babysitter' needs to make minimum wage.

 

By paying less when you are there, you can give her a raise for being trusted and left alone with the baby later.

 

My nieces who have 3-4 years experience babysitting, have completed babysitting courses, keep current on first aid and CPR, give me a family rate of $5 per hour. They usually make $8 (1 child)-$10 (2-3 children) and file taxes on their income (so the parents can use it as a tax deduction). It is a job for them, and they treat it as such. They leave the house clean, and entertain/play with the kids, not just sit on their phone or play online.

Edited March 12, 2010 by Tap, tap, tap

[Dobela]

I think $3 or so an hour is great. I also think that hiring one young, and training her while you are in the house is a great idea as well. When I was 11 a couple of women in our neighborhood did the same thing for me. I admit I thought it was strange they wanted me to play with the baby while they washed dishes or did some other chores (although now as a mom I TOTALLY get it LOL). I was so proud and really saw it as having more fun than anything else. But I also learned some great skills and was able to use them as references once I began babysitting by myself.

[fivetails]

We pay our mothers helper $8 an hour and our babysitter $12 an hour for 2 kids (3 and 5).

No offense to you at all, but there is NO WAY I would pay a child that kind of money. Where I live, that's what real jobs for adults pay. For that much money, I would be willing to babysit.

 

 

 

It totally depends on where you live.

 

Back where we used to live, a 13 year old might make $4/hour babysitting for someone in the evening....here where we are now, they can make $10-$15/hr doing the same thing.

[StaceyinLA]

and is paid $8/hr. There are times when she watches the kids, but she usually just works as a mother's helper. She DOES run errands occasionally as well (she's 17), but also gets a gas card to fill her tank when she does.

 

I certainly don't think $6 or $7 is unreasonable for a child that age as a helper. I mean minimum wage is $7.25 these days.

[AuntieM]

I had an 11 year old mother's helper years ago, she was terrific! I would have given her the moon, however, her mother asked me to not give her more than $5 an afternoon. Said it would be out of scale for what she was able to earn at home. I thought that was a very wise thing for her parents to consider, given the girl's age.

 

If you have a specific *young* helper in mind, consider asking her parents!

[Chris in VA]

I make $12 an hour as a babysitter for a not-quite two year old. I actually made more this year, because the parents very, very kindly told me they'd pay the "nanny tax," and not take it out of that $12.

If I had a teen helper, and I was home, I'd pay $5 an hour and require first aid and infant cpr.

I think it's a really nice idea, to "groom" a teen babysitter! How nice for your child.