Have you been a nanny?

[cathmom]

Anybody been a professional nanny? Did you have a contract? What would the terms be if you wanted to leave the job?

 

TIA! It's for my nanowrimo!

[MeanestMomInMidwest]

I was a nanny. It was the hardest job of my life. I detested those children. I hated getting up early to get there before the mom (a TV news personality) and dad (forget what he did) left for work and could not wait until I could leave (I was live-out). I had a contract, but was paid in cash as I was an undocumented worker at the time. The contract had all sorts of silly stuff in it (how, exactly to do the kids' laundry, how far down the street to push the buggy, etc.) and stated I was to give one full month's notice prior to leaving. I gave them 2 weeks when I wanted to quit and didn't mind breaking the contract, because I knew they couldn't do much about it since they knew I was undocumented when they hired me.

 

Well, that first part sounds harsh, but it is true. I did take care of the children and play with them, but they were brats and I was only 17-18 yrs old.

[newlifemom]

Yes I was, 20+ years ago. I know I signed a year contract however, I did leave early. They were mistreating me. I took the pay I had received up to that point. ummm I forgot your other questions. The agency that I went through was called Nannieseast.(Can't remember if it was one word or two) You could try to google them and ask your questions directly. I do remember having a full scale background check, obviously and even being fingerprinted. Sorry I cannot remember as much.

 

BTW, FWIW a domestic nanny is very different from an international opair(sp?). I was a glorified housekeeper/babysitter. An opair is one who only deals with children and maybe even does some cultural/lang education.

 

HTH

[newlifemom]

Well, that first part sounds harsh, but it is true. I did take care of the children and play with them, but they were brats and I was only 17-18 yrs old.

 

Isn't that the case. The one girl would do all manner of evil and all I could do was put her in her room and then I had to hold the door shut. You want to tell me just who was being punished there?:glare:

[Mabelen]

Anybody been a professional nanny? Did you have a contract? What would the terms be if you wanted to leave the job?

 

TIA! It's for my nanowrimo!

 

I was an au pair way back when I was 19 yo and then again at age 24 in England. I think the terms there at that time were very different than they are here in the US. Basically I looked after the children Monday to Friday from around 8.00 in the morning until around 4.00 in the afternoon and a couple of evenings a week (usually including a weekend). I don't remember the exact weekly pay I got but it was called "pocket money" for a good reason;). Of course, I also got free bed and board... You were supposed to be given enough free time to be able to attend foreign language classes in the afternoon/evening, which I did.

 

My first experience was satisfactory but not outstanding. I stayed at that job just one summer. The second family was the best. They were fantastic and I stayed with them almost a year. I would have done anything for that family, they treated me great and I responded in kind.

 

In both cases there was some kind of contract drafted by the au pair agency. It stated the hours, duties, pay, information about the family, their home and location and the kind of accommodation reserved for the au pair,etc. As far as the kind of notice required, I don't remember exactly, probably a week or two? I gave both my families plenty of notice to give them enough time to find a replacement.

[The Governess]

I was a nanny the summer after I graduated from high school. I didn't have a contract and was paid cash. It was only for the summer, and I didn't quit early, but I guess technically I could have quit at any time. I loved the family and never would have done that to them if I could help it!

 

I think if the nanny is already an acquaintance of the family there's a better chance of it being more of a casual relationship; if the nanny is an unknown person it will be much more structured. At least from my experience and stories I've heard from friends, etc.

 

Have fun writing! =D

[newlifemom]

I was an au pair way back when I was 19 yo and then again at age 24 in England. I think the terms there at that time were very different than they are here in the US. Basically I looked after the children Monday to Friday from around 8.00 in the morning until around 4.00 in the afternoon and a couple of evenings a week (usually including a weekend). I don't remember the exact weekly pay I got but it was called "pocket money" for a good reason;). Of course, I also got free bed and board... You were supposed to be given enough free time to be able to attend foreign language classes in the afternoon/evening, which I did.

 

My first experience was satisfactory but not outstanding. I stayed at that job just one summer. The second family was the best. They were fantastic and I stayed with them almost a year. I would have done anything for that family, they treated me great and I responded in kind.

 

In both cases there was some kind of contract drafted by the au pair agency. It stated the hours, duties, pay, information about the family, their home and location and the kind of accommodation reserved for the au pair,etc. As far as the kind of notice required, I don't remember exactly, probably a week or two? I gave both my families plenty of notice to give them enough time to find a replacement.

 

 

Thank you, for the life of me I could not remember how to spell Au Pair. What a dolt!:tongue_smilie:

[SapphireStitch]

By "professional nanny" did you mean something specific? For example, a nanny hired through an agency? Or a nanny who has been through some type of training course? Just curious, because that might impact how this character is portrayed in your novel.

 

My daughter is a nanny, so I can give you the quick facts about her situation. She does not work through an agency; the couple she works for are relatives of a couple from our church. She was not seeking particularly to be a nanny, but this couple thought she would be a good fit for the job and asked her if she was interested.

 

She interviewed with the family in their home, interacted with the baby, and talked to the parents quite a bit about their routine and their expectations for her. She did not sign a contract, but she did have to give them her social security number and fill out tax forms so that they withhold taxes from her pay and also pay their share of the FICA taxes. (That is something you might want to look into if it affects your plot; it is against the law to pay a nanny without paying these taxes. But it's also pretty common to try to get out of it.)

 

There are some websites out there directed to nannies, with forms and information about interviews, contracts, taxes, etc. Searching on some of those things might help you, too. My daughter printed out forms from some of those sites and uses them to keep a record of the baby's day when she's there: diapers, feeds, any unusual behavior, etc.

[NorthwestMom]

I worked as a nanny for a little less than 2 years. I was placed through an agency. I was a certified teacher who had relocated in the middle of a school year and did not want to sub.

 

I was part of a nanny share between 2 families, each with a toddler. My guys were very cute and sweet, I did care abut them a lot and still wonder how they are doing. One of the families divorced during my tenure with them and it was difficult.

 

I believe hours, time off, and pay schedule and the fact that they were paying my taxes were all in the contract. Probably there was also a termination clause, but I left because I was pregnant so they had a lot of advance warning. I would think 2 weeks would be a minimum amount of notice, 1 month would be better but that might not be the standard.

[cathmom]

By "professional nanny" did you mean something specific? For example, a nanny hired through an agency? Or a nanny who has been through some type of training course?

 

Yes, a professional nanny who has been trained and placed through an agency. One that a well-to-do family would hire to live in.

 

Thanks all for your input!

[Dayle in Guatemala]

I was a nanny for 3 years while I was in college from fall 1989-fall 1991. I had a verbal contract with my family. They had 5 boys and it was the greatest experience. I loved it! They treated me like one of the family. I lived in and worked hard, but, it was a blast. My terms for leaving were basically that I gave them about one month to be able to find someone else.