How do you keep sitters from flaking?

[Anonymous]

We live in a LCOL area. My neighbor pays $25 an hour for three kids. I am paying $20 an hour for one. sweet. preschool. boy. Sitter flaked. WTH?! I have experimented with scheduling ahead so they can plan. I’ve tried scheduling last minute to reduce FOMO. Neighbor won’t share her sitters’ names. We’ve tried Care.com. SitterCity. Facebook. Backup care. These women have never met us. I’m asking them to drive to our house, play with the child, and feed him. What else could we be doing?

[Anonymous]

Offer $25.

[Anonymous]

Do you have a neighborhood listserv? Families are all over mine asking/offering up babysitters. My teen never flakes.

[Anonymous]

Next time sitter is over at neighbor’s just introduce yourself and offer $30.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Next time sitter is over at neighbor’s just introduce yourself and offer $30.

No, this is your neighbor. Keep looking.

[Anonymous]

Ask around at the preschool.

[Anonymous]

You can make $19 working in grocery store. Pay more and there will be less flaking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Offer $25.

+1 This is the obvious answer OP. Everytime I hear people complaining they can't find decent childcare, they're paying less than the market rate for their neighborhood. The fact that you have only 1 kid and your neighbor has 3 is somewhat irrelevant. People need their paycheck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Offer $25.

+1 This is the obvious answer OP. Everytime I hear people complaining they can't find decent childcare, they're paying less than the market rate for their neighborhood. The fact that you have only 1 kid and your neighbor has 3 is somewhat irrelevant. People need their paycheck.

+2 I hear people saying their nanny left after a few months or their sitter flakes and 90% of the time it's that the salary isn't attractive. You can try to cheap out, but you won't necessarily have reliable care.

[Anonymous]

Responsible teens don’t need to be paid more. My DD would be more than happy to do it at that price for a nice family. It’s not the money. OP just hasn’t found a quality, dependable person. Those types don’t flake once they accept a job.

[Anonymous]

My 16 year old is happy to be paid $20 and we don’t let her flake. Ever. Keep asking around. You’ll find someone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Offer $25.

+1 This is the obvious answer OP. Everytime I hear people complaining they can't find decent childcare, they're paying less than the market rate for their neighborhood. The fact that you have only 1 kid and your neighbor has 3 is somewhat irrelevant. People need their paycheck.

Even though she needs care for 3 kids and I need care for one?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Offer $25.

+1 This is the obvious answer OP. Everytime I hear people complaining they can't find decent childcare, they're paying less than the market rate for their neighborhood. The fact that you have only 1 kid and your neighbor has 3 is somewhat irrelevant. People need their paycheck.

Even though she needs care for 3 kids and I need care for one?

Yes. It's the same amount of time either way. And sometimes more kids means they play with each other and are easier to watch.

Other factors to consider.... Do you have pets? Smelly or messy house? Expect cleaning from sitter? No ride home?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in a LCOL area. My neighbor pays $25 an hour for three kids. I am paying $20 an hour for one. sweet. preschool. boy. Sitter flaked. WTH?! I have experimented with scheduling ahead so they can plan. I’ve tried scheduling last minute to reduce FOMO. Neighbor won’t share her sitters’ names. We’ve tried Care.com. SitterCity. Facebook. Backup care. These women have never met us. I’m asking them to drive to our house, play with the child, and feed him. What else could we be doing?

Is your kid fully potty trained and no accidents while the sitter is there?

Is your kid attention-seeking or whiny?

Having to actually play with the kid, rather than watch the kid playing with other kids, is a more tiring job. That's probably the reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Offer $25.

+1 This is the obvious answer OP. Everytime I hear people complaining they can't find decent childcare, they're paying less than the market rate for their neighborhood. The fact that you have only 1 kid and your neighbor has 3 is somewhat irrelevant. People need their paycheck.

Even though she needs care for 3 kids and I need care for one?

DP. If it’s an adult, they care about how much $$ they are bringing home. Doesn’t matter so much the number of kids. If you can only pay $20, then you will need to find a teen or be fine with a high turnover.