Securing a nanny before needed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had my mom with me when my baby was born but if she had not been able to make it I would have had no shame in hiring a nanny. I come from an Asian culture where there are traditionally plenty of women around to help: moms, aunts, sisters, grandmothers and paid help so the new mother can rest and recover. I see no reason to become a martyr.

+2. I had my mom, my DH, and our nanny with me. I was nursing every two hours around the clock and cuddling my baby skin-to-skin to increase milk flow and bonding. The last thing I was doing was handing him off to anyone! DH and mom handled all house/cooking chores and nanny engaged the baby and held her while I got a little sleep during the day. It was such a happy, relaxed, and joyful time which few post partum women can say. I feel very grateful I had such a great “tribe”.

And to OP: we hired our sweet nanny about three weeks before my due date and it just happened that she was giving her two weeks notice to her other family and started with us the week later. No retention or signing bonus was necessary.

[Anonymous]

OP, you are essentially asking her to start on a set date because you are asking her to have no other commitments. She can't plan any other jobs around your due date because you want her to be on call for you. She can't even really go on vacation because she has to be around when the baby is born. Like a PP suggested above, I would just start paying her at 39 weeks.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:We gave our nanny a $5,000 signing bonus for the month before my due date. I delivered early and we started her regular hourly wage when she started (day after I came home from the hospital). She was just too good to potentially lose. She’s been our nanny for close to seven years.

this is backwards. if you didn’t want to lose her, you should have started her FT employment early or given her a retention bonus.

How could we have started her early when she had no baby to nanny?! And the signing bonus was the retention bonus.

The $5k signing bonus was really a retention bonus, and that works to hold a month. She could have started early and helped set up the nursery.

I didn’t need help setting up the nursery and whatever on the retention/holding holding bonus. We gave her 5K when she signed her contract and her starting date was the day I brought the baby home (which turned out to be three weeks). The day she started working, we started her hourly wage.

Why are you trying to bust my balls on this? We were fair, considerate, and have a wonderful nanny.

Sounds like you paid her the equivalent to her wage, so that’s fine. I still don’t get why you think a signing bonus is better than just putting her on the payroll, but you do you.

Because it’s not payroll. Jesus...

DP. It actually IS payroll and you and the nanny owed payroll taxes on it.

WHO CARES? The nanny got five grand for doing nothing for three weeks and is apparently happy.

right - she was happy because she got the equivalent of her weekly wage. the point is you can’t “secure” a nanny without paying her wage or the equivalent. and yes, it’s taxable. as long as OP doesn’t think she can cheap out, fine.

Who the f are you? Why are you so invested in this? Are you a nanny? And what’s wrong with your caps button?

Who are you to decide what’s “fine”?

Someone who thinks nannies should be paid fairly. It’s funny you’re so defensive about that. Tip: if you’re going to hire a nanny, it’s best not to nickle and dime. That’s not the way to create a long-term good relationship.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:We gave our nanny a $5,000 signing bonus for the month before my due date. I delivered early and we started her regular hourly wage when she started (day after I came home from the hospital). She was just too good to potentially lose. She’s been our nanny for close to seven years.

this is backwards. if you didn’t want to lose her, you should have started her FT employment early or given her a retention bonus.

How could we have started her early when she had no baby to nanny?! And the signing bonus was the retention bonus.

The $5k signing bonus was really a retention bonus, and that works to hold a month. She could have started early and helped set up the nursery.

I didn’t need help setting up the nursery and whatever on the retention/holding holding bonus. We gave her 5K when she signed her contract and her starting date was the day I brought the baby home (which turned out to be three weeks). The day she started working, we started her hourly wage.

Why are you trying to bust my balls on this? We were fair, considerate, and have a wonderful nanny.

Sounds like you paid her the equivalent to her wage, so that’s fine. I still don’t get why you think a signing bonus is better than just putting her on the payroll, but you do you.

Because it’s not payroll. Jesus...

DP. It actually IS payroll and you and the nanny owed payroll taxes on it.

WHO CARES? The nanny got five grand for doing nothing for three weeks and is apparently happy.

right - she was happy because she got the equivalent of her weekly wage. the point is you can’t “secure” a nanny without paying her wage or the equivalent. and yes, it’s taxable. as long as OP doesn’t think she can cheap out, fine.

Who the f are you? Why are you so invested in this? Are you a nanny? And what’s wrong with your caps button?

Who are you to decide what’s “fine”?

Someone who thinks nannies should be paid fairly. It’s funny you’re so defensive about that. Tip: if you’re going to hire a nanny, it’s best not to nickle and dime. That’s not the way to create a long-term good relationship.

NP here. I think everyone is puzzled because 5k IS fair - actually on the high side. Especially for just a three week hold. PP didn’t need the nanny to do set up work on the nursery and said the nanny was happy.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:We gave our nanny a $5,000 signing bonus for the month before my due date. I delivered early and we started her regular hourly wage when she started (day after I came home from the hospital). She was just too good to potentially lose. She’s been our nanny for close to seven years.

this is backwards. if you didn’t want to lose her, you should have started her FT employment early or given her a retention bonus.

How could we have started her early when she had no baby to nanny?! And the signing bonus was the retention bonus.

The $5k signing bonus was really a retention bonus, and that works to hold a month. She could have started early and helped set up the nursery.

I didn’t need help setting up the nursery and whatever on the retention/holding holding bonus. We gave her 5K when she signed her contract and her starting date was the day I brought the baby home (which turned out to be three weeks). The day she started working, we started her hourly wage.

Why are you trying to bust my balls on this? We were fair, considerate, and have a wonderful nanny.

Sounds like you paid her the equivalent to her wage, so that’s fine. I still don’t get why you think a signing bonus is better than just putting her on the payroll, but you do you.

Because it’s not payroll. Jesus...

DP. It actually IS payroll and you and the nanny owed payroll taxes on it.

WHO CARES? The nanny got five grand for doing nothing for three weeks and is apparently happy.

right - she was happy because she got the equivalent of her weekly wage. the point is you can’t “secure” a nanny without paying her wage or the equivalent. and yes, it’s taxable. as long as OP doesn’t think she can cheap out, fine.

Who the f are you? Why are you so invested in this? Are you a nanny? And what’s wrong with your caps button?

Who are you to decide what’s “fine”?

Someone who thinks nannies should be paid fairly. It’s funny you’re so defensive about that. Tip: if you’re going to hire a nanny, it’s best not to nickle and dime. That’s not the way to create a long-term good relationship.

NP here. I think everyone is puzzled because 5k IS fair - actually on the high side. Especially for just a three week hold. PP didn’t need the nanny to do set up work on the nursery and said the nanny was happy.

NP. 5k is totally fair. But it’s also payroll and taxable. Which the PP seems to be oddly defensive about.

To the inevitable “who cares?” posters, I don’t care at all, just don’t think the OP should be given bad advice when it comes to paying her nanny with regard to taxes. Give her all the bonuses you want, but please, please pay payroll taxes. It is the law and it protects you and the nanny.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:We gave our nanny a $5,000 signing bonus for the month before my due date. I delivered early and we started her regular hourly wage when she started (day after I came home from the hospital). She was just too good to potentially lose. She’s been our nanny for close to seven years.

this is backwards. if you didn’t want to lose her, you should have started her FT employment early or given her a retention bonus.

How could we have started her early when she had no baby to nanny?! And the signing bonus was the retention bonus.

The $5k signing bonus was really a retention bonus, and that works to hold a month. She could have started early and helped set up the nursery.

I didn’t need help setting up the nursery and whatever on the retention/holding holding bonus. We gave her 5K when she signed her contract and her starting date was the day I brought the baby home (which turned out to be three weeks). The day she started working, we started her hourly wage.

Why are you trying to bust my balls on this? We were fair, considerate, and have a wonderful nanny.

Sounds like you paid her the equivalent to her wage, so that’s fine. I still don’t get why you think a signing bonus is better than just putting her on the payroll, but you do you.

Because it’s not payroll. Jesus...

DP. It actually IS payroll and you and the nanny owed payroll taxes on it.

WHO CARES? The nanny got five grand for doing nothing for three weeks and is apparently happy.

right - she was happy because she got the equivalent of her weekly wage. the point is you can’t “secure” a nanny without paying her wage or the equivalent. and yes, it’s taxable. as long as OP doesn’t think she can cheap out, fine.

Who the f are you? Why are you so invested in this? Are you a nanny? And what’s wrong with your caps button?

Who are you to decide what’s “fine”?

Someone who thinks nannies should be paid fairly. It’s funny you’re so defensive about that. Tip: if you’re going to hire a nanny, it’s best not to nickle and dime. That’s not the way to create a long-term good relationship.

NP here. I think everyone is puzzled because 5k IS fair - actually on the high side. Especially for just a three week hold. PP didn’t need the nanny to do set up work on the nursery and said the nanny was happy.

Read what I posted. I agree that 5k is fair - anything that equals or exceeds her wage during the time you expect her to be waiting and not working a different job. Nasty PP thinks it’s wrong to discuss fairness in connection with nanny pay, or something like that. There are different ways to structure the contract to achieve the same thing, but an upfront payment that both parties feel compensate her for her time is fine. I would probably structure it differently but NBD. And yes, the payment is taxable.

[Anonymous]

I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

Interesting. How do you set a start date when you don’t know the delivery date?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

Interesting. How do you set a start date when you don’t know the delivery date?

The employers and I agree on one. Sometimes based on her due date and sometimes based on my availability. A few times I’ve had weeks off (paid, of course) when the delivery was later than expected and once the baby was early and I hadn’t finished my prior commitment yet.

[Anonymous]

The stupidity and ignorance on this thread is mind boggling. OP wants nanny available the day baby is born then she needs to pay nanny to be available at an moment-- nanny can take no other job or go on vacation. You can bet your life you are paying me to be on standby.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The stupidity and ignorance on this thread is mind boggling. OP wants nanny available the day baby is born then she needs to pay nanny to be available at an moment-- nanny can take no other job or go on vacation. You can bet your life you are paying me to be on standby.

Nobody wants to hire a bitter troll like you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had my mom with me when my baby was born but if she had not been able to make it I would have had no shame in hiring a nanny. I come from an Asian culture where there are traditionally plenty of women around to help: moms, aunts, sisters, grandmothers and paid help so the new mother can rest and recover. I see no reason to become a martyr.

+2. I had my mom, my DH, and our nanny with me. I was nursing every two hours around the clock and cuddling my baby skin-to-skin to increase milk flow and bonding. The last thing I was doing was handing him off to anyone! DH and mom handled all house/cooking chores and nanny engaged the baby and held her while I got a little sleep during the day. It was such a happy, relaxed, and joyful time which few post partum women can say. I feel very grateful I had such a great “tribe”.

And to OP: we hired our sweet nanny about three weeks before my due date and it just happened that she was giving her two weeks notice to her other family and started with us the week later. No retention or signing bonus was necessary.

Postpartum night nanny or postpartum doula is a common baby gift from family in my culture. They all chip in so the mom has professional help the first couple months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

Interesting. How do you set a start date when you don’t know the delivery date?

OP, how do you not understand this? Would YOU agree to a job if they wouldn’t tell you the start date? 2 to 4 weeks “on hold” with NO PAYCHECK is not possible for most people! People can’t live on a “retainer.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

Interesting. How do you set a start date when you don’t know the delivery date?

OP, how do you not understand this? Would YOU agree to a job if they wouldn’t tell you the start date? 2 to 4 weeks “on hold” with NO PAYCHECK is not possible for most people! People can’t live on a “retainer.”

You couldn’t live on 5k for a month? That the amount that’s been thrown around - between 4 and 5 thousand to wait, doing nothing and free to take side gigs for three weeks (39th week to 42nd week - no one is going to let a pregnant woman go beyond that).


You nannies can all calm down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m an Infant Care Specialist so not a long term nanny and may not be what you’re looking for but I book three to six month jobs in advance. Typically, the mother is in her second trimester. I have set start dates and end dates with all my clients and payment starts my first week of work. To insure no one flakes on me I require a deposit of 25% of total projected costs (then deducted from my biweekly checks). I can do both days or nights or a combination.

I have friends who do what I do who work in pairs to give seven day/nights a week coverage for those who need it.

And to the idiot PP: no one hands over their baby to the nanny and walks away. I’ve never, in 25 years of doing this work, had one neglectful mother. They love their babies and just need an extra pair of hands and a knowledgeable resource at the ready. Plus we’re only there eight hours a day.

Interesting. How do you set a start date when you don’t know the delivery date?

OP, how do you not understand this? Would YOU agree to a job if they wouldn’t tell you the start date? 2 to 4 weeks “on hold” with NO PAYCHECK is not possible for most people! People can’t live on a “retainer.”

They agree on a start date. This ICS and parents agree on a start date.
Why the f are nannies getting so bent on this thread?! Jesus, it’s crazy! I guarantee you this independent ICS does fine and earns twice what you irate-for-no-reason nannies do.