“Babysitting job perfect for a college student”- dog whistle?

[Anonymous]

This why it makes sense to have a full-time nanny even when the kids are in school. Driving, car seats, pick ups, drop offs, half days, weather days, holidays, sick days, ped appmts etc.

[Anonymous]

I never got that impression. I actually got the impression that it’s someone underplaying the job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does it surprise you that black women can also be college students?

Not to mention men of all colors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read that language as, they want to pay a modest hourly wage (“a little extra money”), not what a nanny would charge.

It’s this. It’s code for “we’re cheap and not willing to pay market value for childcare.”

I don't think that specific language means this, but yeah, these types of posts are usually cringy and entitled for this reason.

The pay often doesn't compensate for a person's time adequately. They often post a small hourly wage and then expect someone to happily drive to their house five times a week for 10 hours of work. A college kid could instead get a weekend job and commute twice for the same pay. Obviously the details differ from posting to posting, but the trend exists.

We used to live near a very large state school. We never had a problem getting sitters for $20/hr. My understanding is that these college girls prefer babysitting gigs / part time “nanny” gigs because they make a higher hourly wage than they would elsewhere (work study at the university, fast food restaurants, retail, etc.). Our last part time “nanny” subsequently took a job on campus at the golf shop making $13/hr. There aren’t that many part time gigs for college girls that have the same flexibility and a higher rate than babysitting. But I’d love to hear more about this high paying weekend job you mention… though most college girls like their weekends for themselves, no?

The job at the campus golf shop won't require her to commute. Also, at the campus golf shop her co-workers and customers are other students her age that she can socialize with. They might even be hot, so that's appealing if she is single and looking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read that language as, they want to pay a modest hourly wage (“a little extra money”), not what a nanny would charge.

It’s this. It’s code for “we’re cheap and not willing to pay market value for childcare.”

+1 the only dog whistle here is “this is a great job for someone who doesn’t need the money and won’t judge us“

Wtf? There are tons of teens who are thrilled to make $15 an hour. Retail pays way less than that.

No, it doesn’t, unless you’re in Alabama — or are you writing from 2019? Companies trying to pay under $15/hr for retail aren’t able to hire, because even high school kids can make more money now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. More minority women get college degrees, especially black women, than any other race.

Aside from that they're just trying to weed out inexperienced tweens. The question is are they paying at least $30/hour for the 'college student' or experienced mom.

%age?

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/04/12/10-facts-about-todays-college-graduates/

[Anonymous]

No, this would not have racial implications for me, good lord. Only potential red flag if I were reading it really sensitively would be that they might want to pay less than they would for a full-grown adult college grad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read that language as, they want to pay a modest hourly wage (“a little extra money”), not what a nanny would charge.

It’s this. It’s code for “we’re cheap and not willing to pay market value for childcare.”

+1 the only dog whistle here is “this is a great job for someone who doesn’t need the money and won’t judge us“

Wtf? There are tons of teens who are thrilled to make $15 an hour. Retail pays way less than that.

^this.
Retail, and pretty much any job hiring someone under 18 isn’t paying more than $15/hr. Over 18, makes slightly more at most places where an older teen or college student would work. But if you think jobs are paying non degrees students over $25 in the regular market, you are mistaken.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That’s not what dog whistle means.

All of these buzzwords have lost their meaning. People just throw them around for street cred.

[Anonymous]

I used to advertise for this because I only needed a few hours a week, and the schedule wasn't always consistent. I also needed someone who could occasionally drop my kids off at activities. It's a great job for a college kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know. We used this language (college student) once but meant the following:
- high school age was too young for our comfort
- being enrolled in college implies some level of judgement and intelligence that we absolutely did want for someone watching our (at the time) toddler

Ended up getting a black female nursing student at a community college (she was the best), a hispanic female business student at a local university (problematic judgement...so much for that), and a white female graduate student in some sort of policy (also a big hit, mostly because she was also a former athlete who had a car). Then as our kid got older we had a black male high school student whom we and our child absolutely adored.

So I do think "college student" can be proxy for high expectations but can't afford to pay full time or much. But SAHM and teacher are beyond the pale to me: those people don't really have bandwidth to babysit, in my opinion, so it's a weird ask.

SAHM and teachers lack the bandwidth to babysit?

I would think so - both are full time jobs!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read that language as, they want to pay a modest hourly wage (“a little extra money”), not what a nanny would charge.

It’s this. It’s code for “we’re cheap and not willing to pay market value for childcare.”

+1 the only dog whistle here is “this is a great job for someone who doesn’t need the money and won’t judge us“

Wtf? There are tons of teens who are thrilled to make $15 an hour. Retail pays way less than that.

No, it doesn’t, unless you’re in Alabama — or are you writing from 2019? Companies trying to pay under $15/hr for retail aren’t able to hire, because even high school kids can make more money now.

In my city (wealthy but not NE wealthy) the teens and college kids all happily take $15 an hour to babysit on Saturday night.

You do realize that watching tv and sitting on your phone for four hours on Saturday night is way better than working at target right?

Babysitting = no commitment, choose your hours, no stress, get your homework done, no taxes, nice customers.

Target = taxes, need to work a lot more than 4 hours a week, no control over schedule, sometimes get calls last minute that you have to come in, have to do actual labor and work, rude customers, ectc.


But sure, making $17 an hour (before taxes) at target is soooo much better than babysitting for $15.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No. More minority women get college degrees, especially black women, than any other race.

Aside from that they're just trying to weed out inexperienced tweens. The question is are they paying at least $30/hour for the 'college student' or experienced mom.

%age?

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/04/12/10-facts-about-todays-college-graduates/

There was a big article a few years back that implied black women were most likely to hold college degrees and this misinformation spread quickly. Black women are much more likely to graduate from college than black men. There are black college students and I don’t mean to derail this conversation but this misinterpreted study has always frustrated me because it seems to want to gloss over actual inequities within the education system.

[Anonymous]

As a career nanny of 15 years who used to pick up a ton of babysitting in the early years, you'd be shocked at the questions I've been asked in interviews or upon meeting a family in their home. It taught me a tough lesson early on that people project a VASTLY different persona in public than while in their own home.

I've had families' jaws drop when I turn down their offer after they blatantly made racist, ageist, sexist, or homophobic remarks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many BIPOC go to college.
Many BIPOC are SAHMs.
Maybe ask yourself why you assume educated = white?

+1 I'm a POC and I never made that assumption from the phrasing OP describes.