S/O Hiring a professional nanny thread

[Anonymous]

Lol at jealous 19:38

[Anonymous]

I have a masters degree in Early Childhood Education and have previously worked as a private elementary school teacher and tutor. I am CPR/First Aid certified. I work on the books. And yes, I consider myself a professional nanny.

Beyond all that I do not talk on the telephone when I'm working, watch TV or surf the net. I am never late. I do anything and everything that involves the child (child's laundry, cleaning child's room and bathroom, make child's meals and do the child's grocery shopping, etc) in my care but do not do general housework of any kind.

A set of qualifications as to what makes a nanny would be great!

BTW - I have to agree with others, OP, I think your rate is too low.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most parents have sitters for their kids, not nannies. It makes them feel better if they call the sitter a nanny. Then they bitch about the "nanny" who doesn't know how to be a nanny. Crazy.

Your average American parent doesn't want a nanny, because a nanny would be educated in knowing the real scope of nanny responsibilities. Being a doormat is a poor example to show children in your care. That does more harm than good for any child.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for all the replies! Before the thread goes off the rails, if there were such a thing as a "nanny license" what do you think would be appropriate requirements? A certain amount of experience? An education component? Thorough background checks?

Of course being a professional requires that you be on time, have a good attitude, etc. but those are not things included in the process of getting a professional license. Being late, being petty, and having a bad attitude, and generally being a bad employee are of course not limited to any particular industry, level of education, or class.

[Anonymous]

Best way is to go through ppl you know. Find their landscapers then ask them for a nanny referral. $8 all day long, cash. And they will do a fantastic job. Your kids will also learn Spanish.

If you get the right person, they will double as a maid. I found they are good with children and not afraid of hard work.

Unlike "professional" nannies, these $8 nannies definitely earn their keep.

[Anonymous]

What Makes Up a Professional Nanny:

-Proud to call themselves a nanny. Has respect for their own industry. Knows that they are doing one of the most important jobs.
-Made a choice to dedicate their time to making nannying a career, not just a job.
-Always shows up on time, or at least 5-15 minutes early.
-Is "happy" to be paid legally, and on the books.
- Is aware of the industry standards and domestic workers laws.
- Has a comprehensive nanny contract in place.
- Is proactive with her duties, always going above and beyond.
- Represents her nanny family well. Never bad mouths them in public.
- Dresses respectfully for the job. Clean, neat, and not in PJ's or work-out clothes.
- Never is on her cell phone during her work hours, unless it's regarding work, or an emergency.
- Always researching and partaking in professional development classes, or reading books relating to the children you take care of.
- Making sure you have First Aid & CPR certifications up to date. As well as your vaccinations.
- Honorably sticking up for yourself when you feel you are being taken advantage of.
- Continuously being proactive and coming up with the appropriate and creative activities with the children.
- Have professional boundaries with your employers. Never ask for financial loans.
- Respect your NF family time. Try do things, that will enhance, strengthen, and elongate your Nanny Families time together.
- Understand your roll as a caregiver. Allow the parents to raise their kids how they wish.
- Take care of yourself. You can only take the best care of your charges, if you are in your best health and peace of mind.
- Make sure you know the going rate for a professional nanny in your area, and don't except a position with a family that will not compensate you as a professional.
- Do not show up to work when you are contagiously sick. A professional knows to give as much advance notice if you are in need of a sick day.
- Do not talk about salary/pay with your other co-workers in the home.
- Be a roll model for your charges. They observe and emulate more than you are aware of. Behave the way you would like them to behave.
- Know that there is so much more to being a professional nanny than "playing". You need to know about child development, milestones, physiology and phycology.
- That this is a professional career. You are ENTITLED to performance reviews, merit & COLA raises, great benefits, and bonuses for a job well done.
- You are not ENTITLED to the moon and the stars from your employers just for doing your job.
- Understanding that it is part of the job to work around sick children.
- Being flexible is a two way street.
- And just don't chew gum in public !

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What Makes Up a Professional Nanny:

-Proud to call themselves a nanny. Has respect for their own industry. Knows that they are doing one of the most important jobs.
-Made a choice to dedicate their time to making nannying a career, not just a job.
-Always shows up on time, or at least 5-15 minutes early.
-Is "happy" to be paid legally, and on the books.
- Is aware of the industry standards and domestic workers laws.
- Has a comprehensive nanny contract in place.
- Is proactive with her duties, always going above and beyond.
- Represents her nanny family well. Never bad mouths them in public.
- Dresses respectfully for the job. Clean, neat, and not in PJ's or work-out clothes.
- Never is on her cell phone during her work hours, unless it's regarding work, or an emergency.
- Always researching and partaking in professional development classes, or reading books relating to the children you take care of.
- Making sure you have First Aid & CPR certifications up to date. As well as your vaccinations.
- Honorably sticking up for yourself when you feel you are being taken advantage of.
- Continuously being proactive and coming up with the appropriate and creative activities with the children.
- Have professional boundaries with your employers. Never ask for financial loans.
- Respect your NF family time. Try do things, that will enhance, strengthen, and elongate your Nanny Families time together.
- Understand your roll as a caregiver. Allow the parents to raise their kids how they wish.
- Take care of yourself. You can only take the best care of your charges, if you are in your best health and peace of mind.
- Make sure you know the going rate for a professional nanny in your area, and don't except a position with a family that will not compensate you as a professional.
- Do not show up to work when you are contagiously sick. A professional knows to give as much advance notice if you are in need of a sick day.
- Do not talk about salary/pay with your other co-workers in the home.
- Be a roll model for your charges. They observe and emulate more than you are aware of. Behave the way you would like them to behave.
- Know that there is so much more to being a professional nanny than "playing". You need to know about child development, milestones, physiology and phycology.
- That this is a professional career. You are ENTITLED to performance reviews, merit & COLA raises, great benefits, and bonuses for a job well done.
- You are not ENTITLED to the moon and the stars from your employers just for doing your job.
- Understanding that it is part of the job to work around sick children.
- Being flexible is a two way street.
- And just don't chew gum in public !

These are all aspects of professional behavior, meaning the behavior most typically associated with and expected of professionals. However, in order for nannying to be recognized as a profession (as opposed to a trade in which some subset of practitioners behave professionally), there needs to be an education component. That is the critical element of how U.S. law, particularly the FLSA, distinguishes a professional job from a non-professional job. I would like to see licensure become contingent upon completion of a 30-credit academic program, so basically one full-time year of schooling or two to three part time years, with some sort of practicum training or apprenticeship along the way.

Many of you will say, "I don't need nanny school. You can learn to be a nanny by doing the job." That is true to some extent, but the same is true of doctors, lawyers, and other professionals. You can learn to remove a gall bladder or argue a court motion through training, but you may not learn how one physical system relates to another and you may not learn how to develop a framework for confronting an entirely new legal issue. On the job training is critical, but it is not a substitute for a solid academic foundation. In other words, being an excellent, experienced caregiver doesn't make you a child development professional, and that is what a nanny should be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most parents have sitters for their kids, not nannies. It makes them feel better if they call the sitter a nanny. Then they bitch about the "nanny" who doesn't know how to be a nanny. Crazy.

Your average American parent doesn't want a nanny, because a nanny would be educated in knowing the real scope of nanny responsibilities. Being a doormat is a poor example to show children in your care. That does more harm than good for any child.

[Anonymous]

Some of you are describing Governesses. Not nannys.

OP. I congratulate you and have long advocated licensure and a union for nannies. Unfortunately, as has been posted on this thread, some "nannies" are happy to be paid in cash and their employers too happy to break the law for cheap help.

I would suggest that you look into how to do this by contacting a union organizer at the Teamsters as this union had great success in organizing migrant workers. I wish you the best of luck.

[Anonymous]

I think we need to talk about the difference between a career nanny and a professional nanny.

I agree the educational component should make the difference for a professional nanny.

What most of you are describing is a career nanny.