Nanny Cameras

[Anonymous]

NP. I get that its your home and your rules or whatever, but I can choose whether I like your rules. I don't like nanny cams. They make me uncomfortable, and I'm a nanny that works for 2 sets of work at home parents. There is always someone around and they are always dropping in. I don't like the idea of being secretly filmed, and I don't trust you 100% either. I don't know if you put a camera in the bathroom I bathe your kids in, but may also use myself. I don't know that you and your husband aren't pervs that wouldn't sexualize the footage gawking at me behind my back. Or that you aren't just jerks that might make of me being a goofball with your kids.

Go ahead and do what you want to protect your kids, but if you do it in secret and I find it (I will, I do a sweep when I start for my own protection) I will quit on the spot. I don't mean wait til you get home, give you two weeks notice. I mean your ass is coming home right now and I'm out. It is extremely sneaky and underhanded.

And to the PP that suggested a double standard, I would not suggest nanny cams to my friends. I think its like snooping on your spouse "just to be sure". Its addicting and makes you more mistrustful. I also wouldn't use one myself for that reason, and because if I were that concerned with the care of my kids, its probably best to do it myself. If you're going to outsource let them do their job.

[Anonymous]

There is nothing inherently sneaky or underhanded about nanny cams. Most workplaces monitor employees' activity and that is to be expected.

Trust is earned.

That said, I think disclosure is a good thing. At the very least, it sends a message to the nanny that you can be watched so make sure you are always doing your job well and meeting the NF's expectations.

We had one and fully disclosed it to our nanny. After awhile, we stopped reviewing it regularly. After two years, we rarely looked at. She earned our trust and we could see it whenever we needed to. We don't need to.

I don't think disclosure is necessary, though. I would see it as a very red flag if a nanny was afraid of being observed at work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is nothing inherently sneaky or underhanded about nanny cams. Most workplaces monitor employees' activity and that is to be expected.

Trust is earned.

That said, I think disclosure is a good thing. At the very least, it sends a message to the nanny that you can be watched so make sure you are always doing your job well and meeting the NF's expectations.

We had one and fully disclosed it to our nanny. After awhile, we stopped reviewing it regularly. After two years, we rarely looked at. She earned our trust and we could see it whenever we needed to. We don't need to.

I don't think disclosure is necessary, though. I would see it as a very red flag if a nanny was afraid of being observed at work.

PP above you that I think you're responding to. Being observed is one thing, being filmed is another. Being filmed in a public place with protections, regulations and checks is one thing (you know you aren't being filmed in the bathroom at work, and if you are heads will roll), and being filmed secretly in a private home with no regulations, few protections, and your employers being answerable to absolutely no one is a whole other thing. Not sure why so many of you insist on pretending its the same.

[Anonymous]

It IS the same, PP. I don't know where you got the idea there are extra "protections" to being filmed at any other job. The only protections are the same ones that nannies have. It is illegal to have cams in bathrooms. In many places, it is also illegal to record audio and video.

That's it. It is the same and nannies are not special in thinking they should not be filmed at work. Period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It IS the same, PP. I don't know where you got the idea there are extra "protections" to being filmed at any other job. The only protections are the same ones that nannies have. It is illegal to have cams in bathrooms. In many places, it is also illegal to record audio and video.

That's it. It is the same and nannies are not special in thinking they should not be filmed at work. Period.

What PP was trying to explain to you is that there are checks and balances. The person sitting behind the camera bank is also on camera. If you learn of inappropriate activity your employer will fire the security personnel pronto to prevent a public scandal and lawsuit. And an attorney would gladly represent you for no cost up front if they could get a large settlement down the road. The nanny, no matter how justified, will have no affordable recourse. No one is watching the employer, no one knows what they do with cameras.

[Anonymous]

Or you trust or no trust,why camera??

[Anonymous]

You know what?? They have outright deceived you OP and that so-called "trust" that you shared has just been damaged for life. They should have offered you full disclosure up front + told you about the cameras. For them to secretly film you w/out your knowledge is not only deceitful, it is downright shady and shameful.

Sure, it is legal but so are a lot of things in this world. Legal does not equate right. What they did is by no means ethically or morally right.

This is your call OP, but if I were you, I would make sure I got my last payment. (If you are paid by check, make sure you have your cash payment in your hand first before discussing this.)

Then I would tell this shady family how you feel about what they did to you and that you cannot work for a family who would lie to you. Yes, that is what they did. Lied. Lied by OMISSION.

Thank goodness you only worked for them for three months.

[Anonymous]

Parents should have a camera if they want to but not in bathroom, and they can tell nanny about it, new parents are very nervous so parents be ready to see nanny picking her nose, farting and more, parents should have a good gut feeling when they hire so no need for camera if the cild is happy and healthy, poops well, sleeps, well, is active and all is milestones are good no need to be a spy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I completely understand why parents have cameras and why they wouldn't mention it to a nanny. Sorry ladies, we as nannies don't deserve 100% blind trust after only knowing a family a few months. I even have dropcams in my apartment to watch my dog and cleaning ladies when they come. If I had a child there is no way in hell I'd just blindly trust someone 100% after three months. Trust is earned and it doesn't happen overnight. Assume you are watched at every job and you wont feel so insecure. Dont change, pick your nose or fart outside the restroom if your not comfortable. You will eventually get used to the cameras and it wont feel so awkward.

NP here. This is right on. Families use cameras not necessarily because they don't trust the nanny, but because they have no other way of evaluating just how good the nanny is or whether she is a good fit for their parenting priorities. If you are as good as you think you are, cameras will work in your favor. Your employers will see you at work and realize how lucky they are to have you. After that, they probably will stop checking the recordings because they have better things to do. Just do your job the way you would do it if you actually had an on-site supervisor, like most people do in other professions.

[Anonymous]

Go take the kids outside, to the park or go for a walk. No need to ba on surveilance all day

[Anonymous]

As a nanny myself and having worked in a daycare setting for 5 years prior I completely understand why parents have nanny cams. You may not have anything to hide which is great, but they are leaving you with their most precious thing on earth and they have known you for how long? Not only that but they also completely turn over their house to you. And second you may have a great relationship with them with open communication but you're their employee first, friend second. All nannies are replaceable. They just want the best for their children. Can you blame them?

[Anonymous]

Here's a story for you.

My BFF, who is also a nanny (I'm a nanny) was in a home with secret nanny cams. Her boyfriend had been out of town. Her charge, who was an infant, was taking a nap. My BFF and her boyfriend got on the phone and decided to have phone sex - in the living room of the house.

Yup - she masturbated on the living room floor while talking to her boyfriend while the infant was asleep. Everything was caught on camera. BFF was fired, lawsuit entailed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a nanny myself and having worked in a daycare setting for 5 years prior I completely understand why parents have nanny cams. You may not have anything to hide which is great, but they are leaving you with their most precious thing on earth and they have known you for how long? Not only that but they also completely turn over their house to you. And second you may have a great relationship with them with open communication but you're their employee first, friend second. All nannies are replaceable. They just want the best for their children. Can you blame them?

Secretly taping a nanny is the crux of the issue, not whether nannies deserve blind trust. Disclosing the cameras achieves the precise objective of deterring negligent caregivers but without the moral issue of hidden surveillance. There is nothing to gain by hiding the camera. Otherwise, I fully concur that parents should take precautions to monitor anyone they leave alone with their children.