How often does your nanny call out sick? What's your back-up plan?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny has been with us for two years and has never taken a sick day, besides maybe three half days for doctors appointments (pre-planned).

2-3 days a months seems like a lot. I mean, for me personally, every job I've ever had has offered 6-12 sick days a year. I get sick a lot, and I've found that six is too few, but 12 was plenty. That works out to less than one a month.

PP: You are fortunate. I've probably taken 2-3 sick days/year in my office job, but I don't have little kids to care for, so sometimes I can power through or WFH. Not so for nannies, so you are very, very lucky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: Our last nanny was also out a lot due to illnesses and family emergencies, so I guess we thought maybe this level of unreliability was par for the course. I feel as though my job will be in jeopardy if it continues, though, and my ILs are hoping to travel (if COVID ever lifts) so might not be able to be called in last minute as they sometimes are now. Plus they find taking care of 4 kids pretty stressful. But I don't really think we can afford to pay the nanny and a back-up nanny for all these days.

OP, 4 kids is a lot. Are you paying within market rate for 4 kids? It sounds like you are not attracting high quality professional candidates.

Keep in mind that looking for F-T nanny with 4 children it's lots of work. Even saying that probably the three oldes are enrolled in school already, either P-T or F-T plus an infant full time. If you decide to look for a nanny keep this in mind. You have to pay for 4 kids. I have heard lately lots of families just pretend to pay only for the youngest kids. Remember the Nanny will have the three older on sick days, holidays, snow days, meetings school, summer etc, also still doing all kids laundry, all clean up after them even they are not at school. Just an advice so you can pay the right rate.

OP here: Yes, I advertised this as a position with 4 charges with a pay range between $27-30/hr depending on experience. PTO and holidays, are generous, I think. I considered her experience on the light side, so offered her $27 and she accepted it. Would have gladly held out for someone with more experience, but there weren't many candidates who were willing to take on 4 children, especially on the books.

OP, most professional career nannies are getting $28-30 for one-two kids and $31-35 for 3+.

[Anonymous]

I’ve been in your shoes OP and it ended up being nanny burnout as opposed to sickness/emergencies. At the time we only had 2 kids but at 3.5 and 1.5 were a lot of work. I’m now a SAHM to 4 kids and it’s definitely exhausting even when the older ones are in school. I’d recommend finding a mothers helper to assist your nanny a few hours a week. Also, I agree with the others that $27/hr is pretty low — my friends with 4 kids pay their nannies ~$35/hr.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your post make me think that she is burned out. Missing work often and no be willing to be reliable at all, it's seems a red flag. She must be missing work on purpose; while looking for a new job. Just saying now that I'm reading your post and mention you have 4 children. If she has been working for you only for some months; maybe she just started to feel the burn out. Four children it's really lot of work.

Possibly but she always claims to have a plausible excuse, usually related to illness. Since we had a similar experience with the last nanny (when we only had 3 kids), I guess we took things at face value and trusted her excuses.

Of course she says it's illness. What's she going to say, "I can't come in tomorrow. You aren't paying me enough for four kids and I'm burned out?" Come on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: Our last nanny was also out a lot due to illnesses and family emergencies, so I guess we thought maybe this level of unreliability was par for the course. I feel as though my job will be in jeopardy if it continues, though, and my ILs are hoping to travel (if COVID ever lifts) so might not be able to be called in last minute as they sometimes are now. Plus they find taking care of 4 kids pretty stressful. But I don't really think we can afford to pay the nanny and a back-up nanny for all these days.

OP, 4 kids is a lot. Are you paying within market rate for 4 kids? It sounds like you are not attracting high quality professional candidates.

Keep in mind that looking for F-T nanny with 4 children it's lots of work. Even saying that probably the three oldes are enrolled in school already, either P-T or F-T plus an infant full time. If you decide to look for a nanny keep this in mind. You have to pay for 4 kids. I have heard lately lots of families just pretend to pay only for the youngest kids. Remember the Nanny will have the three older on sick days, holidays, snow days, meetings school, summer etc, also still doing all kids laundry, all clean up after them even they are not at school. Just an advice so you can pay the right rate.

OP here: Yes, I advertised this as a position with 4 charges with a pay range between $27-30/hr depending on experience. PTO and holidays, are generous, I think. I considered her experience on the light side, so offered her $27 and she accepted it. Would have gladly held out for someone with more experience, but there weren't many candidates who were willing to take on 4 children, especially on the books.

Oof. In a high COL area, it's not at all unusual to get $25+ for two easy kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: Our last nanny was also out a lot due to illnesses and family emergencies, so I guess we thought maybe this level of unreliability was par for the course. I feel as though my job will be in jeopardy if it continues, though, and my ILs are hoping to travel (if COVID ever lifts) so might not be able to be called in last minute as they sometimes are now. Plus they find taking care of 4 kids pretty stressful. But I don't really think we can afford to pay the nanny and a back-up nanny for all these days.

OP, 4 kids is a lot. Are you paying within market rate for 4 kids? It sounds like you are not attracting high quality professional candidates.

Keep in mind that looking for F-T nanny with 4 children it's lots of work. Even saying that probably the three oldes are enrolled in school already, either P-T or F-T plus an infant full time. If you decide to look for a nanny keep this in mind. You have to pay for 4 kids. I have heard lately lots of families just pretend to pay only for the youngest kids. Remember the Nanny will have the three older on sick days, holidays, snow days, meetings school, summer etc, also still doing all kids laundry, all clean up after them even they are not at school. Just an advice so you can pay the right rate.

OP here: Yes, I advertised this as a position with 4 charges with a pay range between $27-30/hr depending on experience. PTO and holidays, are generous, I think. I considered her experience on the light side, so offered her $27 and she accepted it. Would have gladly held out for someone with more experience, but there weren't many candidates who were willing to take on 4 children, especially on the books.

Oof. In a high COL area, it's not at all unusual to get $25+ for two easy kids.

OP here: I agree, but the number of applicants (e.g. on Care.com) that indicate they are willing to care for more than 3 kids is pretty small. I was willing to pay up to $30 for someone with more experience. And although I don't know anyone IRL who pays more than $30, I'm not sure how paying more would address "burnout" or sickness if she's really ill. Maybe the suggestion of the mother's helper would work plus gives me a little back-up in the event of the nanny's absence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been in your shoes OP and it ended up being nanny burnout as opposed to sickness/emergencies. At the time we only had 2 kids but at 3.5 and 1.5 were a lot of work. I’m now a SAHM to 4 kids and it’s definitely exhausting even when the older ones are in school. I’d recommend finding a mothers helper to assist your nanny a few hours a week. Also, I agree with the others that $27/hr is pretty low — my friends with 4 kids pay their nannies ~$35/hr.

Thanks for the mother's helper suggestion. If you employ one, what are the hours/responsibilities/rate of pay and how did did you locate her/him?

[Anonymous]

I’ve been with the same family (with 2 small kids)for about 3 years and I’ve taken just 1 sick day. Are you sure your nanny isn’t looking for another gig? Paying $27 for 4 kids is a bit low; I wouldn’t take anything less than $30

Pump up her hourly rate and I assure you she won’t take more ‘sick days’

[Anonymous]

In close to four years, our nanny has never once called in sick!

If/when it eventually happens, DH has Bright Horizons temp Nannie’s as part of his work contract.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been with the same family (with 2 small kids)for about 3 years and I’ve taken just 1 sick day. Are you sure your nanny isn’t looking for another gig? Paying $27 for 4 kids is a bit low; I wouldn’t take anything less than $30

Pump up her hourly rate and I assure you she won’t take more ‘sick days’

I don't think raising her rate should improve or dissappear the burn out that I think your nanny is possibly having. As a nanny I think she must be looking for a new job. Less kids, less responsibilities, maybe less drop offs and pickups ups or posible none. I could say that when a Nanny is going through something like and feeling the "burn out" already; it doesn't matter the money or if the employers decide double her salary. As a nanny it's not always about money. To OP, hopefully you would have in your mind she is about to leave and start looking for someone new; and obviously improve your rate to this new hire. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: Our last nanny was also out a lot due to illnesses and family emergencies, so I guess we thought maybe this level of unreliability was par for the course. I feel as though my job will be in jeopardy if it continues, though, and my ILs are hoping to travel (if COVID ever lifts) so might not be able to be called in last minute as they sometimes are now. Plus they find taking care of 4 kids pretty stressful. But I don't really think we can afford to pay the nanny and a back-up nanny for all these days.

OP, 4 kids is a lot. Are you paying within market rate for 4 kids? It sounds like you are not attracting high quality professional candidates.

Keep in mind that looking for F-T nanny with 4 children it's lots of work. Even saying that probably the three oldes are enrolled in school already, either P-T or F-T plus an infant full time. If you decide to look for a nanny keep this in mind. You have to pay for 4 kids. I have heard lately lots of families just pretend to pay only for the youngest kids. Remember the Nanny will have the three older on sick days, holidays, snow days, meetings school, summer etc, also still doing all kids laundry, all clean up after them even they are not at school. Just an advice so you can pay the right rate.

OP here: Yes, I advertised this as a position with 4 charges with a pay range between $27-30/hr depending on experience. PTO and holidays, are generous, I think. I considered her experience on the light side, so offered her $27 and she accepted it. Would have gladly held out for someone with more experience, but there weren't many candidates who were willing to take on 4 children, especially on the books.

Oof. In a high COL area, it's not at all unusual to get $25+ for two easy kids.

OP here: I agree, but the number of applicants (e.g. on Care.com) that indicate they are willing to care for more than 3 kids is pretty small. I was willing to pay up to $30 for someone with more experience. And although I don't know anyone IRL who pays more than $30, I'm not sure how paying more would address "burnout" or sickness if she's really ill. Maybe the suggestion of the mother's helper would work plus gives me a little back-up in the event of the nanny's absence.

Unless the helper is absolutely clear that she's there as a pair of hands, most experienced nannies won't want to deal with that. I'll take being exhausted and asking for a raise, thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: Our last nanny was also out a lot due to illnesses and family emergencies, so I guess we thought maybe this level of unreliability was par for the course. I feel as though my job will be in jeopardy if it continues, though, and my ILs are hoping to travel (if COVID ever lifts) so might not be able to be called in last minute as they sometimes are now. Plus they find taking care of 4 kids pretty stressful. But I don't really think we can afford to pay the nanny and a back-up nanny for all these days.

OP, 4 kids is a lot. Are you paying within market rate for 4 kids? It sounds like you are not attracting high quality professional candidates.

Keep in mind that looking for F-T nanny with 4 children it's lots of work. Even saying that probably the three oldes are enrolled in school already, either P-T or F-T plus an infant full time. If you decide to look for a nanny keep this in mind. You have to pay for 4 kids. I have heard lately lots of families just pretend to pay only for the youngest kids. Remember the Nanny will have the three older on sick days, holidays, snow days, meetings school, summer etc, also still doing all kids laundry, all clean up after them even they are not at school. Just an advice so you can pay the right rate. [/quote


OP here: Yes, I advertised this as a position with 4 charges with a pay range between $27-30/hr depending on experience. PTO and holidays, are generous, I think. I considered her experience on the light side, so offered her $27 and she accepted it. Would have gladly held out for someone with more experience, but there weren't many candidates who were willing to take on 4 children, especially on the books.

Oof. In a high COL area, it's not at all unusual to get $25+ for two easy kids.

OP here: I agree, but the number of applicants (e.g. on Care.com) that indicate they are willing to care for more than 3 kids is pretty small. I was willing to pay up to $30 for someone with more experience. And although I don't know anyone IRL who pays more than $30, I'm not sure how paying more would address "burnout" or sickness if she's really ill. Maybe the suggestion of the mother's helper would work plus gives me a little back-up in the event of the nanny's absence.

Unless the helper is absolutely clear that she's there as a pair of hands, most experienced nannies won't want to deal with that. I'll take being exhausted and asking for a raise, thanks.

I'm sure you aren't absent as often, and your employer doesn't need to supplement. If I understand "mother's helper" correctly, it's more of a younger person --high school or college age-- not a professional nanny substitute.

[Anonymous]

If you are going through Care for candidates, then that's your first problem. You also need to pay a proper rate for 4 kids. If 2 kids were mostly not needing care and it was just an infant and another then you should easily find candidates if offering a better price as you'll get the attention of someone who can handle those kids and not feel underpaid. Being underpaid and knowing it affects your mental health and can create more burnout when already working a stressful job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your post make me think that she is burned out. Missing work often and no be willing to be reliable at all, it's seems a red flag. She must be missing work on purpose; while looking for a new job. Just saying now that I'm reading your post and mention you have 4 children. If she has been working for you only for some months; maybe she just started to feel the burn out. Four children it's really lot of work.

Possibly but she always claims to have a plausible excuse, usually related to illness. Since we had a similar experience with the last nanny (when we only had 3 kids), I guess we took things at face value and trusted her excuses.

Of course she says it's illness. What's she going to say, "I can't come in tomorrow. You aren't paying me enough for four kids and I'm burned out?" Come on.

I agree, this is one burnt out nanny! If you ask any nanny in this position, they start taking days off for a break. It's not just the pay but stretch in ages and keeping them all happy is draining. The fact that you keep saying she has plausable excuses means she can't talk to you and be honest. If you like her and want to keep her, sit her down ON YOUR TIME not her hours, away from the kids so you can talk uninterupted and be gentle but ask her to be honest and that you love her and want to keep her but you want her to want to come to work and be happy and how can we make that happen.
Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We haven't had the best luck in the nanny department. The current one seems to miss work about 2-3 days a month, not counting planned days like vacation and holidays. We've paid her regardless, but it's been disruptive to our own jobs. DH's parents are retired and local and have helped some, but I think that option is wearing thin. There are four children, ranging from 4 months to 6 years, so they are a handful especially this summer when school is not in session. I do handle the baby's feedings since I WFH. I guess we either need to replace the nanny or arrange for paid back-up care (which I understand would be pricey). TIA for any suggestions.

Four kids! No wonder she calls in sick. You need two nannies.