How Long is Considered "Long-Term"?
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Anonymous
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Just wondering about other opinions on what is considered "long-term" in the Nanny World?
It has a very uniquely high turnover rate, so how long looks solid on a resume...1 year, 3 years, 10? How long have your nannies stayed, and nannies how long have you stayed at your jobs? My history- 1st) 3 Months live-in, 2 toddlers 50hrs 2nd) 1 Year, live-in, 4 school aged 70hrs 3rd) 18 Months, Live-in, 2 kids 60hrs 4th) 5.5 years, Live-in, 3 kids 50hrs Current position is for 1 toddler, but it is a 24hr/5 position (around 110hrs a week), I am so exhausted that when I get home on the weekends all I can do is sleep. I feel I'm loosing out on my life. The reason I'm asking, I plan on staying on at this position 1.5 years. Is that long enough to look solid on a resume? Is that long enough to not look flakey to my employers? Love the kid and his family, just the hours are killing me! |
Anonymous
| I work with a upscale nanny agency and most families want a nanny that has 3+ years experience with one family. Obviously some positions will be shorter due to older kids, changing needs, etc. but a lot of families like to see a nanny stay with a family for 3+ years. When I except a position, I always stay for as long as I am needed for. All of my positions have ended naturally where the kids all started school full-time, they moved, etc. |
Anonymous
| I work with a middle-to-upper end agency and they define long-term as at least one year. 1.5 years will look solid on your resume. |
Anonymous
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I've never heard of any agreement for more than one year. Most don't last that long. If you've completed one year with one nanny/family, most nannies and parents are quite pleased, and consider themselves fortunate.
For the child, however, the less switching out, the better. Every broken bond represents a traumatic experience, IF the nanny had been the primary caregiver. Often the repercussions are not immediately noticeable. |
Anonymous
| I'm going on two years with my family and about to sign a contract for a third. I guess that is considered long term? I hadn't really thought about it. |
Anonymous
Yes, you are considered "long term". What fortunate children you have in your care. |
Anonymous
Thank you! Was here for the birth of my current charge, and MB/DB are expecting #2 this fall. 
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Anonymous
Congratulations! Such happy news. |
Anonymous
| A would consider a long term position to be one that lasts one year or more. I was with a family for 1 year and their needs changed so I needed to find a new job. My current job will end in the fall and I will have been with them for a little over 4 years. |
Anonymous
| I think it is fine since you are coming off a truly long stint. But u would view 1.5 to 2 yrs as normal, 1 as short and only 3 plus as long term. If you had only stunts less than 2 yrs I would wonder. |
Anonymous
Complete bullshit on both paragraphs. What planet are some of you living on? Kids will not be traumatized by switching nannies anymore than they would be traumatized by switching daycare teachers/rooms. Nannies play an important part in a child's life but stop with the over top crap. Get over yourself! Good nannies last more one year. If you are only lasting one year for all of your jobs then you are a shitty nanny or a shitty employee. A good nanny has the option to stay with the family until the youngest no longer needs a nanny. This could be 3 years if the child enters full-time preschool, 5 years if its part time preschool or longer if there are multiple kids. Your former employers will not only write positive references but actively help you find other families when the job ends. |
Anonymous
| Do some research, 16:49. You are grossly misguided in your understanding, or lack of, early childhood development. Uninterrupted bonding between a baby, or very young child, and his primary caregiver, is an essential element of healthy human development. Haven't you studied that? It's common knowledge. |
Anonymous
We have no idea how old the theoretical children are. We have no idea if their nanny is the primary caregiver or not. I work 35 hours a week but my charge's parents are with him as many waking hours as I am, plus all the nights (when he is also awake). I don't consider myself his primary caregiver. SOME kids would feel the loss of a beloved nanny keenly and would struggle to accept a new one. Others would bounce back and be completely fine. I think PP objected to your very sweeping generalization. As a side note, most of my nanny positions have been 1 year - for various reasons (I was returning to school, they wanted an infant nanny but planned to put the child in daycare when he was a toddler, and so on). I am neither a shitty nanny nor a shitty employee, but I also don't advertise myself as a long-term nanny because I'm not. I move around the world/country a lot and typically don't stay in one place more than a year or two. Parents know this when they hire me and we keep in touch long-distance (and this summer, my very first charge will be coming across the country just to stay with me for a long weekend!) |
Anonymous
| I consider a nanny long term only if she has been with the same family 3+ years. |
Anonymous
| I consider anything over a year to be long term. I have been with my current family for 1 year and 3 months and wouldn't call myself short term. |