How much is fair pay?

[Anonymous]

I am planning to hire a nanny for my two children, ages 2.5 years and 7 months. I am pretty laid back but would expect the nanny to help with kids' dishes and laundry and picking up their toys. Other than that, I'd love someone who will play with them and take them on playdates and perhaps a once a week music class. What is a fair hourly rate in DC? The nanny would work 4 days a week, about 9-10 hours per day for a total of 36-40 hours per week.

Is it common to offer a bit of money towards health insurance these days? If so, what would be a reasonable amount? We are not very wealthy and I am going to be a graduate student, so we're looking to be fair to the nanny and show her she's appreciated, but unfortunately probably won't be able to pay the full amont.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

A fair rate for the job you describe would be around $15-$17/hour. If you can work it out so that you are guaranteeing 40 hours(full time) but having fridays off, some nannies would jump at that schedule (I have a similar schedule and love it!) The health care contribution isn't necessary or common. I'd suggest directing that money toward a higher hourly rate instead.

[Anonymous]

You really need to find the person you want, and ask her, as rates can go up to $25./hr., or so. It depends on what you hope to find.

[Anonymous]

I'd say $16-18 will find you plenty of candidates. Especially if you guarantee 40 hours, like the PP suggested.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, all. $16/17 sounds doable and we could guarantee 40 hours a week to be worked M-Th (Fridays off.)

Are there any other expenses I'm not factoring in? I think we'd want to give a birthday and holiday bonus (how much is typical?) Are there any other expenses? I would not have the nanny driving the kids around so I don't think fuel $ would be necessary.

Thanks for the info re health insurance not being very common.

[Anonymous]

No one knows what percentage of nannies have health insurance. Soon it will no longer be optional.

[Anonymous]

Also (this is OP), I assume that $16 per hour, 40 a week is still reasonable even if we want to do things legally (ie, we won't pay under the table and we would withhold the nanny's SS and Medicare taxes from her paycheck.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd say $16-18 will find you plenty of candidates. Especially if you guarantee 40 hours, like the PP suggested.

Nanny here and I agree with the PP.

Health insurance premium contribution is something that some families offer as a benefit, but you shouldn't if you can't afford it. My employers take the money out of my check and pay my health insurance premium. This was my suggestion because it wasn't enough to be taken as a deduction on my taxes. If they pay it directly, it is not taxed.

[nannydebsays]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, all. $16/17 sounds doable and we could guarantee 40 hours a week to be worked M-Th (Fridays off.)

Are there any other expenses I'm not factoring in? I think we'd want to give a birthday and holiday bonus (how much is typical?) Are there any other expenses? I would not have the nanny driving the kids around so I don't think fuel $ would be necessary.

Thanks for the info re health insurance not being very common.

Since you say you'll be paying legally, add about 10% to the weekly pay to cover your share of taxes/expenses, plus the cost of a nanny payroll company. So $16/hour gross for 40 hours = $640/week, add $64 for taxes.

If nanny does eventually drive kids around, the standard is to use IRS reimbursement, currently 56,5 cents per mile.

As far as B'day and Holiday bonuses (and yearly retention bonuses) the "standard" is that there is no standard. I get 1 week for B'day, 2 weeks for holiday/retention. Some get more, some get less. IMO, nannies should never expect bonuses, because some families can't afford them, some just don't give them, etc. It's a fabulous gesture, but if it's not in your budget...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You really need to find the person you want, and ask her, as rates can go up to $25./hr., or so. It depends on what you hope to find.

Will you people stop with the inflated rates!!

OP, it's very hard to ask this question on these boards because some 'nannies' like to exaggerate the rates. $25/hr is NOT normal. The only nannies worth that rate are the true professionals with all their degrees lined up, CPR and First Aid, experience, transportation, willing to do some type of light housekeeping, household managers, etc. Don't be fooled by those on here who like to pretend that they make more then they do.

[Anonymous]

OP any level of healthcare contribution you can offer will help you pull in a higher tier of candidates - anywhere from $75/month - $200/month is what I've seen nannies around me offered, which is usually not enough to cover an individual plan but enough to take the sting out of it. I personally don't interview for jobs that aren't offering a healthcare stipend, but I don't have a set amount that I require, so offering it upfront as a benefit you're willing to negotiate on is a great idea to pull in some great nannies during the interview process.

I would diverge a little from the others and suggest that $18/hr sounds significantly more reasonable than $16/hr, but I also tend to skew on the higher end of the scale here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You really need to find the person you want, and ask her, as rates can go up to $25./hr., or so. It depends on what you hope to find.

Will you people stop with the inflated rates!!

OP, it's very hard to ask this question on these boards because some 'nannies' like to exaggerate the rates. $25/hr is NOT normal. The only nannies worth that rate are the true professionals with all their degrees lined up, CPR and First Aid, experience, transportation, willing to do some type of light housekeeping, household managers, etc. Don't be fooled by those on here who like to pretend that they make more then they do.

Stop contradicting yourself. You say that some nannies are worth 25, but also accuse them of inflating their rates. Which is it?

[Anonymous]

It's basically just one poster, posting the same crap on every thread regarding rates. Can we ignore her and stop acting like ALL of the nannies are doing it? Pretty much every other poster has agreed with the range of $15-18/hour.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's basically just one poster, posting the same crap on every thread regarding rates. Can we ignore her and stop acting like ALL of the nannies are doing it? Pretty much every other poster has agreed with the range of $15-18/hour.

What makes you think that? It's not all, and it's not one, IMO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's basically just one poster, posting the same crap on every thread regarding rates. Can we ignore her and stop acting like ALL of the nannies are doing it? Pretty much every other poster has agreed with the range of $15-18/hour.

What makes you think that? It's not all, and it's not one, IMO.

There may be posters that post higher rates than you agree with, but most of us are within a few dollars of each other. The poster(s) constantly saying $25-$30/hour is(are) crazy and we all know that. Ignore her(them).