If you live in Silver Spring, would you hire a nanny from NoVa?

[Anonymous]

The hours are commute hours M-F (8:30-5:30]. An agency sent us the candidates. Both are good, both say they are interested. I'm worried about both lateness and quitting due to a long commute.

And no, I am not willing to pay extra to cover the commute.

[Anonymous]

Why not pick a more local agency with local nannies? Your area is full of nannies.

[Anonymous]

How much are you going to pay her per hour?

[Anonymous]

We would offer one $17 and the other $19. Two young children.

[Anonymous]

The agency assured me that they worked in our area. Now I am less sure. Who would you use for close-in Silver Spring?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We would offer one $17 and the other $19. Two young children.

If you have your heart set on one of these two, I'd recommend paying a top-notch rate. The better you pay, the less likely they'll be looking for another job closer to home. Don't you think?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The agency assured me that they worked in our area. Now I am less sure. Who would you use for close-in Silver Spring?

I generally don't recommend nanny agencies. But come winter, can you cover for childcare? Or do you have space to offer a sleepover, when snow is expected? Would they be generally agreeable to that?

[Anonymous]

What have their previous commutes been and what did those references say about timeliness?

[Anonymous]

Ask them how they will get to your house. The train is 95% reliable but buses are notoriously unreliable in this area. If you are not within very short walking distance from the train then you may have a problem.

[Anonymous]

MB in Kensington here. I would be pretty reluctant to do this. Is this your first nanny? If it is, one of the very most challenging things to deal with can be lateness and inability to get to work. I would be extremely concerned about traffic hassles, weather issues, car problems, etc... If they are planning to exclusively use Metro, then maybe, but it will still add probably close to 2 hours to their work day for the commute. That doesn't sound good for anyone.

And like another poster said, would you be willing/able to offer space to sleepover if inclement weather is predicted and would the candidates be willing to do that?

At minimum you should discuss this issue very directly with them, and get the agency to give you their attendance records with prior employers.

I would have to have no other options and/or think one particular candidate was truly spectacular to hire someone whose commute would be that challenging.

Have you tried neighborhood listservs/friends/social groups, etc...? Exhaust every possible outlet before hiring someone who lives that far away would be my advice.

Good luck.

[Anonymous]

These are the same thoughts I've had. I once passed on an excellent nanny who planned to commute by bike, because despite her assurances in June, I suspected it would be a problem in January.

I've got some time for hiring, so I think I will keep looking. I somehow had convinced myself that the agency would somehow make these issues go away.

[Anonymous]

Make it a condition of your position that any candidate live within a certain distance. As a nanny, I have been frustrated at times when I see a job I know I could get to on time but can't apply to because of this, however I also think the parent is communicating their tolerance, flexibility, or inflexibility. My current NF is cool with me being late because someone fell on the tracks and the train offloaded or the was a fire at one of the stations so the metro was single tracking (both have happened to me in the last year and accidents happen several times a year).

If I saw a job ad with a requirement the applicant must live within X minutes from your house I would expect that those unforeseeable events would be an issue for you, particularly during the times it happens more then once in a week.

[Anonymous]

To add to that: the train is still infinitely more reliable then traffic. I would not bar applicants who rely on the train unless you need them to drive for some job specific task.

[Anonymous]

I'm a nanny and completely disagree with the PP. I live a 40min drive to work with no traffic - sometimes twice that when it's bad - and I have been late once in 2.5 years. I come from a rural upbringing where driving an hour or more for some activities (school...) was normal. If the nanny has experience with this commute, OP, and her references report she's on time that should be weighted heavily in her favor.

If she has not had this, or a similar, commute in the past, though, I probably wouldn't offer it to her; much easier to continue your search now than have to fire and hire someone new later. Talk to the agency about these concerns, too - that's part of their job! Maybe they will tell you that candidates in your price range tend to live in NoVa and you may have to wait for someone more local, or maybe they'll have some nearby candidates ready for interviews when you call.