Nanny Cams - Looking for experiences from nannies

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'd always assume there is a camera. Its common enough for cameras to be called Nanny Cams! Your employers house isn't your own so I don't understand why anyone would feel comfortable doing things that they wouldn't normally do at a work environment or guest's house. There enough bad nannies out there that the cams help show how good you are.

There are also enough perverts out there to justify feeling a bit uncomfortable with the idea that someone may be secretly recording you.

In this day and age, you are being recorded virtually every place you go - stores, bank, public streets, etc. And what is a "pervert" going to see you do as a nanny?! You change the kids - not yourself! Do you really think a pervert is interested in watching you read "Green Eggs and Ham" or play peek-a-boo twenty-seven times a day? It is against the law (in every state) to have cameras in the bathroom or private bedroom of a live-in nanny so that is not the worry.

Right. Because something being a law means no one ever breaks it. Are you really that stupid? This is not the same as being recorded while you are conducting business in public. In those situations there is far more over site concerning who views the footage, and how when and where the footage is taken. If my boss is secretly recording me, they very well could be recording me in the bathroom, or in my bedroom as a live-in, and there would be no one to stop them. If you're up front about the cameras I think its less likely that you are doing creepy shit with them, but if I find out you're doing it in secret, there's no telling what other secrets you have. Trust is a two way street. Your comfort does not trump mine.

Wake up, Angel, it's 2014. Get over yourself and your paranoia or find another career. I am a nanny and I think cameras work to our benefit - the parents get to see how hard we work and how good we are.

So I gave you completely legit reasons for why SECRET cameras are bad for a trusting relationship, and why they could justifiably make someone uncomfortable, and your soundly argued response is to patronizingly tell me to get over it. Good job. Cameras are one thing. Secret cameras are another.

Yes, Dear, get over it. If there are secret cameras anywhere you won't know about them (hence the term "secret"). Your paranoia is tiresome and boring.

You seriously don't see a difference between hidden cameras at a large store or bank, where an entire department of people are in charge of monitoring the footage, there is accountability, and any law breaking would be unlikely to go unnoticed, vs. secret cameras in someone's home, where they are accountable to no one, and if the nanny is lucky enough to realize that the law has been broken, her options for recourse include quitting her job and having a hole on her resume and/or pursuing the costly and time consuming legal justice she would be entitled to but unlikely to recieve. Yep absolutely no difference and its insane that someone might be uncomfortable with unscrupulous employers secretly taping who knows what.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know a live-in nanny who found a hidden camera in her bedroom. You can just imagine her outrage.

Which law makes that illegal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know a live-in nanny who found a hidden camera in her bedroom. You can just imagine her outrage.

Which law makes that illegal?

You don't see an issue with that? The laws that allow cameras in private homes typically specify that the cameras must be in places where there is no expectation of privacy. There is a reasonable expectation of privacy in the bathroom or in one's bedroom. Owning a home doesn't give you the right to install a peep cam in your nanny's bedroom. If a parent is recording you secretly, you really don't know that they'd follow the laws. They've proven themselves to be sneaky and dishonest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'd always assume there is a camera. Its common enough for cameras to be called Nanny Cams! Your employers house isn't your own so I don't understand why anyone would feel comfortable doing things that they wouldn't normally do at a work environment or guest's house. There enough bad nannies out there that the cams help show how good you are.

There are also enough perverts out there to justify feeling a bit uncomfortable with the idea that someone may be secretly recording you.

In this day and age, you are being recorded virtually every place you go - stores, bank, public streets, etc. And what is a "pervert" going to see you do as a nanny?! You change the kids - not yourself! Do you really think a pervert is interested in watching you read "Green Eggs and Ham" or play peek-a-boo twenty-seven times a day? It is against the law (in every state) to have cameras in the bathroom or private bedroom of a live-in nanny so that is not the worry.

This is 100% wrong.

[Anonymous]

You can buy yourself a little gadget that will alert you to hidden cameras. Then you decide if you want to smile and wave to them. They cost about 100. I think.

[Anonymous]

I have nanny cams, 1 in my bedroom where my babies crib is, 1 in the family room, 1 in the play room. During the interview I ask if they're comfortable, only two women were uncomfortable and one of them was a TERRIBLE nanny. The nanny cams are in CLEAR view and we do not abuse the use of them. In the beginning I'd check often since the nanny was new, but eventually I checked in once every week or two but never took them down for HER comfort, I also use them to check on my dog on the weekends and for SECURITY.

I work in a company where we have cameras EVERYWHERE and you don't where they are and they never asked me if I was comfortable with them (large corporation on wallstreet). I use the gym and showers at work, could they be recording me in the bathroom or showers?! MAYBE, there's a risk everywhere. Plus my every movement is tracked (I see them pulling the reports), how long you're in the bathroom, a conference room, on a certain floor, it's crazy. It just keeps people more honest, I don't like it but it's just becoming a daily part of our lives.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have nanny cams, 1 in my bedroom where my babies crib is, 1 in the family room, 1 in the play room. During the interview I ask if they're comfortable, only two women were uncomfortable and one of them was a TERRIBLE nanny. The nanny cams are in CLEAR view and we do not abuse the use of them. In the beginning I'd check often since the nanny was new, but eventually I checked in once every week or two but never took them down for HER comfort, I also use them to check on my dog on the weekends and for SECURITY.

I work in a company where we have cameras EVERYWHERE and you don't where they are and they never asked me if I was comfortable with them (large corporation on wallstreet). I use the gym and showers at work, could they be recording me in the bathroom or showers?! MAYBE, there's a risk everywhere. Plus my every movement is tracked (I see them pulling the reports), how long you're in the bathroom, a conference room, on a certain floor, it's crazy. It just keeps people more honest, I don't like it but it's just becoming a daily part of our lives.

But you know they are there, and you know that the person/people viewing the footage are held accountable to someone. If someone is recording you in the shower at the gym, they are breaking the law, and I highly doubt there is an orchestrated effort by the gym to record people in the shower. It would never be allowed. Some freak with a camera in their home recording you in the shower, answering to no one, and the nanny is unaware of the cameras? Completely possible, or are you under the impression that freaks and criminals don't reproduce? The ability to make a baby doesn't make you some kind of angel beyond reproach or question, that everyone should blindly trust. I find it hilarious that everyone acts as though its okay and safe practice to assume nannies are abusers and criminals until proven otherwise, but its crazy and paranoid to say that maybe nannies ought not be so blindly trusting of their employers.

My point is not about whether you should use cameras or not. My point is that if you are sneaky about the cameras, meaning you have secret cameras, your nanny has no reason to trust you should she find them. I suggest that all nannies purchase a camera detector, and do some research into these cameras and what they look like. Protect yourselves.

[Anonymous]

Excellent advice from 6:47. All nannies need to get wise.

[Anonymous]

I think it's great that the family offered full disclosure upfront about the cameras. That shows they are an honest family and are taking a step in the right direction to forge a respectful Parent/Nanny relationship and I commend that. There are some families who wouldn't disclose this and I could never ever work for anyone who would deceive me in such a manner.

Now the ball is in your court.
It is up to you to decide if you feel comfortable working in a home where you know you will be filmed during your stay. Some people are okay w/it, others may not be. Ultimately it is a personal choice.

I tend to be a very goofy person and have a very unique personality around my charges. I like to sing, dance and just goof off in a way that I could never do around my charges parents. Sometimes my charges will ask me to sing a sing when the parents are around, and I have to tell them to wait until Mama and Daddy are gone because I am too bashful for them to hear my singing voice. Lol. That's just me. Other people are more bold and do not care.

I couldn't work around children knowing I was being filmed for that sole purpose. If it was a newborn infant, I might be able to, but for toddlers and up, probably not.

Don't feel bad if you are not comfortable w/a nanny cam. Just let the parents know. It doesn't mean you have something to hide. It just means you may not be a suitable match for this family.

GL.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I never would have known how good our nanny is had it not been for the nanny cams. Our nanny is very reserved and dignified around my husband and I but a total uninhibited crack-up with our kids! She has this incredible energy and is so silly and funny! She dances, makes up silly songs, and makes our two little ones howl in laughter. She also has an great way of disciplining them - she explains the offense very clearly and calmly - then removes herself from the situation for about thirty seconds and when she returns she is smiling and gives them a chance to apologize and do the right thing. I've also been able to see how much work she does on their behalf when they are napping - toys collected and returned to their room cleaned, laundry neatly folded and quietly put back in the drawers, etc.

We told her when we interviewed her that we had two cameras (which are in clear view) - one in the kids room and one in the playroom and she had no problem with it. While I understand that some nannies may not be comfortable with cameras, I thought it important to note how cameras can help them. (I also agree that hidden cameras are wrong.)

[Anonymous]

I had a nanny cam when my daughter was an infant, and I fully disclosed it to the nanny. I think hidden cameras are wrong. I also told her whenever I looked at the footage to compliment her on something I saw. After her first year or so, I removed it and put it in storage. I told her when I did that because I didn't feel a need to know what happened during their day.

Nanny never said she was offended by the camera and wasn't particularly interested in when it was removed. If everyone is upfront about the situation, there is no need for fear or trust issues, imo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't have any advice, because I would never work for a family with nanny cams. If they can't implicitly trust you, and rely on things like coming home early or checking in throughout the day during the "getting to know you"/trial period, you don't want to work for them. Yikes.

Totally agree!

[Anonymous]

I don't have any advice, because I would never work for a family with nanny cams. If they can't implicitly trust you, and rely on things like coming home early or checking in throughout the day during the "getting to know you"/trial period, you don't want to work for them. Yikes.


Totally agree!

Why should they "implicitly trust" you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I don't have any advice, because I would never work for a family with nanny cams. If they can't implicitly trust you, and rely on things like coming home early or checking in throughout the day during the "getting to know you"/trial period, you don't want to work for them. Yikes.


Totally agree!

Why should they "implicitly trust" you?

They want to?

Why should any nanny trust you OR your spouse?

[Anonymous]

While I wouldn't like working for someone who had a nanny cam, that wouldn't be a deal breaker. Plus the daycare I used to work at had cameras. You forget after a while.