The $15 per hour nanny

[Anonymous]

Fact: You get what you pay for. This is America. (Of course you must do your due diligence.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fact: You get what you pay for. This is America. (Of course you must do your due diligence.)

No, not at all. You get what you negotiate for. This is America.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So $15/hr is somewhere between $31-43k a year, if it's 40-50 hrs/wk with overtime paid for anything over 40 hours.

Taxes: 15-20% depending on if you're in VA, MD, or DC
That leaves 26k - 34k after tax. So, let's go with a monthly budget of $2167 - 2833. I had a lot less to live on when in NYC, but generally speaking for a single adult:

-Rent: either rent a room in the district or have your own small apartment in the burbs near your employer for $800-900.
-Food: $300-400 (assuming food is a perk of the nanny job)
-Car(insurance, gas, loan): $250
-Cell: $50
-Health Insurance: $200 for individual plan via new health exchange at this income level
-Other: $400

I'm assuming the job doesn't offer many perks but we're planning to pay for our nanny's car insurance and gas since she'll be driving our kids around and we don't want her skimping on insurance. Given how cheaper the new individual plans are via the health exchange, we also plan to offer that as a benefit simply because it's easy, cheap, and the nanny doesn't have to pay taxes on it vs if she just gave her the cash as a bonus.

If we're talking about some one with a child or other dependents, I think a lot of other things come into play, like access to subsidized housing, subsidized preschool, school meals etc - at least in the area where I live, the income caps for those benefits are in the general range of what a nanny might make. So that's an entirely different exercise.

It's hilarious that you think someone can find an apartment for 800-900.

That's just how far removed from reality they are. Look at all the "we make half a million dollar per year and are just getting by" threads in the main forum. They don't really understand what its like to live on $15/hour, but they don't really give a shit. Let them eat cake, you know? That attitude has served the upperclass so very well in the past.

Agreed. Some of these people should be ashamed of their greed. All that matters is their portfolio. Their own kids don't count much for anything either. What did one mother say? Please bury me next to the mall, so my kid will visit my grave. Good luck with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So $15/hr is somewhere between $31-43k a year, if it's 40-50 hrs/wk with overtime paid for anything over 40 hours.

Taxes: 15-20% depending on if you're in VA, MD, or DC
That leaves 26k - 34k after tax. So, let's go with a monthly budget of $2167 - 2833. I had a lot less to live on when in NYC, but generally speaking for a single adult:

-Rent: either rent a room in the district or have your own small apartment in the burbs near your employer for $800-900.
-Food: $300-400 (assuming food is a perk of the nanny job)
-Car(insurance, gas, loan): $250
-Cell: $50
-Health Insurance: $200 for individual plan via new health exchange at this income level
-Other: $400

I'm assuming the job doesn't offer many perks but we're planning to pay for our nanny's car insurance and gas since she'll be driving our kids around and we don't want her skimping on insurance. Given how cheaper the new individual plans are via the health exchange, we also plan to offer that as a benefit simply because it's easy, cheap, and the nanny doesn't have to pay taxes on it vs if she just gave her the cash as a bonus.

If we're talking about some one with a child or other dependents, I think a lot of other things come into play, like access to subsidized housing, subsidized preschool, school meals etc - at least in the area where I live, the income caps for those benefits are in the general range of what a nanny might make. So that's an entirely different exercise.

It's hilarious that you think someone can find an apartment for 800-900.

That's just how far removed from reality they are. Look at all the "we make half a million dollar per year and are just getting by" threads in the main forum. They don't really understand what its like to live on $15/hour, but they don't really give a shit. Let them eat cake, you know? That attitude has served the upperclass so very well in the past.

Agreed. Some of these people should be ashamed of their greed. All that matters is their portfolio. Their own kids don't count much for anything either. What did one mother say? Please bury me next to the mall, so my kid will visit my grave. Good luck with that.

Btdt used to rent room for 800 when I was single in nyc and it was tight but livable. Of course I wasn't planning on living like that forever, graduated and made a career change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I've always thought that the wonderful thing about being a Career Nanny is that your wages could always go up. There will always be wealthier families willing to pay you more than you made in your last position. Lazy nannies with little to no experience and no qualifications aren't going to be eligible for higher paying positions but there are some nannies out there who make more than a lot of the MBs on this forum make.

Also, it is not a great job market out there. I think that a lot of nannies expect to obtain a wonderful, well-paying position within the first week that they start looking. In order to get a great position we need to weed through the job postings just like parents need to weed through applicants when choosing a nanny.

It took me several months of looking several times every single day on multiple sources in able to find the great position where I am now. It is worth the wait to find a well-paying position where you are appreciated and respected. Budget accordingly so that if something does happen to your job last minute you don't need to scramble and accept the first job that you are offered. Accept temporary positions while searching extensively for a long term position. Babysit to bring in extra cash during your search.m

This is good advice but there is a level of reality out there too. There are not many positions offered by super wealthy families who don't pay attention to what they are paying. Unfortunately, many of these high profile jobs are very intense with long hours, absentee parents, and travel.

And there are some of us that are quite happy to take the crazy hours, be the stable adult for a child with absentee parents and travel with the child (and sometimes the parents).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I've always thought that the wonderful thing about being a Career Nanny is that your wages could always go up. There will always be wealthier families willing to pay you more than you made in your last position. Lazy nannies with little to no experience and no qualifications aren't going to be eligible for higher paying positions but there are some nannies out there who make more than a lot of the MBs on this forum make.

Also, it is not a great job market out there. I think that a lot of nannies expect to obtain a wonderful, well-paying position within the first week that they start looking. In order to get a great position we need to weed through the job postings just like parents need to weed through applicants when choosing a nanny.

It took me several months of looking several times every single day on multiple sources in able to find the great position where I am now. It is worth the wait to find a well-paying position where you are appreciated and respected. Budget accordingly so that if something does happen to your job last minute you don't need to scramble and accept the first job that you are offered. Accept temporary positions while searching extensively for a long term position. Babysit to bring in extra cash during your search.m

This is good advice but there is a level of reality out there too. There are not many positions offered by super wealthy families who don't pay attention to what they are paying. Unfortunately, many of these high profile jobs are very intense with long hours, absentee parents, and travel.

And there are some of us that are quite happy to take the crazy hours, be the stable adult for a child with absentee parents and travel with the child (and sometimes the parents).

Erg, bolded the wrong area

[Anonymous]

Our nanny, who is very experienced, native english speaker, and wonderful, nets $700 a week and she and her husband (who works at Home Depot) own a nice townhouse in Germantown where they raise 4 of their grandchildren. I am not saying its not tight, but she manages fine. When I gave her a bonus, she was fvery proud to tell me that she gave half of it as a donation at her church where she was able to sponsor a child.

My husband's first job as an analyst in the financial sector post college paid $30K and I am a lwyer and the state sttorney's office in Miami paid $36K upon graduation from law school and thoise jobs are HIGHLY competitive.

If someone is willing to work for $15 hr in any industry, why is it 1) indicative of the quality of their work or competence or 2) reason to insult the employer by saying they shouldnt have them work at all?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny, who is very experienced, native english speaker, and wonderful, nets $700 a week and she and her husband (who works at Home Depot) own a nice townhouse in Germantown where they raise 4 of their grandchildren. I am not saying its not tight, but she manages fine. When I gave her a bonus, she was fvery proud to tell me that she gave half of it as a donation at her church where she was able to sponsor a child.

My husband's first job as an analyst in the financial sector post college paid $30K and I am a lwyer and the state sttorney's office in Miami paid $36K upon graduation from law school and thoise jobs are HIGHLY competitive.

If someone is willing to work for $15 hr in any industry, why is it 1) indicative of the quality of their work or competence or 2) reason to insult the employer by saying they shouldnt have them work at all?

If I offered you your dream job, but for only $15/hr, would you take it? (I'm certain you'd perform just as well as you do now, right?) Your friends wouldn't think any less of you, would they?

Sure, you'd have to tighten your belt a bit, but what's wrong with that? You could show your children how to live frugally and still be able to support the less fortunate people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny, who is very experienced, native english speaker, and wonderful, nets $700 a week and she and her husband (who works at Home Depot) own a nice townhouse in Germantown where they raise 4 of their grandchildren. I am not saying its not tight, but she manages fine. When I gave her a bonus, she was fvery proud to tell me that she gave half of it as a donation at her church where she was able to sponsor a child.

My husband's first job as an analyst in the financial sector post college paid $30K and I am a lwyer and the state sttorney's office in Miami paid $36K upon graduation from law school and thoise jobs are HIGHLY competitive.

If someone is willing to work for $15 hr in any industry, why is it 1) indicative of the quality of their work or competence or 2) reason to insult the employer by saying they shouldnt have them work at all?

If I offered you your dream job, but for only $15/hr, would you take it? (I'm certain you'd perform just as well as you do now, right?) Your friends wouldn't think any less of you, would they?

Sure, you'd have to tighten your belt a bit, but what's wrong with that? You could show your children how to live frugally and still be able to support the less fortunate people.

I cant tell if this is an attempt at sarcasm or not, but yes, if you offered me my dream job and it paid $15 an hour, I would take it. Just like actors act their little hearts out for next to nothing on off-off-off Broadway shows, lawyers make $42K a year as public defenders bc its their passion, chefs work 2 jobs making far less than $40K a yr to follow their dreams, and teachers start at $35K to form the minds of little people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny, who is very experienced, native english speaker, and wonderful, nets $700 a week and she and her husband (who works at Home Depot) own a nice townhouse in Germantown where they raise 4 of their grandchildren. I am not saying its not tight, but she manages fine. When I gave her a bonus, she was fvery proud to tell me that she gave half of it as a donation at her church where she was able to sponsor a child.

My husband's first job as an analyst in the financial sector post college paid $30K and I am a lwyer and the state sttorney's office in Miami paid $36K upon graduation from law school and thoise jobs are HIGHLY competitive.

If someone is willing to work for $15 hr in any industry, why is it 1) indicative of the quality of their work or competence or 2) reason to insult the employer by saying they shouldnt have them work at all?

If I offered you your dream job, but for only $15/hr, would you take it? (I'm certain you'd perform just as well as you do now, right?) Your friends wouldn't think any less of you, would they?

Sure, you'd have to tighten your belt a bit, but what's wrong with that? You could show your children how to live frugally and still be able to support the less fortunate people.

What would your budget look like? Would you need to move or would your husband cover the mortgage and your other living expenses?

I cant tell if this is an attempt at sarcasm or not, but yes, if you offered me my dream job and it paid $15 an hour, I would take it. Just like actors act their little hearts out for next to nothing on off-off-off Broadway shows, lawyers make $42K a year as public defenders bc its their passion, chefs work 2 jobs making far less than $40K a yr to follow their dreams, and teachers start at $35K to form the minds of little people.

[Anonymous]

Misplaced my comment above.

[Anonymous]

I dont know what my budget would look like bc if I was considering a $15 hr job, I would have different expenses than what I have now. But when my husbands job paid $30K, he lived ina 1 br with a roommate (they built a wall to create a 2nd br in part of the living room), never ate out, didnt buy new clothes, etc - the same way everyone else with that type of salary lives.

I dont even understand the argument that bc its not a lot of money to live on, no one should pay that salary. Thats the market, no one is forcing people to take these jobs and when we posted for a nanny at $15hr, we had many, many qualified applicants.

All our friends who work on Capital Hill make $20-$30K a year andf they figure it out. Janitors, hair stylists, waiters, etc. There are many professions which pay the same range as a nanny and they all figure it out. If you want to get rich, do something else.

Also, I have my bachelor degree in earlky childhood education and it has not helped even the tiniest bit in raising my 4 children.

To be a nanny, particularly for infants, you need to be calm, loving, patient, and responsible - nothing that a degree can help you with. Learning child development can be done easily on the job, especially considering that every child is different, and even parenting techniques and various schools of thought on sleep, eating, etc change from year to year, so anything you "learned" is not necessarily relevant to the next baby.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I dont know what my budget would look like bc if I was considering a $15 hr job, I would have different expenses than what I have now. But when my husbands job paid $30K, he lived ina 1 br with a roommate (they built a wall to create a 2nd br in part of the living room), never ate out, didnt buy new clothes, etc - the same way everyone else with that type of salary lives.

I dont even understand the argument that bc its not a lot of money to live on, no one should pay that salary. Thats the market, no one is forcing people to take these jobs and when we posted for a nanny at $15hr, we had many, many qualified applicants.

All our friends who work on Capital Hill make $20-$30K a year andf they figure it out. Janitors, hair stylists, waiters, etc. There are many professions which pay the same range as a nanny and they all figure it out. If you want to get rich, do something else.

Also, I have my bachelor degree in earlky childhood education and it has not helped even the tiniest bit in raising my 4 children.

To be a nanny, particularly for infants, you need to be calm, loving, patient, and responsible - nothing that a degree can help you with. Learning child development can be done easily on the job, especially considering that every child is different, and even parenting techniques and various schools of thought on sleep, eating, etc change from year to year, so anything you "learned" is not necessarily relevant to the next baby.

If you want a young nanny you need to micromanage,
you can pay her on the cheap.

But if you want a seasoned professional who knows how to do her job,
she'll expect a pay rate that reflects her expertise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
When you outsource the childcare, you and/or your spouse, need to earn enough to actually support another human being, and have some change left over for yourself.

If you and/or your spouse don't pull in that kind of income, what entitles you to cheap, but high-quality childcare?

We are ALL for women getting ahead,

but NOT over the backs of other women,

unless you pay them a fair living wage.

[Anonymous]

I get paid $17/hr but only 30 hours a week, so it's basically the same. My husband also works part time (usually 25-30 hours a week) and is paid $17/hr..but gets overtime pretty often (we're in California and get paid overtime for any time over 8 hrs a day). This is our usual budget:
Rent- $1100 one bedroom condo
Food- $600
Health insurance- $300
Gas- $250
Phone- $50
Utilities- $90
Car insurance- ~$85
Miscellaneous- $100-150 (haircuts, random things we buy, coffee)
Savings- everything else; usually $500-600 a month

We are very fortunate to never have to worry too much about making enough money. If I was single...it would probably look about the same, just halved!