Nanny asking for a month off with no notice
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Anonymous
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I need some advice. I love our nanny. We have had her for 11 months. My 3 yr old adores her to pieces. I have two children; 3 yrs old and 8 months. We give our nanny paid vacation. However, in her contract we asked for a minimum of a months notice when requesting for time off. Unfortunately, we don't have any family around and we need time to get back up. Last month, we discussed her taking off from Dec 23 to jan 5th. We all agreed on those days off. Today, she asked me if it would be okay to take off from dec 23 -Jan 21st. She wants to go back to her country to visit her family and put airline tickets on hold.
While, I understand she wants to take more time off. This is no notice! I am willing to try and make it work for her because I do want her to be happy. But, on the other hand what are we going to do for childcare? I am interested in how you would handle it? |
Anonymous
| Say no, sorry. We don't have backup care and that's exactly why we put in the contract that we need a month's notice. If this was a problem for you I wish you'd not signed the contract. |
Anonymous
| Is there a family emergency back home? It makes no sense on her end to buy plane tickets this close to a trip. |
Anonymous
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Say no.
That is beyond unacceptable. Why is she planning this so late? That won't work out for anyone then. Half of a nannies job is to allow the working mother and working father to do their jobs. Don't be a nanny if you like to plan last minute, outrageously long vacations. (Btw, if you book your flights in advance you can pay less!) |
Anonymous
She's probably saving money by flying some cockeymaney day in the middle of January since she feels she doesn't need to report back to work like everyone else. |
Anonymous
No way, too long. You made an agreement last month and have several valid reasons you need to stick to it. If she is adamant about a 5 week vacation in January is slash her bonus and tell her not to return. Her priorities are way off, as is her understanding of her job. if you do want to bend over backwards for her co snider not paying for her trip jam 5-23rd or whatever as you will need the funds for daily daycare or another nanny. |
Anonymous
| You should have have had backup care from the beginning. |
Anonymous
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Over one month off in January?!
How many weeks of vacation do you provide? 3-5 weeks her choice and then all of your weeks off too? I don't know what kind of work environment you work at but the year starts off gangbusters! I certainly wouldn't want to go in late to any of my teams and say how my nanny of 1 year is on a 5 week vacation in Latin America or wherever and I'm driving my kid all around each morning and evening. Many, many jobs need signed approval notices of vacation dates and lengths for precisely this reason. No nonsensical retrades. |
Anonymous
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If you think you can find some back up childcare, then I would try to accommodate her if she truly is a great nanny. After all, great nannies are priceless.
But if it will be a pain the butt to do so on such short notice, then by all means let her know that you simply cannot fulfill her wish without more notice. She may not be too happy, but that is on her. She was the one, after all, who just sprung this on you. And she knew the term of the contract. |
Anonymous
| Every nanny I know does the long haul, visit the relatives vacation in the summer, it is more considerate then and easier for families to take off work or fly in grandparents or find a college student backup. |
Anonymous
| Even then it is two weeks max. |
Anonymous
| Say no -- and next time hire someone whose home country is the USA. |
Anonymous
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I've noticed that nannies from other countries especially European countries don't undestand our limited vacation policies. They come from places where a month off is standard. Also, if they fly back to their country it's not logical to only go for a week or two because it doesn't give them enough time to see all the friends and family they haven't been able to see the rest of the year.
You should explain that you need a month notice like the contract stated because you don't recieve that much vacation time and don't have enough time to find altnerative care. I'd be wary that she would not return within two weeks after refusing her. Make sure you have a back up plan just incase. |
Anonymous
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Ugh, I'm sorry OP. It is rotten of your nanny to put you in that position. And stupid.
That being said, the cost/stress/hassle of finding a new nanny is pretty significant - so in the big picture I would say that it's worth you trying to find a way to make it work. If you can afford it you have plenty of time to line up back-up care through an agency. It would be easy to find someone to cover a couple of weeks. (MetroParentRelief is who we use, and have used for exactly this kind of situation.) I would make it very clear that this is a one time exception you're making to your contractual arrangement but that you are doing it because you really value her as a nanny. But remind her of the contractual obligation. And I assume some portion of this vacation would be leave without pay? Good luck OP. At least you have time to set up options. |
Anonymous
| Every nanny I referenced and interviewed had historically never taken much vacation. The job is about reliable childcare. If you want to take a ton of vacation time do something else or live somewhere else or diligently plan it with the family.. Or arrange and pay for your sub! |