Nanny share-separate or joint contract

[Anonymous]

Hi there. We are about to enter into a nanny share with another family. We are wondering if we present a joint or separate contracts to the nanny. Thanks for any information you can provide. We're new to this!

[Anonymous]

Separate. Please do a search for additional information. What city?

[Anonymous]

OP here
I did a search. Seems to be parties that feel one contract is acceptable and others that recommend two. There are other posts that say a contract between the families is necessary. There's a lot to consider and I want to make sure we are going about this the right way.

[Anonymous]

The parents in a nanny share are legally joint employers. That means, legally, each parent is responsible that all the pay and benefits the nanny is owed are actually received. It makes no sense, legally, or practically to have different contracts.

[Anonymous]

Thank you.

[Anonymous]

PP again. I'll give one quick example of why this is important. Let's say you set up a nanny share where each family pays $15/hr when both kids are there and $20/hr if only one kid is there. (Numbers picked for ease of math). Family A is late one day. They have a separate contract and assume there OT is $30/hr. Family B assumes they owe nothing.

Legally, the nanny is actually owed a blended OT rate from both families. This needs to be addressed jointly, and both families need to mutually agree to their obligations.

[Anonymous]

Separate, but you need clauses that reference a generic family. Although the assumption is that both families will employ the nanny until such time as both transition to other care, the contract needs to read that the nanny has veto power if/when you need to find another family, and there needs to be two rates listed, one for hours when the nanny is working with children from both families, one for when the nanny is working with just your family. Each of you is responsible for taxes individually, each family may decide to leave the nanny share early. You need to reference that all major issues (nap and meal schedule, discipline, outings, etc) will be agreed to between the families, or the share will split.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP again. I'll give one quick example of why this is important. Let's say you set up a nanny share where each family pays $15/hr when both kids are there and $20/hr if only one kid is there. (Numbers picked for ease of math). Family A is late one day. They have a separate contract and assume there OT is $30/hr. Family B assumes they owe nothing.

Legally, the nanny is actually owed a blended OT rate from both families. This needs to be addressed jointly, and both families need to mutually agree to their obligations.

Why would family B owe anything?! Nanny had one child during the extra time, rate is individual OT. If both parents were late, rate would be share OT for both families.

[Anonymous]

Depending on where you are, the whole thing might be illegal.

[Anonymous]

What? A nanny share is illegal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again. I'll give one quick example of why this is important. Let's say you set up a nanny share where each family pays $15/hr when both kids are there and $20/hr if only one kid is there. (Numbers picked for ease of math). Family A is late one day. They have a separate contract and assume there OT is $30/hr. Family B assumes they owe nothing.

Legally, the nanny is actually owed a blended OT rate from both families. This needs to be addressed jointly, and both families need to mutually agree to their obligations.

Why would family B owe anything?! Nanny had one child during the extra time, rate is individual OT. If both parents were late, rate would be share OT for both families.

Because OT is owed on total weekly hours going over 40. You can't pick and choose which hours are the "extra" without a specific prior agreement between /both/ families.

Here's the quote from FLSA:
http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs23.pdf

And here is a simpler explanation:
http://www.epaysystems.com/blended-overtime-rates/

There are ways around this, but they have to be specifically addressed in a contract in order to be legal. The two families in a share aren't separate entities. Anything you agree to with one gives obligations to the other.

[Anonymous]

Ok, my assumption was like this:

Family A needs 40 hours per week (8-4), Family B needs 37.5 hours (8.30-4). If Family A needs an extra hour on Monday, putting total hours over 40, there's no reason that Family B should be paying overtime for 3-4 on Friday. My assumption is that the schedule is set as 8-4, both families pay share rates from 8.30-4, Family A pays individual rates from 8-8.30. If Family A goes over on Monday (or any other day), they pay overtime for anything they have the nanny work individually.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, my assumption was like this:

Family A needs 40 hours per week (8-4), Family B needs 37.5 hours (8.30-4). If Family A needs an extra hour on Monday, putting total hours over 40, there's no reason that Family B should be paying overtime for 3-4 on Friday. My assumption is that the schedule is set as 8-4, both families pay share rates from 8.30-4, Family A pays individual rates from 8-8.30. If Family A goes over on Monday (or any other day), they pay overtime for anything they have the nanny work individually.

Your assumption is wrong. In a share you are joint employers. You can't expect to be insulated from the burdens of the entire share, while also benefiting from that joint employer status. Want to be separate employers? Ignore the laws on OT, but don't be surprise when your nanny asks both families to pay at least minimum wage EACH.

[Anonymous]

I'm op and didn't post the above assumption. All I am curious about is whether to present a joint or separate contract. We can figure out the issues with overtime pay on our own. Thank you for your help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm op and didn't post the above assumption. All I am curious about is whether to present a joint or separate contract. We can figure out the issues with overtime pay on our own. Thank you for your help.

I'm 10:46. Sorry, didn't mean to take your thread on a tangent! My point was, you need one contract, with both employers, because the are tons of issues like this that stem from a joint employment relationship.