Need advice re: part-time nanny pay/"benefits"

[Anonymous]

We have been interviewing nannies for our almost 2 year old, and have been quite surprised by the list of "demands," or expectations, we are hearing. One specific issue that has been confusing to us is that nannies who are currently watching two or three children tell us that they are used to getting a certain salary, and want the same amount. It seems a bit unusual to us that a nanny who is only caring for one child should expect the same salary as when caring for multiple children. But we have not had a nanny before, and want to be fair, so we want to make sure we have a better sense of whether we are just off base, or whether some of these demands are, in fact, unreasonable. We would appreciate insights into a number of different issues, including:

1) Is it appropriate for a nanny to demand the same salary for one child as when caring for multiple children?

2) What is the general hourly rate for nannies watching one child?

3) What type of "benefits," if any, should a part-time nanny (30 hours or less) receive? More specifically, is it the norm to request things like paid vacation, holidays, personal days, sick leave, gas reimbursement, or any other additional compensation above and beyond salary (which everyone seems to be requesting in cash)?

4) What should we expect the nanny to do in addition to caring for our child? For example, we interviewed one nanny and asked if she would make food for the baby. She said she doesn't usually do that, but "supposed" she could. We were a bit surprised that something like this would not be considered a normal part of her daily responsibility.

Thank you in advance for any information you can provide on these issues, or any other general advice regarding what is reasonable and expected in the area, as we continue our search.

[Anonymous]

How are things in your field, OP? Cookie cutter? Probably not. If you want cheaper childcare, why not keep looking until you find it?

[Anonymous]

This response is pretty offensive, and totally unhelpful. I'm not sure where you would construe that we are intending to simply find "cheap" childcare because of the questions I asked. We are not cheap, by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, we offered to pay MORE to watch just our one child than what one nanny currently watching 3 kids is making. It was at that point that a whole new list of additional demands started coming, and it was extensive. I'm sincerely just trying to figure out what we should anticipate, never having done this before. We want the best care for our child, but we also do not want to be taken advantage of. I can assure you that my employer certainly does not pay for my gas to go to work, for example. I asked for advice having never employed a nanny before, so I'm not sure why that merited such a snarky response. And incidentally, just because someone charges more, doesn't mean the quality of care is any better. No doubt in every field, this sentiment applies.

Helpful responses are greatly appreciated, for anyone who cares to provide them. Thank you in advance.

[Anonymous]

1) I think it's reasonable that rate for one child would be less than the rate for multiple children. It is also reasonable that the nanny would not want to take a pay cut. So it seems those candidates "demanding" to keep the same rate are just not a good match for your your needs.

2) you will get answers from $15 to $25 (or more, but those are outliers) depending on what kind of education and experience you require, specific location in the DC area, whether you require driving and a car, level of English proficiency, and whether you are talking about pre-tax, net, or paying in cash with no taxes.

3) Gas reimbursement is a must (for miles driven in the job). I also think you should offer some paid holidays or paid days off if you want someone who will approach the job like a professional position. I have always paid on the books and yes, that eliminates a fair number of candidates. Some employers offer health insurance as well, though our nanny has gotten insurance through her spouse's plan and preferred to just accept a higher hourly rate.

4) Most people would agree that any child related task is included: child's laundry, cooking child's meals - that is, those meals to be eaten during the nanny's hours, and keeping play areas and kitchen as tidy as you found it. I would not hire anyone who made a big deal about doing those basic tasks.

[Anonymous]

When we first hired a nanny for our first child, we paid $15 an hour. It was full time so we gave benefits. So I can't speak to your part time issue. Just put out there what you're willing to pay so if people want more than that, they won't bother applying for a job with you.

As for other duties, our nanny handles all kiddie-laundry, suggests developmentally appropriate toys as our kids grow into new stages, etc. Generally DH or I made the baby food at night or on weekends and froze it in ice cube trays, so the nanny just heated it up. Now the youngest is 3, so really besides making eggs, there's very minimal cooking. Nanny keeps the kids bedroom clean, toys picked up, laundering sheets, bedding, etc.

[Anonymous]

If u need nanny to do just childcare its 18/h for DC area
If u need other related work included like laundry, cooking, driving its 23/h and yes this is for one child before taxes taken out.
You gotta pay her when you go on vacation and also when she goes it depend on how long u both agree on. It's usually 1 week some employers are more generous and give 2 weeks. Keep in mind a nanny working for u it's all she is doing so u Got to give her a decent fair living wage.

[Anonymous]

Many thanks, I appreciate the insights. And apologize for not being clear about the gas issue; we are not asking the nanny to drive our child anywhere, nor would that be necessary given that we are in close proximity to any number of things of interest (like park/playground) should they decide to go out. The individual in question asked that we pay for her gas from her home to ours, since this is farther than she usually commutes. And that didn't sound appropriate, but again, I don't know if other employers are actually doing this, or if she was just asking for anything she thought she could get us to pay. She also asked to use our car if she takes the baby out, so clearly would not need to be compensated for gas in that event.

I also appreciate the comment about level of experience/education/training. We've only spoken to a few people, but I have yet to meet anyone who is formally trained in childcare. Mostly just people who have watched kids (including their own), some seem more experienced than others. I'm certainly willing to pay/do more to for someone more experienced/knowledgeable. This is, after all, the person caring for our child, so we want to treat them well! Because we haven't really known where to look, we have thus far relied on referrals from trusted sources - and thus far, everyone has asked for more from us (salary and/or benefits) than they are currently getting, at least according to the people I've contacted for more information. For example, the person who asked to use our car is working for a family who told me that she uses her own vehicle to transport their kids. As much as we liked her, and think she would be great, we just don't want to be in a situation where we are being asked to do things other employers are not doing. If these are reasonable requests however, we want to make sure we fairly consider them.

Thank you again for the helpful guidance!

[Anonymous]

I think the hours, 30 a week, are enough to offer at least some of the benefits you mentioned, such as some paid time off.

A stipend for fuel to and from work is not the norm. You mentioned the nanny candidate has a longer commute, which I would consider carefully, as traffic can be terrible around here. It has been nice for us to hire someone who lives a few miles from us, so that driving in bad weather or bad traffic is less of an issue with regard to arriving on time. Just something to think about.

[Anonymous]

Where are you, OP? The "norms" are different in different places.

However, when I've had a PT nanny, I've prorated the benefits. So, still two weeks of vacation, but those "weeks" are equal to what she works, not 40 hours.

If it's cash, off the books, then that changes things. Those demands seem ridiculous for an off-the-books position.

Also, unless you want the candidate very, very badly, don't hire someone so far away that the commute is a burden, whether financially or time-wise. You are just asking for the person to call out whenever the weather just might be bad, and to want to leave very early if any kind of back up is expected.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the hours, 30 a week, are enough to offer at least some of the benefits you mentioned, such as some paid time off.

A stipend for fuel to and from work is not the norm. You mentioned the nanny candidate has a longer commute, which I would consider carefully, as traffic can be terrible around here. It has been nice for us to hire someone who lives a few miles from us, so that driving in bad weather or bad traffic is less of an issue with regard to arriving on time. Just something to think about.

For whom? There was just another thread on this, and no one agreed that the nanny should be paid for the commute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the hours, 30 a week, are enough to offer at least some of the benefits you mentioned, such as some paid time off.

A stipend for fuel to and from work is not the norm. You mentioned the nanny candidate has a longer commute, which I would consider carefully, as traffic can be terrible around here. It has been nice for us to hire someone who lives a few miles from us, so that driving in bad weather or bad traffic is less of an issue with regard to arriving on time. Just something to think about.

For whom? There was just another thread on this, and no one agreed that the nanny should be paid for the commute.

My bad! you said NOT the norm.

[Anonymous]

We actually already have tons of threads addressing your questions, OP. Maybe do some searches?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have been interviewing nannies for our almost 2 year old, and have been quite surprised by the list of "demands," or expectations, we are hearing. One specific issue that has been confusing to us is that nannies who are currently watching two or three children tell us that they are used to getting a certain salary, and want the same amount. It seems a bit unusual to us that a nanny who is only caring for one child should expect the same salary as when caring for multiple children. But we have not had a nanny before, and want to be fair, so we want to make sure we have a better sense of whether we are just off base, or whether some of these demands are, in fact, unreasonable. We would appreciate insights into a number of different issues, including:

1) Is it appropriate for a nanny to demand the same salary for one child as when caring for multiple children?

2) What is the general hourly rate for nannies watching one child?

3) What type of "benefits," if any, should a part-time nanny (30 hours or less) receive? More specifically, is it the norm to request things like paid vacation, holidays, personal days, sick leave, gas reimbursement, or any other additional compensation above and beyond salary (which everyone seems to be requesting in cash)?

4) What should we expect the nanny to do in addition to caring for our child? For example, we interviewed one nanny and asked if she would make food for the baby. She said she doesn't usually do that, but "supposed" she could. We were a bit surprised that something like this would not be considered a normal part of her daily responsibility.

Thank you in advance for any information you can provide on these issues, or any other general advice regarding what is reasonable and expected in the area, as we continue our search.

I find it very odd if "all" your applicants are requesting their pay in cash. Where are you advertising? And what details do you include?

[Anonymous]

Keep looking, OP. We've hired 3 nannies; one via care.com, one we found here on DCUM, and one we found through word of mouth. It's not clear from your post/questions whether you are advertising or just responding to ads but posting your position (neighborhood listServ, DCUM, etc) might help sort some of this out.

I think it does make sense that a nanny caring for one child would make less, but FWIW we've been paying $18/hour for our much older children, one of whom is most often in FT camp/school, the other of whom is also in PT preschool. This is very standard as far as a rate for close-in suburbs and within DC I'd expect to pay more. So, just as an example, starting a new job with a 2 year old (which may reasonably be expected to involve diapering, more intensive meal prep--i.e. cooking/cutting/slicing), and all-around more hands-on care. So I can understand someone saying "I charge $18/hour" as opposed to "I've been making $18/hour but would take less since its 1 child" when their work load may in fact go up quite a bit.

As far as benefits, I think paid federal holidays, 2 weeks paid vacation are very standard. If you anticipate taking more than 2 weeks off in a year, or if there might be days you wouldn't require your nanny to work, it's typical to offer "guaranteed hours" meaning you'll pay for 30 hours/week whether she works 30 hours or, say, 24. This is not paid in cash; we cut a check for vacation just like any other week and taxes are taken out.

I'd be a bit wary of hiring anyone who is expressing so many expectations during an interview.

[Anonymous]

You're asking if you need to offer paid holidays and vacation? Yikes.