full time nannies: do you work weekends?

[Anonymous]

I work full time 45 hours per week. Sometimes I’ll work more. I never work weekends and always say no when asked by MB. I’ve meet another nanny who also declines the extra hours from her MB to work weekends. Weekends are my days to relax and decompress from a week full of taking care of babies. Some other nannies I’ve met jump at any opportunity to work weekends and I’ve been called “inflexible,” since I decline most times to work weekends.
Any thoughts on this? Nannies what do you think? Do you work weekends? If so, how often?

[Anonymous]

We give our nanny rights of first refusal. We have a few babysitters we use when our nanny doesn't want extra hours. No big deal either way.

[Anonymous]

When my employers are traveling, I work weekends. It’s not often though. I would not come in for a shift over the weekend unless it were an emergency or I needed a boost to my savings (I do love OT pay)!

[Anonymous]

I’m an mb and I’ve asked my nanny once to work a couple hours on a weeknd since everything fell through including grandparents. She lives a bit away and values her weekend family time. We have other babysitters on call and I would be fine if a nanny said she’d never work a weeknd.

[Anonymous]

I work 51 hours a week and make enough that the extra income for weekend work isn’t worth the commute or giving up my free time. I will come in early and stay late occasionally but that’s it. However, my friend always works weekends when asked bc she doesn’t turn down money.

[Anonymous]

Op here. My previous nanny position was 2x per week 8-9 hours a days. The other 3 days I had classes and choose not to work those days (I lived w my parents at the time too so I didn’t need to pay high rent or bills etc) When I was asked to work weekends, I would do it 90% of the time simply because I wasn’t working all week and the extra money was good.
Now that I work full time, just the thought of coming in on a Saturday makes my body shake! My youngest charge is a horrible sleeper and eater so having to deal with him another day isn’t what I want to do. I live about 6 miles from my nanny family so commute isn’t an issue for me, it’s reallt just about my free time that I don’t want to give up.

[Anonymous]

If you don't want to work weekends, then don't take weekend work. It's simple. If nannies are calling you inflexible, that's on them. Who cares?

[Anonymous]

That’s ridiculous that people call you inflexible for not working a weekend after a 45-hour work week. You’re under no obligation to do that if it wasn’t originally agreed upon.

I don’t work weekends except for the once in a blue moon occasions my nanny family asks me to babysit so they can have an evening out. I usually say yes.

[Anonymous]

I used to work for other people on the weekends, Changed it up a little bit.

[Anonymous]

I work weekends when there's an actual need and/or when I want to do something fun with the kids. I took the kids to paint pottery for Father's Day over the weekend because there wasn't time during the week. Other times, there were three kids each with an activity in a different location, and it was a choice of me working or a child skipping the activity. Other times, one parent is traveling, the other is working, so kids are with me. It works for me, but my charges are now old enough that we take a backpack with snacks, water bottles, a few books to read while waiting, and the like, not a diaper bag

[Anonymous]

Our nanny works 45 hours and prefers not to work most weekends but she likes to shop so she does a few long weekends for us a year for extra money. We ask her first but she is always free to pass. I would never call her inflexible for not being available.

[Anonymous]

Don't feel guilty. You are not "inflexible" at all. After your long full time Job, you absolutely deserve spending your wknd with your family. You earned it already. It's up to you decide no to work if you don't wish. I guess your family understands you and are ok with it. I work a full time too and if my family needs a date night on the weekend, they are always very nice asking first If I'm free certain date and if I would like to come to babysit. If not it's ok and they find a family member to help. They always give the option to say no if I have plans already. They value my weekend time and don't get upset at all if I kindly say no.

[Anonymous]

I'm a former nanny and I happily worked weekends when I could -- I appreciated the extra money. It was no biggie when I couldn't, though.

Now I'm an MB and I don't expect our nanny to be available on weekends but we give her right of first refusal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't feel guilty. You are not "inflexible" at all. After your long full time Job, you absolutely deserve spending your wknd with your family. You earned it already. It's up to you decide no to work if you don't wish. I guess your family understands you and are ok with it. I work a full time too and if my family needs a date night on the weekend, they are always very nice asking first If I'm free certain date and if I would like to come to babysit. If not it's ok and they find a family member to help. They always give the option to say no if I have plans already. They value my weekend time and don't get upset at all if I kindly say no.

This thread is two years old.

[Anonymous]

Working on weekends after putting in 50 hours a week is a slippery slope. I always encourage people to seek out babysitters.