Do Part-Time nannies exist?
![[Post New]](/nanny-forum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| I’m quickly losing faith in the au pair program after a couple of bad experiences but the problem is what we really need right now is someone who can work a flex schedule (help us in the mornings and then again after school for a total of about 4.5 hours a day. (1.5 in the am / 3 in the afternoon). Is it true that part time nannies willing to work such a job, which requires a strong driver, are very hard to find? And that even if we do find someone, that they might quit on us when a better job comes around. I’ve never actually looked into hiring a PT nanny because of what I’ve heard anecdotally but seriously considering it now if it’s actually a viable option. |
Anonymous
| Why would anyone want this job? |
Anonymous
| The kind of nanny you are looking for is the most sought after. Yes, they exist but are very expensive. |
Anonymous
|
One friend lucked out big time with a preschool teacher who could do mornings, then go to her preschool teaching job and then get the kids in the afternoon. She has been with the family for two years and is expensive ($35 an hour).
|
Anonymous
| I've done something similar in the past. I work overnights with newborns. |
Anonymous
Just curious- how much do you charge for overnight with newborns. I have an interview in two days for a position like that. It would be my first time doing overnight. They they have a two months old girl 
|
Anonymous
|
You will find the afternoon slot easier to fill if you can bump it to 4-5 hours a day and give someone a true PT week. Offer on the high end of the normal range.
The morning is harder. However, if you bump that to 2 hours, suddenly you have a 35-hour/wk job, for which you could offer normal pay. It's still a hard sell, because a split schedule can be very draining, but it easier to find. What you're asking for now are part time hours, but not on a schedule where someone could find a second gig to make up full time hours, AND they have to get up at the ass-crack of dawn. It's going to be hard. Try to think creatively about the morning shift, and hire for afternoons if you can't afford full time and don't want an au pair. That would be my suggestion. |
Anonymous
| What are your plans for unexpected days off from school, OP? Like sick days, snow days, etc.? |
Anonymous
|
Really, about the only type of person I can imagine would be content with this type of split schedule, would be a college student who needs the middle of the day free for class.
But: Do you live close enough to a college where your house would be convenient enough to get to? Schedules change each semester, and after one semester they might need to take a super early/late class that no longer works for your needs? College breaks are often different (longer) than elementary school breaks so if the student goes "home" for breaks, you're without care during that time. It's possible you might get someone else (not a student) willing to work that schedule, but probably only because they are desperate and will bail once they find a job with better hours. |
Anonymous
| OP here - thanks for your responses and confirming what I had expected. It seems like my only options are aftercare or an au pair. Am I missing anything? |
Anonymous
| Family. Wish I had free babysitters like some of my friends. |
Anonymous
Not without a lot of hustling and cobbling-together of options, and not below the price point of a full time, probably live-in nanny, unless there's a grandparent or college-aged niece/nephew who can come live with you. It really depends on how tired of the AP program you are. |
Anonymous
If you and your spouse have flexibility with your job hours, maybe stagger them so one can be home in the mornings and the other home in the afternoons? Pay an obscene amount of money for the specific hours you need? Yes, there is probably someone out there willing to work the hours you need, for the right amount of money. So many families want/need these same hours accommodated, that anyone decent will have their choice of jobs A pp mentioned that her friend pays $35/hr for those type of hours. |
Anonymous
Are you in a college town? You may not find the same person for mornings and afternoons, but you should be able to find someone for each. BUT... as PP said, “Why would they want your job?” You can fix most problems by throwing money at it. Make it an attractive gig and you’ll find someone (likely 2+ people) who will want the job. Why didn’t the APs work out? How many did you try? Have you posted on the AP forum about help with issues you’re seeing? |
Anonymous
| Sure, we had one. 2-7pm five days a week. The nanny went to school in the mornings. |