Weekend Class/Weekend Off?

[Anonymous]

AP wants to do one a weekend class (basically all day Sat and Sun) for her AP credits. She would normally work a chunk of Saturday. Do we count this as her weekend off for the month?

[Anonymous]

As the class is a required part of her stay, similar to an LCC meeting I would not.

[Anonymous]

The classes are taken during AP's time off. They are not included in her schedule. Otherwise, we would be out of hours if AP wanted to take a travel class, for example. So yes, technically speaking, this counts as her weekend off.

[Anonymous]

It doesn’t count toward her work hours. You can of course make an argument that it is not against the rules of the program to count that as her 1 weekend off for the month, but that doesn’t make it the right thing to do. You know that, which is why you came here to ask the question. You will find other families that will say you should do it, the same families that make the au pairs cook and clean for the family (not just the kids) and look for other ways to justify abusing the program.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, OP, you will have to actually spend time with your children on the weekend.
And NO, it's not her full weekend off, you need to let her take her classes.

[Anonymous]

Yes, it is not against the rule but it is at your discretion. For example if your AP works less than 30 hours per week I would have no problem doing that. But if she has a heavy schedule then probably not a good idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, OP, you will have to actually spend time with your children on the weekend.
And NO, it's not her full weekend off, you need to let her take her classes.

while this is true, you do NOT need to let her take classes that conflict with her scheduled duty time. I assume if she is working weekends she has plenty off time during the week to take classes. If she chooses to take a class that she can't fit in during her free time, then you can certainly count it as her weekend off. Although I agree with PP that if she otherwise is working a full schedule and you like her, you may want to just giver her the extra weekend one month.

[Anonymous]

I am always mind-blown that some host families genuinely seem to want to begrudge their Au pair even taking half a day off, she is going to be taking classes OP not asked you for half the day off to go on a jolly. Be a good family and let her have it and ENJOY the extra time with your kids. Why be mean-spirited when it cost you nothing to do the right thing and be nice to her?

You are supposed to make sure she can take take classes, if there is no classes she can take during her time off that would be approved by the program you would be bound to make further arrangements so she can take those classes, so be happy she is choosing to only get half a day of on a Saturday and give her those extra few hours off.

[Anonymous]

Agree with others. Probably not against the rules but it’s certainly mean spirited. Think how you would want someone to treat your child in a different country in the same situation.

[Anonymous]

WOW
What did you decide OP?
Hopefully to do the right thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, OP, you will have to actually spend time with your children on the weekend.
And NO, it's not her full weekend off, you need to let her take her classes.

while this is true, you do NOT need to let her take classes that conflict with her scheduled duty time. I assume if she is working weekends she has plenty off time during the week to take classes. If she chooses to take a class that she can't fit in during her free time, then you can certainly count it as her weekend off. Although I agree with PP that if she otherwise is working a full schedule and you like her, you may want to just giver her the extra weekend one month.

Your house, your children. Maybe it's more important to spend some time at the spa or doing shopping rather than spending time with your children.
The AP needs to work her 45 hours, that's more important I guess ...

I'm not the OP, but I sometimes work weekends. Our AP works Saturday afternoons because we are both at work. When it is her weekend off, we hire a sitter so we can go to work. However, she never works during the week before 3 pm. This is our fourth AP and none of them have had a problem with the schedule. Not everyone works 9-5 M-F.

I know a family who schedules the AP m-th noon-8 to pick up kids and take care of them until one or both parents get home each weekday evening. Because mom’s work is sporadic and very heavy at times, but dad works every Sunday, so AP is scheduled every Sunday 11-8 but usually is told by Thursday night whether she’s actually working and how many hours.

[Anonymous]

Goodness people. Must you jump to conclusions and assume the worst about someone from an innocent question? The world is hard enough. I asked it because I’m a first time host mom and am still trying to understand how things work. My au pair suggested it could fall on her weekend off. She wasn’t clear on how to handle it either. Lesson learned, I’ll go to my LCC for clarification next time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Goodness people. Must you jump to conclusions and assume the worst about someone from an innocent question? The world is hard enough. I asked it because I’m a first time host mom and am still trying to understand how things work. My au pair suggested it could fall on her weekend off. She wasn’t clear on how to handle it either. Lesson learned, I’ll go to my LCC for clarification next time.

BS. It could be either/or and I’m pretty sure you know that. Hopefully you did the right thing. Most of the other au pairs are off on weekends, this is their time to be with each other/their prefer group.

[Anonymous]

I appreciate the efficiency of weekend au pair classes. I ultimately spin my wheels less knowing the au pair is meeting the requirement in one go rather than dealing with a weeks-long alternative. I would do my best to accommodate a full weekend off that month other than the class weekend because it’s how I would want to be treated.

[Anonymous]

Most APs do not have all their weekends off. Ours does - and none of her friends do. They all work almost every Sat. night.