Hourly rate for infant nanny share

[Anonymous]

We are considering a nanny share for our 4-month-old son and are looking for some advice on what the rate should be for the hours the nanny is caring for two infants. We will be using the nanny 45 hours a week, and 15-20 of those hours will be shared by another family with an infant around the same age.

We’ve talked with a few nannies who charge 22-24 for one infant so I’m wondering how those of you who have used nanny shares (or been a nanny for two families) adjust the rate when two kids are involved.

Something else I don’t have a good grasp on is how to handle when a child is sick. My sense was to handle like daycare - you pay the same amount every week regardless of whether your kid is sick, you’re on vacation, etc - but wanted to hear what others have done. (We are already planning to offer pto and a few sick days - paid for 60/40 with the other family).

Thanks for any insight you can offer!

[Anonymous]

Share care is heart wrenching for the visiting child. Naps are the most difficult thing.

[Anonymous]

The rate you will need to discuss with the nanny. Will you be hosting at your home? The nanny will tell you her rate for one child and her rate (your portion) for two.

You guarantee all 45 hours - which means once you set your schedule (Monday thru Friday, 9 to 5 for example) the nanny guarantees that she will be available to you for those hours and you guarantee that you will pay her for those hours whether you use them or not. So if you decide to take a Friday off and go to the beach with your baby you still pay the nanny in full.

Good luck. Shares are tricky with the other family. You’d honestly be better off just hiring your own nanny for a newborn.

[Anonymous]

If there is anyway to swing it, OP, skip the share for the first year and just get a nanny for your infant. For the part time hours the other family is interested in, the disruption won’t be work the savings.

And yes, you guarantee all 45 hours whether you use them or not.

[Anonymous]

One baby will always be crying or eating with a propped bottle because it’s hard to feed both at the same time. If the nanny is smart she will want them both on the same schedule which means eating and sleeping at the same time. So one baby will always be CIO. Do you really want that?

[Anonymous]

OP, we have a nanny share and have had one for our son since he was 4 months. He’s still in a share at 3 years. I would not be concerned with some of the alarmist others who have posted. I work from home very often and have never seen our nanny prop a bottle or let a newborn cry it out. It isn’t heart wrenching for the other child who gets their own comfy and quiet room to nap in. We’ve had the same nanny over three shares and all her kids just love her.

I do agree, however, that part time is tricky for the nanny and might be difficult for the PT baby to adapt to any schedule. I’d either do a share 100% of the time or try to employ your own nanny for the year.

In terms of pay, we always guarantee hours for our nanny meaning she gets paid like a salaried employee even though she is hourly. She gets the same pay every week regardless if she’s sick/vacation (As long as she has PTO left), we are sick/vacation, mutually agreed holidays. You establish a one child rate for the hours your kid is in the share ($22-$24 sounds like the rate in your area) and then a share rate for the hours the other child is in the share (unknown what this is, ask the nannies you are interviewing but you’d split this hourly rate in half). Keep in mind overtime and how it’ll affect pay. Also keep in mind holiday bonus and yearly raises.

As for sick, we are more lenient in our share than daycare which seem to have very strict policies. Basically for us it is no fever, then fever free for 24 hours, and obviously keeping the kid out at the hint of anything super contagious like stomach bug or skin conditions.

[Anonymous]

So, if dingle rates are $22-24 in your area, share rates are likely $26-28 ($13-14/family). The families need a joint contract, and it needs to spell out what happens if the other family leaves the share (who is in charge of finding a new family, how much notice, how long single family pay will be sustained during the search, etc), along with specifics (no bottle propping, same schedule for activities, etc).