Au pair vacation this summer?

[Anonymous]

My au pair had a vacation planned this summer that coincided with our vacation to go visit grandparents. Both trips have been cancelled - the APs by the airline and ours by our parents. I know I'm still obligated to give my AP two weeks off, which I'm not concerned about, but I don't know what to suggest that they go do? Their (first) term ends in early August. AP is extending with us, but I'm reluctant to let the vacation time accrue so that I'll need to figure out a month of childcare at some point...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My au pair had a vacation planned this summer that coincided with our vacation to go visit grandparents. Both trips have been cancelled - the APs by the airline and ours by our parents. I know I'm still obligated to give my AP two weeks off, which I'm not concerned about, but I don't know what to suggest that they go do? Their (first) term ends in early August. AP is extending with us, but I'm reluctant to let the vacation time accrue so that I'll need to figure out a month of childcare at some point...

Help her rent a car to travel out of state? Not sure you can really force to have her vacation be a stay-cation. Just let her accrue but cap the number of days she can take consecutively, e.g., two weeks consecutive in one chunk, and then X number of long weekends Thurs-Tues.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, the kind thing to do would be to let the vacation accrue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, the kind thing to do would be to let the vacation accrue.

THIS. big time. You are more lucky than you seem to realize that she's extending. Letting her accrue is not only the kind thing but the only decent / not shooting-self-in-foot thing to do.

[Anonymous]

Tell her she can accrue the full four weeks for the two years. Let her know she can choose to take it all with her travel month or she can take two weeks consecutively and the other two weeks as singles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tell her she can accrue the full four weeks for the two years. Let her know she can choose to take it all with her travel month or she can take two weeks consecutively and the other two weeks as singles.

This!

[Anonymous]

Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

It sounds like OP can’t afford a temp on top of paying AP for the vacation week.

[Anonymous]

We told ours her vacation rolls over to next year.

[Anonymous]

You also can ask her to take those 4 weeks at the end and get another au pair in July.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

It sounds like OP can’t afford a temp on top of paying AP for the vacation week.

That should not be the AuPairs problem if the OP is THAT broke. She deserves the vacation time coming her way. Broke people should not have live in childcare.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

It sounds like OP can’t afford a temp on top of paying AP for the vacation week.

That should not be the AuPairs problem if the OP is THAT broke. She deserves the vacation time coming her way. Broke people should not have live in childcare.

OP isn’t trying to get out of paying vacation. They’re trying to figure out how to manage it. Most HPs can’t take a month off work all at once, which means either dragging their own 2 week vacations and foregoing any trips together or hiring someone else during that time period.

Telling someone with an AP to hire a nanny temporarily may not be in the budget. The cheapest I know in the area is $18/hour for the nanny and $40/day for the agency. For 40 hours/5 days, that’s $720/week for the nanny and $200 for the agency. Add in the normal $200/week stipend for the AP and now the family is paying $1120/week. Finding a nanny on your own to cover just a week to a month can lead to no show, tardiness, no background check, no CPR or faked references.

Asking the AP to take their vacation either as a month consecutive with their travel month or as one two week period and two single week periods makes it easier for the family to find care or cover it themselves. If they know the AP will take all their vacation at the end; the can just have the new AP arrive a month earlier. And maybe if they’ve been working from home without too much issue, they could negotiate to do that during AP’s vacation next year. Whatever they do, most families find that covering a month consecutive of vacation a problem; head over to the nanny/employer portion of the forum and you can see the same issue arrive with employers of foreign-born nannies who go home every year or two for a month.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

It sounds like OP can’t afford a temp on top of paying AP for the vacation week.

That should not be the AuPairs problem if the OP is THAT broke. She deserves the vacation time coming her way. Broke people should not have live in childcare.

OP isn’t trying to get out of paying vacation. They’re trying to figure out how to manage it. Most HPs can’t take a month off work all at once, which means either dragging their own 2 week vacations and foregoing any trips together or hiring someone else during that time period.

Telling someone with an AP to hire a nanny temporarily may not be in the budget. The cheapest I know in the area is $18/hour for the nanny and $40/day for the agency. For 40 hours/5 days, that’s $720/week for the nanny and $200 for the agency. Add in the normal $200/week stipend for the AP and now the family is paying $1120/week. Finding a nanny on your own to cover just a week to a month can lead to no show, tardiness, no background check, no CPR or faked references.

Asking the AP to take their vacation either as a month consecutive with their travel month or as one two week period and two single week periods makes it easier for the family to find care or cover it themselves. If they know the AP will take all their vacation at the end; the can just have the new AP arrive a month earlier. And maybe if they’ve been working from home without too much issue, they could negotiate to do that during AP’s vacation next year. Whatever they do, most families find that covering a month consecutive of vacation a problem; head over to the nanny/employer portion of the forum and you can see the same issue arrive with employers of foreign-born nannies who go home every year or two for a month.

Again, if you don't have 5k, your ass is as broke as a joke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just let it accrue and be done with it. Ask her for at least 2 weeks notice if she will take vacation so you can hire help. It is very easy to get a temp nanny. Let's not pretend an AuPair is the only option.

It sounds like OP can’t afford a temp on top of paying AP for the vacation week.

That should not be the AuPairs problem if the OP is THAT broke. She deserves the vacation time coming her way. Broke people should not have live in childcare.

OP isn’t trying to get out of paying vacation. They’re trying to figure out how to manage it. Most HPs can’t take a month off work all at once, which means either dragging their own 2 week vacations and foregoing any trips together or hiring someone else during that time period.

Telling someone with an AP to hire a nanny temporarily may not be in the budget. The cheapest I know in the area is $18/hour for the nanny and $40/day for the agency. For 40 hours/5 days, that’s $720/week for the nanny and $200 for the agency. Add in the normal $200/week stipend for the AP and now the family is paying $1120/week. Finding a nanny on your own to cover just a week to a month can lead to no show, tardiness, no background check, no CPR or faked references.

Asking the AP to take their vacation either as a month consecutive with their travel month or as one two week period and two single week periods makes it easier for the family to find care or cover it themselves. If they know the AP will take all their vacation at the end; the can just have the new AP arrive a month earlier. And maybe if they’ve been working from home without too much issue, they could negotiate to do that during AP’s vacation next year. Whatever they do, most families find that covering a month consecutive of vacation a problem; head over to the nanny/employer portion of the forum and you can see the same issue arrive with employers of foreign-born nannies who go home e
very year or two for a month.

Again, if you don't have 5k, your ass is as broke as a joke.

NP. Lucky you, your ass is not broken, some people have to deal with they have! OP, My AP get to chose one week and I choose the other week of vacation. You can apply the same rule or you can make her take everything at the end and get a new AP sooner as many people have recommended but tbh I would be worried for her working 2 years without taking a day off. Everyone needs a break even if it is a staycation.

[Anonymous]

* not broke