Pissed but I somewhat understand...sick kid

[Anonymous]

Any parents out there reading this.

Most nannies (myself included) will take care of sick children.

Kids get fevers.
Kids vomit.
Kids get diarrhea.

Do parents want to stay home and care for their child?...or course they do.
But if they take a day off for every time their child gets a bug then their job performance suffers and they might put their job in jeopardy. Parents work to provide for their kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any parents out there reading this.

Most nannies (myself included) will take care of sick children.

Kids get fevers.
Kids vomit.
Kids get diarrhea.

Do parents want to stay home and care for their child?...or course they do.
But if they take a day off for every time their child gets a bug then their job performance suffers and they might put their job in jeopardy. Parents work to provide for their kids.

No one has claimed nannies don't care for sick kids you nit. The problem lies in the fact that many parents are stingy with sick days, and some don't offer them at all, yet expect nanny to care for their kid and take an unpaid day when she catches it. I care for kids with common colds, because if/when I catch it, I can easily work through it. I will also care for other illnesses with the understanding that if I catch it I will be taking a paid sick day to get better. To expect anything less is what is unreasonable, which is the OPs situation.

[Anonymous]

Plus, this OP's specific situation is what makes the mom selfish - not the general idea of nannies caring for sick children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: It all boils down to respect for me as an employee. If I got sick days I have no problem dealing with large amounts of vomit and diarrhea. I wouldn't have been complaining nearly as much. I am human and I think I deserve to say geeze this sucks and I wish I got sick days like most normal people get with their jobs. I have no problem with coming in with just about any illness under the sun when I am being paid if I catch their bug.

I'm glad I read the entire thread before responding b/c I had an entirely different response in my head until I came to this post.

OP: It sounds like your real issue is the lack of sick days. That's understandable. It's also something that can be addressed...unlike expecting your doctor MB to cancel her patients to stay home with a sick child. Like some others I would be irritated if my doctor canceled on me for anything less than an emergency (due to the difficulty of getting the appointment in the first place at some offices).

If you have an anniversary coming up with them you could bring it up at annual review time. I think it's very reasonable to ask for some sick days to be added as a benefit. Even if you don't have an anniversary coming up I think you should schedule a time to talk about it. Explain that you are happy to take care of their kids when they are sick but are concerned about the possibility of catching their illness and needing to take unpaid time off to recuperate. Put the ball in their court by asking if they have any thoughts or ideas on how to address this concern. Explain that your concern isn't related to catching a cold or other minor illness, but rather related to being exposed to and catching a stomach virus b/c you don't want to be in a position of having to choose between coming to work when you are vomiting or losing out on a day's pay due to a stomach virus you caught while cleaning up vomit at their house. You're a f/t nanny, and I think it's reasonable to ask for some sick days based on your f/t employment status.

15:59 PP here. This is great advice. There are really two issues here. One is whether nannies should work when their charges are sick. This may be an individualized determination but if you feel the answer is no in this or any other situation (particularly if you expect to get paid for the day anyway) you should raise that before you accept a job. Most parents I know consider this to be an advantage of having a nanny over daycare and would not hire a nanny who said this. The second is whether a nanny should have paid sick leave. I think nannies should, but at the end of the day, it is always on the nanny to negotiate the contract, pay, and benefits that meet her needs, and if a family is unwilling, the nanny is always free to move on. It's not the parents fault for not offering something you didn't ask for. Tell them you need it and see if they will work with you or look for other jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any parents out there reading this.

Most nannies (myself included) will take care of sick children.

Kids get fevers.
Kids vomit.
Kids get diarrhea.

Do parents want to stay home and care for their child?...or course they do.
But if they take a day off for every time their child gets a bug then their job performance suffers and they might put their job in jeopardy. Parents work to provide for their kids.

No one has claimed nannies don't care for sick kids you nit. The problem lies in the fact that many parents are stingy with sick days, and some don't offer them at all, yet expect nanny to care for their kid and take an unpaid day when she catches it. I care for kids with common colds, because if/when I catch it, I can easily work through it. I will also care for other illnesses with the understanding that if I catch it I will be taking a paid sick day to get better. To expect anything less is what is unreasonable, which is the OPs situation.

Actually a couple of posters here did say they refuse to care for sick children with anything more than a cold.

[Anonymous]

As a parent, I find these "I don't do vomiting kids" posters ridicules.

Um,...kids get sick. Get real. Sometimes mildly, sometimes awfully.

While I'd love to stay home and comfort my kids everytime they get sick, I can't. That's why I hire someone to help me out.

I would not hire a professional nanny that told me "I don't do vomiting kids". I have made a mental note to be sure to ask future nannies...do you do vomiting kids? That way I can not HIRE them. I would just ask those nannies to BE HONEST with me and TELL ME that you don't do vomiting kids, so I DONT HIRE YOU!!!

I think the OP's MB didn't handle the situation well. She should have given the OP correct info...and warned her. Perhaps she thought the nanny would bail. I don't know. Sometimes my work counts on me and if I cannot go in I know I would be in DEEP TROUBLE.

Its her job.
It wasn't handled well...but its still part of her job.

[Anonymous]

And how does the parent, "parent"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a parent, I find these "I don't do vomiting kids" posters ridicules.

Um,...kids get sick. Get real. Sometimes mildly, sometimes awfully.

While I'd love to stay home and comfort my kids everytime they get sick, I can't. That's why I hire someone to help me out.

I would not hire a professional nanny that told me "I don't do vomiting kids". I have made a mental note to be sure to ask future nannies...do you do vomiting kids? That way I can not HIRE them. I would just ask those nannies to BE HONEST with me and TELL ME that you don't do vomiting kids, so I DONT HIRE YOU!!!

I think the OP's MB didn't handle the situation well. She should have given the OP correct info...and warned her. Perhaps she thought the nanny would bail. I don't know. Sometimes my work counts on me and if I cannot go in I know I would be in DEEP TROUBLE.

Its her job.
It wasn't handled well...but its still part of her job.

But you probably offer your nanny paid sick days, which is the difference between reasonable and outrageous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a parent, I find these "I don't do vomiting kids" posters ridicules.

Um,...kids get sick. Get real. Sometimes mildly, sometimes awfully.

While I'd love to stay home and comfort my kids everytime they get sick, I can't. That's why I hire someone to help me out.

I would not hire a professional nanny that told me "I don't do vomiting kids". I have made a mental note to be sure to ask future nannies...do you do vomiting kids? That way I can not HIRE them. I would just ask those nannies to BE HONEST with me and TELL ME that you don't do vomiting kids, so I DONT HIRE YOU!!!

I think the OP's MB didn't handle the situation well. She should have given the OP correct info...and warned her. Perhaps she thought the nanny would bail. I don't know. Sometimes my work counts on me and if I cannot go in I know I would be in DEEP TROUBLE.

Its her job.
It wasn't handled well...but its still part of her job.

But you probably offer your nanny paid sick days, which is the difference between reasonable and outrageous.

Any nanny who wants paid sick leave should ASK for it and NEGOTIATE it not refuse to come to work because she might get something from a sick child. Nannies are grown ups - you can negotiate whatever contract you want and walk away from any job that does not offer it. If you take a job without paid sick leave (or paid any leave), that is on you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a parent, I find these "I don't do vomiting kids" posters ridicules.

Um,...kids get sick. Get real. Sometimes mildly, sometimes awfully.

While I'd love to stay home and comfort my kids everytime they get sick, I can't. That's why I hire someone to help me out.

I would not hire a professional nanny that told me "I don't do vomiting kids". I have made a mental note to be sure to ask future nannies...do you do vomiting kids? That way I can not HIRE them. I would just ask those nannies to BE HONEST with me and TELL ME that you don't do vomiting kids, so I DONT HIRE YOU!!!

I think the OP's MB didn't handle the situation well. She should have given the OP correct info...and warned her. Perhaps she thought the nanny would bail. I don't know. Sometimes my work counts on me and if I cannot go in I know I would be in DEEP TROUBLE.

Its her job.
It wasn't handled well...but its still part of her job.

But you probably offer your nanny paid sick days, which is the difference between reasonable and outrageous.

Any nanny who wants paid sick leave should ASK for it and NEGOTIATE it not refuse to come to work because she might get something from a sick child. Nannies are grown ups - you can negotiate whatever contract you want and walk away from any job that does not offer it. If you take a job without paid sick leave (or paid any leave), that is on you.

The point being, that a parent who would like their nanny to care for a sick child, should then expect to compensate for the resulting sick day plain and simple. I will and have taken jobs where parents didn't feel the need to offer sick days. In our negotiations I let them know that this means I will not be caring for their child if they exhibit such and such symptoms. The parent in the OPs situation wants her cake and to eat it too. It's unreasonable to expect sick coverage but offer no sick pay.

[Anonymous]

We're not talking about the nannies who accept this situation, but the parents who try to offer this. If you want your nanny to care for your sick kids you should expect that she will get sick and to offer sick days in your package. Not doing so is ridiculously self-centered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And how does the parent, "parent"?

I don't understand this question. Do you mean how does a working parent take care of a child? Being a parent involves taking care of ALL of your child's needs. This includes putting a roof over their heads, food on the table, and clothes on their backs. Most parents would like to be home with their kids more than they are but part of being a parent is balancing these different competing needs and surrounding your child with a community of good influences (including caregivers and teachers) when you cannot be there, because it truly does take a village. WTF is up with nannies who say things like this? I am not less of a parent because I can't put my job at risk every time my DC has a bug. Wish I could, but going to work and earning money to support him IS being a parent and taking care of him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're not talking about the nannies who accept this situation, but the parents who try to offer this. If you want your nanny to care for your sick kids you should expect that she will get sick and to offer sick days in your package. Not doing so is ridiculously self-centered.

Actually we are talking about nannies who accept this situation, including OP. I don't disagree that parents should offer paid sick leave but at the end of the day, you have no one but yourself to blame if you TAKE a job that does not offer paid sick leave. If you want it, ASK for it. NEGOTIATE for it. Or find a job that offers it. Not going to work when a kiddo is sick because you don't have it, especially when you never asked for it in the first place, is the best way to get yourself replaced. Nannies want to be treated like professionals so act like them and negotiate the contracts you want. That's how it works in every other professional field.

[Anonymous]

You're a real gem, woman.

[Anonymous]

Her type is called "Mommy Dearest".