Junk Food Nanny

[Anonymous]

How would she know if you brought chicken and broccoli if it was organic or not?? I am a very healthy eater but everything I but isn't necessarily organic..and I think it's healthier to bring cut up rotisserie chicken and some steam fresh broccoli than some organic cookies.. I really think you would be fine if you brought a sandwich and fruit and yogurt..organic or not.

[Anonymous]

Eat whatever you want to eat. It's your body, not your bosses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also how is this different if the family keeps a kosher kitchen? Or if they are vegetarian and don't want you to heat meat in the microwave?

Yes, it is not so different. You then respect their wishes and don't bring meat into the house (or sometimes just don't heat it up or use their dishes for it, depending on what they allow). There are plenty of healthy eating options that do not require meat, or anything that maybe one of the kids is allergic to and they don't want in the household (like peanut products).

I work for a Jewish family that has a child with a peanut allergy. So I don't use their plates to eat my meat items (I am allowed to bring a meat sandwich into their home, just can't have it touch their stuff so I eat it out of the package) and I don't bring stuff with me that contains anything with peanuts either. Pretty simple to do. It can be done with sugary food or things deemed unhealthy as well.

[Anonymous]

Op you might also try making some different salads. Try a bed of whatevergreens you like...i use spinach or romaine usually. Top with some cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes slice din hald, a hand full of cashews or almonds or chicken, avocado, kalamata olives, sliced pears or kiwi an dmake a vinagrette with a teaspoon of olive oil and some kind of vinegar...i use cranberry pear white balsamic which is great.

Another one is to bake some chicken in bbq sauce, and cut it up (i usually use rotisserie chx thats been deboned so already cut up) and put it on a be dof greens, add some diced tomatoes and cucumber, black or kidney beans, shredded cheddar, thawed baby corn. Really good.

You can eat healthfully for not much money and I bet if you ate better more often you would feel better within a week or so. No one is saying never touch your nasty crap food again, but keep it at home.

As I write I am watching a documentary called Hungry for Change...about foods that aren't good for us and why we are addicted to them and so forth. Really interesting!!

[Anonymous]

I am amazed at how many of these responders are saying it is perfectly acceptable for an adult employee to be dictated to regarding her diet choices.

Since she was never asked prior to hire nor did she ever agree to eat only healthy foods, it is 100% WRONG of her employer to push her agenda on the nanny! Sure, eating healthy + organic is a great choice for everyone. Esp. young children who are just starting to explore different foods. But it is a PERSONAL CHOICE and as long as it does not negatively impact another person {such as second - hand smoking does}, this lady should butt out. Sure, it is her home..but it is also a place of employment as well. OP, if you contact the labor board in your area, you can even file a claim against her if she fires you for eating Oreos.

Even though it is HER home, by hiring you to provide a service for her and by agreeing to pay you for that service, she is accountable for the same labor laws as everyone else. She cannot fire you at will for your diet.

Many stay at home parents love to micromanage and if you give in and bring carrot juice w/your lunch instead of a Capri Sun, I can guarantee you she will take it that you are one submissive employee and try to get you to change other stuff too. Eventually you will get so fed up with giving in to her requests and demands that you will want to quit.

I have two ideas for a compromise here.
A.) Since she is home while you eat lunch, perhaps she can stay with the kiddos and let you leave the house for lunch. You can walk to a park or drive to Wendy's. YOUR choice. Since you would be doing it based on her behavior, she should still pay you for that time however.

OR
B.) She can provide all of your lunch, snacks and drinks. Since she wants you to eat only healthy in front of the kids, then let her make the lunches from now on.

She sounds like she is on a power trip.
Take this as a red flag.

[Anonymous]

Pp ypu are a complete idiot. Labor laws only apply to companies with more than 50 employess...except ot laws.

[Anonymous]

Trader Joes has jalapeño crunchy cheese puffs. They also have some delicious wraps. I think you would be pretty satisfied with all the junk food substitutes they have there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the "free country" brigade: yes, she is free to have nothing but ice cream for lunch, just as her employer is free to fire her. Now that we've addressed our freedoms...

I would offer to eat what the children eat on their dime. If she objects, then explain that you are willing to change your eating habits, but not your shopping habits. She may fire you anyway, but you've then been more than reasonable and she is more likely to offer a good reference.

Not unless diet of nanny was a part of agreement. I'd eat cheetos, potato chips, fried bologna with onions, diet coke, and snack l day on Oreos. Those little kids woild be drooling and I would tell them, "Sorry. Your ma only wants you to eat tasteless styrofoam food. This is sooo good. Now eat your sugar-, fat-,and taste-free food."

Lovely. Do you understand the concept of an at-will employee?

Look, it's all well and good to say that this is an unreasonable requirement, but it is something this family requires. Would you prefer that they fire the OP without letting her know that this is an issue? They are letting her know this is a problem for them, and giving her the choice to adjust her behavior or to refuse and possibly be replaced.

[Anonymous]

Those poor children, losing their nanny because she ate the wrong food. The parents need some parenting education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I guess I disagree with the majority...but I am a nanny and compensated very well to be exactly what the parents want me to be..I am careful what music I play on the radio...what I would put on the tv...I dress nicely every day because I am out with these kids all day and it's a reflection one the family....so I don't see how this is different. Some parents don't want their kids to be around chips etc..if its a good job and you like it, why not just pack fruit, yogurt, healthy leftovers etc...maybe I am crazy but I can see where this moms coming from..I tell the 2 I nanny all the time that food like chips, Doritos etc are for other people not them so maybe that is a helpful response..I can see too where this would be offensive but I would try and roll with it.

Wow! A Stepford nanny.

She is not being a robot, she is an employee who takes her job seriously and knows that her own preferences and wants do not trump those of the family she works for. It's amazing to see how affronted people become at a simple request like "don't eat like crap in front of my kids". This is a job that requires you to be an example the entire time you are on, why should health and diet be an exemption? OP, if you really need to eat a bag of cheetos or some oreos each day, wait until you get home. This is not an attack on your personal liberties, simply a term of employment request (which should be able to evolve with a family's/nanny's needs).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

She is not being a robot, she is an employee who takes her job seriously and knows that her own preferences and wants do not trump those of the family she works for. It's amazing to see how affronted people become at a simple request like "don't eat like crap in front of my kids". This is a job that requires you to be an example the entire time you are on, why should health and diet be an exemption? OP, if you really need to eat a bag of cheetos or some oreos each day, wait until you get home. This is not an attack on your personal liberties, simply a term of employment request (which should be able to evolve with a family's/nanny's needs).

+1

There is no job in the world that remains the same as it was the day they hired you, unless you're represented by a union that dictates every move you and the employer can make. As issues arise (for the nanny or the family), they need to be addressed and dealt with. Jobs evolve. Everyone has had a moment in a job where they had to decide whether to go with the new requirements or leave. Being jobless puts a lot of things in perspective ...

And so many of you talk about how nannies need to be seen as professionals in child-development. Well, every single parenting book out there tells you that if you want kids who make healthy food choices, they need to live those choices and see their parents live them. They eat with the nanny every single day -- her job is, in part, to model what it means to make good choices. Should the family have had to tell the nanny the day she was hired that she can't use foul language around the children? Play on her phone all day long? Take them to church with her? Or, should those issues arise, shoudln't the family address them at that point?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

She is not being a robot, she is an employee who takes her job seriously and knows that her own preferences and wants do not trump those of the family she works for. It's amazing to see how affronted people become at a simple request like "don't eat like crap in front of my kids". This is a job that requires you to be an example the entire time you are on, why should health and diet be an exemption? OP, if you really need to eat a bag of cheetos or some oreos each day, wait until you get home. This is not an attack on your personal liberties, simply a term of employment request (which should be able to evolve with a family's/nanny's needs).

+1

There is no job in the world that remains the same as it was the day they hired you, unless you're represented by a union that dictates every move you and the employer can make. As issues arise (for the nanny or the family), they need to be addressed and dealt with. Jobs evolve. Everyone has had a moment in a job where they had to decide whether to go with the new requirements or leave. Being jobless puts a lot of things in perspective ...

And so many of you talk about how nannies need to be seen as professionals in child-development. Well, every single parenting book out there tells you that if you want kids who make healthy food choices, they need to live those choices and see their parents live them. They eat with the nanny every single day -- her job is, in part, to model what it means to make good choices. Should the family have had to tell the nanny the day she was hired that she can't use foul language around the children? Play on her phone all day long? Take them to church with her? Or, should those issues arise, shoudln't the family address them at that point?

+1 with a caveat.

I'm a nanny, and I agree with everything that's been said about setting a good example and so on, but I do still feel that if this wasn't specified before hiring (because it isn't reasonable to assume anyone's dietary preferences will mesh with yours, and LOADS of kids eat things like chips and cookies) then the MB should be providing food for the nanny's lunch.

She is asking her nanny to make a major dietary change, not to eat out of a separate packaging (kosher) or to leave out one ingredient (peanuts for an allergic child), and that's too much to spring on her without taking her share of the responsibility in the situation. MB wasn't clear upon hiring what her requirements were - that's okay, lots of things come up that you don't think of ahead of time - but now, because she failed to clarify this early on, she should be footing the bill for these healthy lunches.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's fair for her to ask you to set a healthy example for the kids but that she should provide your meals if that's her priority. You can say, "MB, I completely understand where you're coming from but I don't purchase those foods for myself and don't plan to change my grocery shopping habits any time soon. I'm happy to continue bringing my own lunch but if you have concerns about what I'm eating why don't I make my lunch here with the kids? Since you don't stock junk food in the house you can be sure that my eating is setting a good example for them." If she isn't ok with that you need a new job.

I'm a MB and I agree with this 100%, it is a very sensible approach. I agree that nannies should be modelling healthy eating habits. However, the MB should have actually offered to supply your food. The fact that she didn't and just basically ordered you to change your eating habits regardless of any inconvenience or cost to you makes me wonder what kind of employer she is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's fair for her to ask you to set a healthy example for the kids but that she should provide your meals if that's her priority. You can say, "MB, I completely understand where you're coming from but I don't purchase those foods for myself and don't plan to change my grocery shopping habits any time soon. I'm happy to continue bringing my own lunch but if you have concerns about what I'm eating why don't I make my lunch here with the kids? Since you don't stock junk food in the house you can be sure that my eating is setting a good example for them." If she isn't ok with that you need a new job.

I'm a MB and I agree with this 100%, it is a very sensible approach. I agree that nannies should be modelling healthy eating habits. However, the MB should have actually offered to supply your food. The fact that she didn't and just basically ordered you to change your eating habits regardless of any inconvenience or cost to you makes me wonder what kind of employer she is.

This is sensible.

[Anonymous]

To be clear, OP's MB only wants to her to eat healthy, not organic. It can be very affordable to eat healthy, certainly less expensive than OP's junk food diet.

What I don't get, OP, is that the only thing preventing you from making a major dietary change is that you want someone else to pay for it. What about how much you like your junk food? What about how uncomfortable you are eating other people's food? All this would vanish if your employer provided for food. I don't buy it.

If modeling good eating habits is important to her, she should fire you and find a better nanny for her needs. She doesn't have to buy you food and frankly, if you aren't interested in your own health, fine, and if you aren't interested in being a good model for your charges, fine. You don't sound like a nanny with very good judgment, which may be a deal killer for your employer.