How much cleaning/tidying does your nanny do?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:When we hired our nanny several years ago, her duties were to care for the children, do their laundry, and prepare meals.

She has taken it upon herself to help with the whole family's laundry as she is able, wash/change the kids' bed linens, wash other bed linens/towels/bath mats as she sees fit, sweep our porch, vacuum the house, tidy up, cut fruits and veggies for the family, etc. We provide a car for her to use for driving the kids, and she even took it to the shop when she noticed the safety inspection was due (not at our request).

I am a former nanny, and I helped with the family's laundry as I could, loaded/unloaded the dishwasher, took out trash, grocery shopped for the family (with the kid in tow, she enjoyed it), etc. They were very good to me, and I was good to them in return.

Ah, but how good are you to your nanny? You should be paying her $30/hr minimum as well as giving her a $3,000 year end bonus. I am willing to bet that you do neither.

Actually, we pay our nanny very well including multiple bonuses throughout the year. But, she's not entitled to those bonuses.[u] We choose to pay them because 1) we value her as party of our family's lives, and 2) we can afford it. Not everyone can.



But, I know that will never be good enough for you, because you are clearly desperate to find something to pick on me about.

I am actually a former nanny myself, and I never felt entitled to bonuses and crazy-high wages. I was a good employee with a strong work ethic and I went above and beyond for my employers, helping with things like the dishes, laundry, errands-- anything I could do to make their lives' easier. I did receive bonuses most of the time, but I was not owed them or entitled to them.

“But, she’s not entitled to those bonuses.”?!? Wow! You’re terrible. I hope she realizes how little you value her and finds a new NF that will appreciate her.

NP. You are crazy. I have been with the same job for 10 years and I go above and beyond and I have never received a bonus! I wish I would get one but I don't. My husband get a bonus every year. You are not entitled to one! You give nannies a bad name.

Are you a nanny? If so you are the one giving nannies a bad name. Not to mention you are a fool.

I am not a nanny but please tell me why nannies are so special and entitled to bonus when other hard workers are not?

Well first thing, you aren’t working with kids all day bc if you were then you would know the answer. Second, are children special? Do you want someone subpar, doing the bare minimum taking care of your children? Do you want someone keeping your child safe, alive and loved?

Also, why would you go above and beyond for a job without being appreciated? And appreciation for an employee is usually a bonus. A card and hug wouldn’t make me stay at a job for 10 years.

Get over yourself! You are not the only options, there are daycare, even au pair can do a decent job. You are not that special. The culture of making parents feel guilty because of their kids don't work on everyone!

Doesn't not don't!

[Anonymous]

If she's putting the dishes in the dishwasher that she uses and the kids use why is there a pile of dishes in the sink?

I would never leave a full dishwasher for my nanny to put away.

[Anonymous]

Our nanny does everything related to the child - does his laundry, cleans his room once a week, and vacuums the playroom/living room where he crawls around once a week. She will also run a dishwasher when it's full, and take out the trash. Nothing for the adults. We have a deep cleaning crew every other week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started helping with the dishwasher, swiffering, trash and recycling and now it’s my job. New family, I will know better and just do nanny duties.

+1

I have a wage that reflects no household duties beyond things child-related.

I did a few things to help out (unloading dishwasher, towels, sweeping, taking out trash) and now it’s expected. Never again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny does everything related to the child - does his laundry, cleans his room once a week, and vacuums the playroom/living room where he crawls around once a week. She will also run a dishwasher when it's full, and take out the trash. Nothing for the adults. We have a deep cleaning crew every other week.

This is exactly how it should be. You deserve accolades (I am not being facetious) for staying true to the original concept of nanny or governess. Every year it seems the job requirements for prospective nannies expand to include everything - and more - that a stay-at-home parent would do for the child(ren). It is not fair to expect a nanny, who is purportedly there for the children's wellbeing, to do "light" housekeeping, run errands, take care of the dog(s), do the family's laundry, vacuum the entire house - and, oh, let's not forget this little expectation, "light cooking." With the exception of preparing snacks or meals for the children, by no means should a nanny be asked to make meals for the household so that mom and dad may come home from work to a nice dinner, ready and waiting for them. It also helps if the nanny is bilingual and has a college degree. Knowing how to perform CPR certification is a bonus, too.

If they want all of this, and they expect a caregiver/nanny to really love their children just as they would love them (yes, many a family expects this as well: that a nanny will love their child the way the parents do because the child is sooo special!), then don't overload her with so many non-child related chores.

Every child is special and deserves to be loved and nurtured by the person caring for him or her. That is why it's important to not over-assign jobs to the nanny; if you can afford it, get a housekeeper for the household tasks and maybe a cook for the cooking. Just don't burden the nanny with so many extra requests that you wind up pushing her out the door for good.

[Anonymous]

...sorry- meant to say, "knowing how to perform CPR."