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[quote=Anonymous]I completely disagree. I've been with two families in similar scenarios. The first family was very up front with me. My contract specified a one year review, which the parents initiated. They told me they'd be giving me $1/hr raise at that time, plus another $1/hr raise when the baby arrived, so $2/hr increase total, which I thought was fair.

The second family decided to completely screw me over instead: I had been with them two years. I'd been given the $1 raise at my one year review, bringing me to $16/hr, but baby #2 was due to arrive mere weeks after my second year anniversary. I felt uneasy because MB was getting so hard to talk to; she obviously was busy preparing for the new baby's arrival, but I barely had three minutes with her a week, she always seemed preoccupied, and wasn't feeling well, so I didn't want to push her to do the review or discuss money at that time. I discussed with other nannies who said "don't worry, they'll give you a raise when new baby comes."

Well, new baby came, and now MB (on maternity leave) was even more difficult to talk to. I asked her to clarify my role; was I expected to step in and help with baby when needed? Was I expected to do baby's laundry? I figured once any additional responsibilities of mine were elucidated, it would make sense to ask for additional compensation.

MB said no, just take care of the toddler, I can handle the baby while I'm home. I worked for the first two months of her maternity leave, then, three months after my two year anniversary had come and gone, I sent an email requesting my two year review. She responded by giving me three weeks notice, saying she had decided to become a stay at home mom.

I know I'm just one nanny and that was just one family, but I've heard from other nannies that that same situation has happened before. I think in some instances it has to do with money (for example, if MB makes $20/hr and pays nanny $15/hr for one, maybe paying nanny significantly more than that just doesn't make sense and being a SAHM is more appealing financially), but in my case, that family was so incredibly wealthy that I doubt it was a financial decision. I'm pretty sure MB was just having fun bonding with her baby and probably felt guilty for working through her older child's infancy (I started when he was 3.5 months old). I'm quite sure that it wasn't because of me, as MB did ask if I would continue working with them part time (though she said she would only guarantee 8 hours per week), and I'm still their "go-to" sitter for evenings and weekends.

So, my advice is: DO NOT WAIT to ask for your raise! Especially since baby #2 isn't coming until a few months later. You never know what will happen and you have to look out for yourself! Ask for the one year review. If they say "we will be giving you a raise when new baby arrives" that's fine, then you can discuss all that (maybe they can do part of the raise now based on your performance, and the other part later based on additional baby related duties, etc). It's MUCH better to discuss their and your expectations NOW, before MB is about to pop, and before a newborn is in the picture.

Lastly, I think you might have your hopes set a bit high. Nanny raises (both cost of living/annual, and new baby raises) have already been discussed thoroughly on this forum, and the consensus I've seen is it's usually $1/hr for COL/annual, and $1-2/hr for new baby, but honestly being bumped up to $18/hr from $15/hr in a couple months is a pretty big jump. I'm not saying that you don't deserve it, and if you are a qualified nanny and this is in DC then you would be making under market if you're not making $18/hr with a newborn and older sibling. But, I do think it's a big leap, and I'd be surprised if your NF was planning to bump your pay up that much in the coming months.

I think it's fine to ask for $3/hr more for the COL/annual performance based raise plus the new baby, but be prepared for the fact that they likely aren't expecting to pay that much, and that they might not be able to afford it, and will probably counter offer (hopefully they offer at least $2/hr more total when all is said and done).

I've been a nanny for many years and, short of newborn twins or triplets coming into the picture, I've never known of any nanny who received a $3/hr increase in a short timeframe. [/quote]

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