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[quote=Anonymous]I agree that you SHOULD be entitled to the week off, and I'd forward the email to them if they disagree. However, the way that they're handling this is really unfortunate. Since you've just started working with them and they're already just assuming it's okay to change plans and expect you to work even after they agreed you'd be off, I'd consider this a big red flag.

At the end of last April I was in negotiations with a new nanny family. At the first interview they said there would be paid holidays, paid sick days, two paid personal days of my choice, but no paid vacation of my choice. I started to say that wouldn't work for me, but they insisted that there would be 3 weeks off per year when they went on vacation, they said they take one week vacation every summer, every winter, and another week in spring or fall, and promised at least 12 weeks notice so I could plan my trips around theirs. I said I could consider that, and said I intended to take a full week off that summer which they said was fine. All of this was reiterated at the second interview, and a third "working" interview with both parents and the child present.

In early May they sent me a contract which also stated this ("three paid weeks off per year while family travels..."). I told them I was ready to come over and sign the contract and asked about the dates for their summer trip so I could book my plane ticket. Then they gave me the dates: 5 non consecutive days off (3 long weekends essentially). I told them I really needed a full week off, which is what we'd agreed to verbally and what was written in the contract. Then they changed the contract to say "fifteen days" instead of 3 weeks and claimed that when they said "3 weeks" they never actually meant a full week of consecutive days off was guaranteed.

I told them this was a deal breaker for me, both because of the pto itself but also because it felt like they were going back on their word and trust is very important to me. They sent me an angry email saying that I "misconstrued" our verbal agreement and how "unprofessional" it was of me to "back out of the job three weeks before the start date."

I definitely feel that I dodged a bullet with that family, and found another  familythat pays better and lets me choose my two weeks off per year. I know you say everything else is going very well with this family, but PTO is a major part of a nanny's compensation package, and trust and being treated as a professional are also important values in this profession, so only you can decide if this is a deal breaker for you or not. Good luck. [/quote]

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