Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The norm for nannies who have been there under a month is one days pay per month.

That said, it's been 3 mos and you sound pretty unhappy. There are better nannies out there. If you're offering a competitive pay package you can get a good nanny. I'd have a talk with her and re-evaluate the situation in January.

I agree that it is a day a month for new employees. I have seen it several times, most recently http://www.info.4nannytaxes.com/blog-0/bid/100133/Nanny-Holiday-Appreciation-Bonus-Paid-Time-Off

If you are not happy with your employee, it is up to you to either coach better performance (may or may not be possible) or to replace the employee. If you decide to live with it that is a decision.

The fact that nanny tax services suggest one day's pay per month for new hires does not make it the norm in DC. I've never heard of anyone actually using that formula. I've found that the standard bonus is one week's pay for a nanny who has been in her job for a year or more. For a nanny who has been on the job for less than that, pro rata is the norm. So, for a nanny who has been on the job three months, or 1/4 of a year, 25% of a week's pay would be appropriate.

Anonymous wrote:The norm for nannies who have been there under a month is one days pay per month.

That said, it's been 3 mos and you sound pretty unhappy. There are better nannies out there. If you're offering a competitive pay package you can get a good nanny. I'd have a talk with her and re-evaluate the situation in January.

I agree that it is a day a month for new employees. I have seen it several times, most recently http://www.info.4nannytaxes.com/blog-0/bid/100133/Nanny-Holiday-Appreciation-Bonus-Paid-Time-Off

If you are not happy with your employee, it is up to you to either coach better performance (may or may not be possible) or to replace the employee. If you decide to live with it that is a decision.

The norm for nannies who have been there under a month is one days pay per month.

That said, it's been 3 mos and you sound pretty unhappy. There are better nannies out there. If you're offering a competitive pay package you can get a good nanny. I'd have a talk with her and re-evaluate the situation in January.

I will chime in with the other posters and say that someone who has been with you for 3 months and is doing a poor job. I think you need to have a talk with her, and if things don't improve, find a new nanny. If you really feel like you should do something, a small gift card, but nothing more than that.

I would not give her a bonus. As 22;02 has noted, she hasn't earned it. In fact, it sounds like she is just making the bare minimum.

I'd not give her a bonus at all. She hasn't earned it. A bonus is for people who go above and beyond. She doesn't even do what she's supposed to! I'd also be looking for a new nanny right now. If this nanny improves, it won't be as much as you want and it won't last.

She's been with you very little time and you aren't thrilled with her performance, so I don't think a bonus is necessary. I'd have that sit down ASAP (before the holidays) and then have the kids help you bake her cookies or something and give her a nice card.

OP no way would I expect a full bonus after 3 months (and out here 1 week is much more standard than 2 unless you hired Mary Poppins herself...but it doesn't sound like you did) and your nanny probably isn't either.

Given her performance issues and the short time she's been with you, I actually think a small bonus ($100-$200) and a card would be completely acceptable/generous. In fact, you could give her no money at this point at that would be "fair," although she would almost certainly be miffed about that.

OP here - thanks for the feedback. Two weeks was common when we lived in SF from what we understood to be the norm there, so I may be making assumptions about what she is thinking based on my past experiences.

I also saw another thread where a nanny was saying she always expected two weeks and would assume that getting a one week bonus meant her employers did not think she was doing a good job and would look for something else!

It can be difficult to work out what might be expected. But I do appreciate the feedback and yes I do understand the need to chat with her ASAP. Thanks.

She's only been there for 3 months and you've had issues with her. I would be having a talk now. There is no "standard" but most of the posts on here seem to think that one weeks' pay is standard for someone that's been with a year. If she's been with you under 3 months, is frequently late and surly, if she's expecting two weeks' bonus, you've got bigger problems.

Our nanny as been with us for under 3 months, what would be the normal expectations around bonus in this situation?

She has developed a good relationship with the kids. She has not been particularly proactive with some of the other kid related chores she agreed to do but has recently started improving, she is often late to work, and is not particularly good in her relationship with us as MB/DB, does not respond to messages or voicemails most of the time (she is quite moody, she takes it out in her communication with us, but not with the kids so I am glad for that).

clearly there are lots of little things we need to discuss and we are planning a general meeting to catch up on issues soon and see how we can improve and also to see if there is something we as MB/DB can do to address the moodiness / communication issues. To just generally check how she feels about the role and if it is the right fit for her.

I am not sure what is reasonable to give or for her to expect for a bonus in this situation. I do think she is slowly improving and hopefully after we chat things will definitely improve. It is hard to know what she is thinking (she does not really talk to us!!) but I am a little concerned that she might be expecting 2 weeks as a bonus and if she doesn't get it the relationship with us will actually deteriorate.

Any thoughts? what would you as a nanny be expecting when you are only 3 months into a new job.

I have had stellar nannies in the past and I have never had to have a performance review type meeting, nor ever questioned in my mind whether an excellenet bonus was warranted.