We have always given nannies and housekeepers July 4, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Christmas, New Year's Day and Thanksgiving Day off with pay even when it doesn't fall on their normal workdays. Those are major holidays and it doesn't feel right to not give them the time off to be with their families when we are with ours.

Anonymous wrote:Are there other days during the year that you are off but don't currently give her? If she is a full time.employee, even if those hours don't fall on the holiday, it's reasonable to expect a paid day off in observance of the "big 4" holidays: TG, Xmas, New Year's, and July 4.

This. Plus that extra day or two does a ton of goodwill to the relationship

Are there other days during the year that you are off but don't currently give her? If she is a full time.employee, even if those hours don't fall on the holiday, it's reasonable to expect a paid day off in observance of the "big 4" holidays: TG, Xmas, New Year's, and July 4.

We have a nanny who also works a 4-day schedule, Mon-Thurs. Our agreement is that she would get a paid holiday if the holiday in question falls on a day she would normally work (so, for example, Nov 11 for assuming that was a Thurs but not if it was a Friday).

That said, we also provide paid vacation (2 weeks a year, plus one week of sick leave which she can use as PTO if she chooses) and also guaranteed hours. So she has had a paid week off around the holidays, which we can usually mutually agree upon depending on how the holidays fall.

Perhaps the issue here isn't paid holidays but taking vacation around the holidays (which is pretty standard)?

In places I've worked before becoming a nanny, if a holiday fell on a day you weren't scheduled, you were given a flex holiday to be taken when you want (like a vacation day) and/or given pay for the day in lieu of time off.

What do you normally do when there's a monday holiday (which is all the time)? Do that.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. The problem for us is that our nanny doesn't work Monday's when we might have off due to work schedule changing. She only works Tuesday through Friday. So it becomes an issue of having to find alternate child care if we try to compensate her for the weekend holidays by giving her a Tuesday or Friday off for a weekend holiday.

The Federal holidays are Monday, Dec 23 and Jan 2. Since she is Tu-Fr, just like any other business employee, she would not get an extra day off, only if the Federal holidays fall within her work schedule.
That being said, I would try to give her one of the Fridays off, if you can easily take off work. Good compromise.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. The problem for us is that our nanny doesn't work Monday's when we might have off due to work schedule changing. She only works Tuesday through Friday. So it becomes an issue of having to find alternate child care if we try to compensate her for the weekend holidays by giving her a Tuesday or Friday off for a weekend holiday.

Not for nothing, but what do you think those of us with full time nannies do when we have to give our nanny time off? We take time off. If I were you, I'd give the nanny the 23rd and the 30th off.

OP here. The problem for us is that our nanny doesn't work Monday's when we might have off due to work schedule changing. She only works Tuesday through Friday. So it becomes an issue of having to find alternate child care if we try to compensate her for the weekend holidays by giving her a Tuesday or Friday off for a weekend holiday.

We are feds and December 26 and January 2 are holidays so she will get those days off.

She gets whatever holidays I get which are the federal days and a week off between Xmas and new year. sometimes my company adds a day to make it even through the years. So this year it's only 5 days at Xmas but an extra day in July (3 and 4th) and last year it was 6 days at Xmas. You can make it so it's the same number every year and give her the 23rd or maybe the 3rd of July instead.

We are up for our annual contract renewal with our nanny. We outline days off in the contract. This year, Christmas and new year's fall on weekends. Do you provide alternate days off for years when this happens?

Our nanny works tues thru Friday and so many of the other major holidays aren't part of her contract. We do not give her alternate days for those, if that matters.