I didn't read all the bajilion pages of people ranting about non-English speaking people in the US, but in any case, I think you are paying her a very high rate bc she can't drive, which means you have to spend your time doing that. The language thing, if you and the nanny both speak the same language, would not affect how much I pay. I would have no problem paying the same rate for an English vs. non-English speaking nanny if I spoke the same language she did and could communicate.

But based on your last post it sounds like you really do love her and are happy with your arrangement, so I hope things all work out! (oh, and congratulations on the addition to your family, too!)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What kind of a loser lives in the US for 10 years and doesn't learn English??? I moved to France for a summer and came home speaking French. Seriously, your nanny doesn't sound very smart.

How old were you when you spent a summer in France? like 19? It is much easier to learn a language when you are younger. This lady is not 19. Also, I bet you were not working for an American family as a nanny speaking English while there? That was probably helpful to learn French. Finally, there is only so much one can learn in the summer in terms of a new language. I can believe you could maintain a basic conversation in French upon your return to the USA after that summer but I doubt you acquired a full command of that language

Your statement that "it is easier to learn a language when you are younger" is laughable in this case. That's true when comparing learning a new language at age 3 to learning a new language at age 17 because toddlers are little sponges, but twenty years is a LONG time to live in a country and not be able to speak the language. My great-grandparents moved to America from Greece when they were in their late thirties, and they managed to speak fluent English within a few years.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

One must acknowledge the obvious correlation of most (not all) MBs on this forum who say they pay about $15./hr. vs. the majority of MBs who have endless complaints and problems with their bargain nannies. It has also been pointed out that presumably the MBs who can afford to pay $25./hr. have little spare time to be on this forum. They are most likely earning those $$$. They are the happier MBs with not much to bitch about. Hence, they get the superior service they pay for.

Wow, your lack of logic and liberal use of wide sweeping generalizations makes me doubt you're above average in anything.

I think what she was trying to say is...

If the average MB pays $15/hr to her nanny...
And the average MB has complaints about her nanny...
Then a $15/hr nanny is, on average, not one of the better ones.

I agree with that much. I spend a lot of time with a lot of nannies and there are only a handful I respect and those women are all paid $20+/hr - they are above average nannies for an above average rate.

I work for two families. The family with two children pays me $25/hr, the family with one pays $20. That's normal pay in my area, where a studio apartment costs about $3000/month. When I lived in 'the sticks' and was a nanny during college, I made $5/hr per child, which, obviously, is quite a bit less. "Average" pay depends considerably on a nanny's location.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why not offer to help her learn English and get her license.

OP here. She is 61 and been here for like 20 years and does not speak it. So, I tried helping her to do both but did not succeed. It's not easy to learn a new language at 61. I translated an entire driving manual for her but she cannot pass the test in E nglish to get her permit

Not trying to be petty, but find it RIDICULOUS that she's been here 20 years and can't speak English. When I was in high school I spent a summer as an exchange student in France. I could barely ask basic questions when I left the US and was fluent upon return. In college, my cousin spent a summer volunteering (through a school program) in Africa and came home conversational in two extra languages. Who lives someplace for two decades and never learns to communicate with the locals? That would've been a deal breaker for me right there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am the $450 a week poster my nanny does not drive her husband drops and picks her up. She speaks good English she is 60 yo. She also does light housekeeping, folding and putting away baby laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and cleaning the playroom This is my second Russian speaking nanny I don't know anyone who pays more in the Russian community.

Thank you, that's helpful.

I pay the same but my nanny brings her DS and DD over and its like a playdate all day. It's great for her kids and mine.

With 2 kids, $17/hour for an excellent nanny is fine, but for 1 it's overpaying big time. Just explain to her that you did not want for her to live on less than $17/hour (the truth), but that the going rate for 2 kids is still $17/hour or less so there won't be any raise for a while.

Anonymous wrote:

I am a physician and my husband is an attorney and $450 is what we pay our nanny. We do not reimburse our nanny based on how much we make, we reimburse her based on the going rate. I think I get the definition of affluent pretty well.

A certified nursing assistant in my office makes $12-14 /hr, you are paying $17/hr to an unlicensed person who has long stretches of doing nothing when your child is sleeping. My nanny comes in at 8:30 and my son naps between 9:30 and 11 and 2 and 4. My nanny previously worked for an elderly "daycare" where she made minimum wage. I am currently expecting my third, the oldest is about to start Kindergarten, she will be paid $600 for the infant, the toddler, and to pick up the oldest from the bus stop at 3:30

You might be a physician all right but certainly no economist. Why should nannies wages be based on how much an assistant makes in your office? Nannies wages are based on supply of nannies and demand for their services.

Why do you assume that my nanny is an "unlicensed person who has long stretches of doing nothing when my child is sleeping"? Actually, she is doing cleaning/cooking/laundry when my DS is sleeping. What's also amazing is that she is doing it at her own accord. I never asked her for it. She also does not watch my kid as an "unlicensed person" might be doing. She educates him, engages him, entertains, comforts, etc. She is also educated child teacher from Bulgaria. Rereading what I just said I actually feel pretty good about paying her what I do.

And she will be getting a raise once my second child is born

Anonymous wrote:

I am a physician and my husband is an attorney and $450 is what we pay our nanny. We do not reimburse our nanny based on how much we make, we reimburse her based on the going rate. I think I get the definition of affluent pretty well.

A certified nursing assistant in my office makes $12-14 /hr, you are paying $17/hr to an unlicensed person who has long stretches of doing nothing when your child is sleeping. My nanny comes in at 8:30 and my son naps between 9:30 and 11 and 2 and 4. My nanny previously worked for an elderly "daycare" where she made minimum wage. I am currently expecting my third, the oldest is about to start Kindergarten, she will be paid $600 for the infant, the toddler, and to pick up the oldest from the bus stop at 3:30

Congratulations! You and your spouse get to built your great wealth over the back of a poorly paid woman who is raising your children. Is she scrubing your toilets as well? Is this what you call "having it all"?
You know that when you're to old to care for yourself, your children will do just the same, out-source that job to some poorly paid person. What goes around, comes around.

I am a physician and my husband is an attorney and $450 is what we pay our nanny. We do not reimburse our nanny based on how much we make, we reimburse her based on the going rate. I think I get the definition of affluent pretty well.

A certified nursing assistant in my office makes $12-14 /hr, you are paying $17/hr to an unlicensed person who has long stretches of doing nothing when your child is sleeping. My nanny comes in at 8:30 and my son naps between 9:30 and 11 and 2 and 4. My nanny previously worked for an elderly "daycare" where she made minimum wage. I am currently expecting my third, the oldest is about to start Kindergarten, she will be paid $600 for the infant, the toddler, and to pick up the oldest from the bus stop at 3:30

If you believe that you pay her a reasonable rate why post the question at all?

Anonymous wrote:I am a physician and my husband is an attorney and $450 is what we pay our nanny. We do not reimburse our nanny based on how much we make, we reimburse her based on the going rate. I think I get the definition of affluent pretty well.

$450 per week is certainly not the going rate the last time I checked. I guess our nanny was pretty lucky then she managed to find Russian who do not hold that $450 per week going rate belief

I am a physician and my husband is an attorney and $450 is what we pay our nanny. We do not reimburse our nanny based on how much we make, we reimburse her based on the going rate. I think I get the definition of affluent pretty well.

Anonymous wrote:I am the $450 a week poster my nanny does not drive her husband drops and picks her up. She speaks good English she is 60 yo. She also does light housekeeping, folding and putting away baby laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and cleaning the playroom This is my second Russian speaking nanny I don't know anyone who pays more in the Russian community.

OP here. PP I do not think you are correct or our definitions of the the affluent Russian community are different. If you go on russiandc.com and look through the postings there are posts offering more than $10 hour which you are quoting as a upper ceiling on nanny wages in the Russian community. I am a Russian and pay about twice of what you pay a week with more benefits to my nanny, so there are definitely people in our community willing to pay and paying more than $10/hour. By the affluent community, I meant educated and well to do folks. The Ph.D types who work for the World Bank, NIH, IMF, etc. Living in N. Bethesda is not a necessary condition. And these are the types of families our Russian speaking nanny worked for before us.

Anonymous wrote:Is this nanny illegal? How could she pass a citizenship test not speaking any english? Either way she sounds PATHETIC living here for 10 years not speaking english. I speak 5 languages. Two I learned using Rosetta Stone. This lady is LAZY.

No, she is legal. She is a permanent resident. I mean she is not a citizen of the United States but she is legally here and has the right to work

Anonymous wrote:I am the $450 a week poster my nanny does not drive her husband drops and picks her up. She speaks good English she is 60 yo. She also does light housekeeping, folding and putting away baby laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and cleaning the playroom This is my second Russian speaking nanny I don't know anyone who pays more in the Russian community.

Thank you, that's helpful.