Pay her.

This thread was from six years ago. OP is long gone. Let it die.

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny has been with us for 6 months and she just put in her two weeks notice. It is an amicable split, but we will be left in a bit of a bind until we find someone else. When she started, our verbal agreement was that she would get two weeks vacation (one that we choose and one that she chooses). We've already used our week. She just asked me if she will be paid out vacation for her week. I told her I needed to talk to my husband about it. I hadn't planned on it. Do you think we "owe" her that vacation? If she'd been here a full year, it would be a different story, but we also never told her that her vacation time was contingent on a certain length of time with us.

Did you state that it gets accrued? If not, then it's expected as a bulk sum at the start of employment and should be paid out. It's common to have vacation and sick time in bulk, it's often seen as about 50/50 bulk versus accrued if polling nannies. I've personally never had mine accrue. As the one week of vacation used was also your choice, I'd pay it out.

Most nannies do guaranteed hours which means that you pay them their regular pay for anytime that you don't need them. Normally PTO is all of the nanny's choice and GH would cover her pay for your scheduled vacations. So in a standard contract, you would be looking at her still having 2 weeks of paid vacation time left, and in bulk if it being accrued wasn't mentioned. If it was mentioned as accrued, then normally she'd still be owed 1 week. Vacation time should ALWAYS be paid out.

This also goes to show why you should also always have a written contract that specifies every single detail/potential issue. Please never bring up "how much of a bind" her quitting puts you in. You could have specified a longer notice period (4 weeks is common), you should always have backup care/a backup plan, and if you were the one to fire her, SHE would be in just as much of a bind (except it would be a financial issue for her with not having money for rent etc). None of that should be put on your nanny.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is from 2016...

The same scenario still exists. If she had to work for a year before she get her two weeks vacation, then it is your responsibility to tell her this. Being forced to take a week of vacation at the employer's choice is not a vacation but a forced time off.

Many, many nannies have one week employer's choice, one week theirs.

Anonymous wrote:This is from 2016...

The same scenario still exists. If she had to work for a year before she get her two weeks vacation, then it is your responsibility to tell her this. Being forced to take a week of vacation at the employer's choice is not a vacation but a forced time off.

This is from 2016...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would pay it out. What if she had used her week at some
point in the last six months. You would of paid her for it, right?

But she didn't and chose to leave regardless.

But she had to use one week that OP chose and I don't consider this a vacation because she had no choice. I also think it grossly unfair to do and I do not know why nannies accept this unfair policy. OP takes her vacation when she wants not when her boss takes his/her vacation.

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny has been with us for 6 months and she just put in her two weeks notice. It is an amicable split, but we will be left in a bit of a bind until we find someone else. When she started, our verbal agreement was that she would get two weeks vacation (one that we choose and one that she chooses). We've already used our week. She just asked me if she will be paid out vacation for her week. I told her I needed to talk to my husband about it. I hadn't planned on it. Do you think we "owe" her that vacation? If she'd been here a full year, it would be a different story, but we also never told her that her vacation time was contingent on a certain length of time with us.

Did you specify how vacation and sick leave was earned, x number of hours per pay period,? If not, and her contract was two weeks vacation, then you owe her. Did she do a good job, did she love your children and they loved her? I would give her the second week of I had not specified that she would earn vacation hours every pay period.

Just pay her. You can get bad feedback and look bad

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny has been with us for 6 months and she just put in her two weeks notice. It is an amicable split, but we will be left in a bit of a bind until we find someone else. When she started, our verbal agreement was that she would get two weeks vacation (one that we choose and one that she chooses). We've already used our week. She just asked me if she will be paid out vacation for her week. I told her I needed to talk to my husband about it. I hadn't planned on it. Do you think we "owe" her that vacation? If she'd been here a full year, it would be a different story, but we also never told her that her vacation time was contingent on a certain length of time with us.

OP, it may not have been spelled out in contract but the 2 weeks vacation are PER year so it makes clear sense and I dont think she'd dare argue that since she only worked half year, it is fair she gets half of whats in the contract for the year. You do not owe her

If you didn't define that vacation accrues in your agreement, you don't get to invent one upon her departure. Check your state laws. In MD, your employee is legally entitled a payout of their unused vacation time.

Anonymous wrote:I would pay it out. What if she had used her week at some
point in the last six months. You would of paid her for it, right?

I assume she left for another job so don't buy in to some fiscal nightmare drama.
SOme nannies always ask for more, all the time. It gets really annoying. Then when they overplay their cards and get fired they freak out.

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny has been with us for 6 months and she just put in her two weeks notice. It is an amicable split, but we will be left in a bit of a bind until we find someone else. When she started, our verbal agreement was that she would get two weeks vacation (one that we choose and one that she chooses). We've already used our week. She just asked me if she will be paid out vacation for her week. I told her I needed to talk to my husband about it. I hadn't planned on it. Do you think we "owe" her that vacation? If she'd been here a full year, it would be a different story, but we also never told her that her vacation time was contingent on a certain length of time with us.

Nope.