OMG yes tell the parents. A 15 month old is still so little. A spank does nothing to change their behavior. Whether you think a swat/spank is okay in general or not, that is way too little. I agree that if she does that in front of others I'd be super concerned about what happens behind closed doors.

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, do NOT drop her from the group you need to see if this is a pattern of behavior and for the love of all that’s holy you guys need to intercept her and be kind to that child. Banning her is like locking that baby in the closet with the boogy man.

+1

I would talk to her and say “I just want to let you know that its not okay for you to hit children, especially children that aren’t yours.” I would say that other nannies and myself (if you’re comfortable saying) were very uncomfortable with you hitting X and we don’t want you to get into any trouble or have your actions affect the child in the long run. What do you think he/she’s parents would do if they saw you hit their child being hit?

As a parent my first thought is to not be ok with this and I would want someone to tell me.
On the other hand, If my Nanny told me that DS at 15 mos was running away from her and not listening and she gave him a swat on the behind as a consequence I would probably be ok with it in this situation.

Anonymous wrote:I've had employers that told me to spank.

A nanny simply does not hit or spank a child. Ever.

Nanny here. You are more than likely a mandated reporter. The nanny was being abusive. You tell the employer and you remove her from the group. Full stop, no further questions needed.

I keep reading "parents told me to spank kids before" from nannies. But no way should you touch a child, especially not at a DC national zoo with lots of people around with cameras and even the police. Not only is it wrong but she could end up on the 5 o'clock news and her butt in jail for child abuse. As far as banning her from the nanny group and reporting her, I think you should see how she normally is with the child; does she yell at him? does she rush him and is not gentle? I think based on that, you can decide to report her. But if this is just an odd occurrence and she is having a bad day, you can just talk to her and warn her that next time, you will tell her boss. I once had a 20 month old dash from me at zoo and entered an empty wired bird fence from the bottom opening. I quickly reached over and grabbed him from his hoodie and pulled him out. Was I upset? ooohh yes but I could never have spanked him.

I've had employers that told me to spank.

Anonymous wrote:I once had a lawyer mother tell me to spank her two year old son. I simply would not. I soon accepted a new job.

Do NOT spank a child. Just DON'T.

I had a parent tell me that I could use whatever discipline I wanted, including spanking. Naturally, I used other methods.

Tell the parents. Even if they are okay with it, they need to be made aware that it happened in public.