Anonymous wrote:

From what I've seen, the most successful relationships are mutually respectful, and everyone goes "above and beyond" to the best of their abilities.

+1. Could not agree more.

From what I've seen, the most successful relationships are mutually respectful, and everyone goes "above and beyond" to the best of their abilities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Also, food for thought:
if the nanny indeed needs to go above and beyond her job duties in order to earn her bonus....
Each year, the nanny will have to "out-do" herself in order to get another bonus.

Year one she has extra time so she cooks dinners for the family and will sometimes help with their laundry.

Year two suddenly those now aren't above and beyond since she's been doing them. Does she take on cleaning to "earn" her bonus?

Basically, yes. The nanny needs to exceed every year to earn a bonus. That said, if she did something extra the first year, like the cooking and laundry examples you give above, and it became a regular expected duty, the nanny can use that to negotiate a permanent raise for those new duties.

But, in the absence of that, she is definitely in the position of going above and beyond to earn a raise. Just showing up and doing your job is simply not enough to warrant a bonus.

Be smart, nannies. Drop your constant whining about your bills and what you perceive your MB has that you don't. You chose this line of work. Whining gets you nothing, especially in this area. So, change it up. Do an exemplary job. Earn a bonus. Document your successes and negotiate permanent raises. Move on from families you don't feel pay well. Earn all the certifications you can. Be professional.

Okay, but can someone please give examples of what "above and beyond" would entail if you have a very specific contract that already covers the needs of the family you work for? And if after the first year, you negotiate those duties for a permanent raise, what do you add the next year? Where does it end? If I work for your family for 5 years, will I need to be doing child care, family laundry, cooking all dinners, running all errands, cleaning the whole house, and wiping your butts in order to go "above and beyond"? Seriously, when is enough enough?

If the job duties already include many chores beyond basic child-watching, you can still go above and beyond by (a) ensuring that you are upbeat and smiling each day, so the MB doesn't have to spend time wondering what your moodiness means, (b) by being proactive and diligent, so the MB never has to remind you to complete agreed upon tasks, (c) by taking sick days only when truly needed (especially if there is no carryover, I do think unused sick time should be reflected in a bonus), (d) by not nickel and diming the family about every little thing that might strike the nanny as burden (like travel when you aren't working extra hours or sleeping over the family's house to ensure on time arrival on a snow day), (e) by offering to help find backup care when you are taking vacation, (f) by offering to help research and complete applications for preschools or camps or enrichment classes, (g) by offering to help the family manage kid photos or download home videos to a storage medium, (h) by emailing photos of your week with the kids to the parents and grandparents or by offering to start a blog about the kids for enjoyment of the parents and grandparents (password protected, of course), (i) by using your own money to buy the children inexpensive little surprises here and there because you saw something they'd love while out and about. Going above and beyond does not necessarily mean adding new tasks, it can also mean completing the basic job better or with a little extra demonstrated love for the kids.

Wow. Reviewing this list makes me realize how fabulous my nanny is and how deserving she is of a bonus.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a live in nanny, 3 kids, work 60 hrs with no overtime. Numerous late nights at least 5 a month. Family laundry, sheets, clean/vacuum entire house, dust all while making sure homework is done, baths are given before bed sometimes even put them to bed so I'm basically the nanny/housekeeper . I know most of my nanny friends have a housekeeper come in once a week but I do all of that for them. While its not required they give me a bonus, its nice that they appreciate the extras I do. I think bonuses help with keeping workers motivated all across all jobs. A show of good will, appreciation. Even when I worked in retail I got bonuses and extra perks. If you felt your nanny was not doing that great then its best to give a performance review and see where it goes from there. Or if you can't give a bonus then work out some perks she could enjoy.

That's illegal. Even if you agreed to it, the law supersedes your agreement. You're an idiot.

Ha!! Calling me an idiot doesn't help. Maybe first you should ask what my circumstances were for taking this job. Yes it 60 hrs but I have alot downtime during the week and still get the chores done. And because I work so many hrs whenever I need to go home early for an appointment or go see a doctor my boss will make it happen. I still get paid my full amount even if I take a day off to do so. So just a little info for you calling me an idiot. This job has been pleasant compared to what I've dealt with. And this is NOT a permanent position for me, will be moving on to head back to school. If that makes me an idiot so be it. Besides this post was about bonuses... Moving on.

If you aren't forced to rotate nannies yet again, that should be plenty to warrant a bonus.

Anonymous wrote:

Also, food for thought:
if the nanny indeed needs to go above and beyond her job duties in order to earn her bonus....
Each year, the nanny will have to "out-do" herself in order to get another bonus.

Year one she has extra time so she cooks dinners for the family and will sometimes help with their laundry.

Year two suddenly those now aren't above and beyond since she's been doing them. Does she take on cleaning to "earn" her bonus?

Basically, yes. The nanny needs to exceed every year to earn a bonus. That said, if she did something extra the first year, like the cooking and laundry examples you give above, and it became a regular expected duty, the nanny can use that to negotiate a permanent raise for those new duties.

But, in the absence of that, she is definitely in the position of going above and beyond to earn a raise. Just showing up and doing your job is simply not enough to warrant a bonus.

Be smart, nannies. Drop your constant whining about your bills and what you perceive your MB has that you don't. You chose this line of work. Whining gets you nothing, especially in this area. So, change it up. Do an exemplary job. Earn a bonus. Document your successes and negotiate permanent raises. Move on from families you don't feel pay well. Earn all the certifications you can. Be professional.

Okay, but can someone please give examples of what "above and beyond" would entail if you have a very specific contract that already covers the needs of the family you work for? And if after the first year, you negotiate those duties for a permanent raise, what do you add the next year? Where does it end? If I work for your family for 5 years, will I need to be doing child care, family laundry, cooking all dinners, running all errands, cleaning the whole house, and wiping your butts in order to go "above and beyond"? Seriously, when is enough enough?

Anonymous wrote:The thread is doomed, OP. The same posse of nannies that take umbrage to any reasonable request for information from MBs and DBs have taken over.

Lolol...maybe it's because the thread was opened by one of members of the "nannies are entitled" clique. I wish parents could work as a nanny for a week or two, undercover boss style. Then and only then, will they truly see things with a different perspective.

Also, food for thought:
if the nanny indeed needs to go above and beyond her job duties in order to earn her bonus....
Each year, the nanny will have to "out-do" herself in order to get another bonus.

Year one she has extra time so she cooks dinners for the family and will sometimes help with their laundry.

Year two suddenly those now aren't above and beyond since she's been doing them. Does she take on cleaning to "earn" her bonus?

Basically, yes. The nanny needs to exceed every year to earn a bonus. That said, if she did something extra the first year, like the cooking and laundry examples you give above, and it became a regular expected duty, the nanny can use that to negotiate a permanent raise for those new duties.

But, in the absence of that, she is definitely in the position of going above and beyond to earn a raise. Just showing up and doing your job is simply not enough to warrant a bonus.

Be smart, nannies. Drop your constant whining about your bills and what you perceive your MB has that you don't. You chose this line of work. Whining gets you nothing, especially in this area. So, change it up. Do an exemplary job. Earn a bonus. Document your successes and negotiate permanent raises. Move on from families you don't feel pay well. Earn all the certifications you can. Be professional.

Anonymous wrote:MB tells me the only reason she's getting a big bonus, is because I do my job as well as I do. She has zero worries about her child. So she's giving me a certain percentage of her bonus.

That's what I call, "fair".

Yes, yes, we know, we know.

MB tells me the only reason she's getting a big bonus, is because I do my job as well as I do. She has zero worries about her child. So she's giving me a certain percentage of her bonus.

That's what I call, "fair".

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is beyond insulting. Why the hell should anyone have to prove to OP (or really anyone besides their employer) why they deserve, oh I'm sorry, have EARNED their bonus? This forum has become beyond judgmental.
OP get off of your high horse.

+100000000000000000000000000000000....Talk about unmitigated GALL!...The OP sounds like a gem to work for. She is resentful that she has to pay for a nanny, and it's screaming all through her post.

You're the only one screaming, pp.

OP's nanny can do better elsewhere.

I'm still wondering what OP's nanny could do to earn a bonus.

I don't think the question was insulting. It's a reasonable question.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, food for thought:
if the nanny indeed needs to go above and beyond her job duties in order to earn her bonus....
Each year, the nanny will have to "out-do" herself in order to get another bonus.

Year one she has extra time so she cooks dinners for the family and will sometimes help with their laundry.

Year two suddenly those now aren't above and beyond since she's been doing them. Does she take on cleaning to "earn" her bonus?

Yeah, that could get kind of insane, especially if a family has already done a good job of defining a job that meets their needs. OP said she was very specific about her expectations up front, so really what could her nanny do? If, in the end, you decide not to give a bonus because you feel she hasn't earned it by going above and beyond, it'd be helpful to define what exactly that means to you and what she can do to earn one next year. Its not helpful to keep your nanny guessing as to what you want.

This is my thinking, too.