While I understand that these job posts are completely ridiculous I'm not sure why it makes you bitter. The people who post them are either complete idiots or people who have never hired a nanny or known anyone who has and honestly don't know better. Hopefully they will quickly find out no decent nanny would even bother replying to that position. But no one said you have to reply either. I'm not a nanny but I've been looking for a job recently since we are moving out of state. In my profession you unfortunately don't get to know the salary before you are offerred a job and it's considered very bad form to ask. I traveled to go on an interview and in the end the offer was so low it wouldn't even have covered the gas it would take me to get there every day. It was so ridiculous it was laughable. Was I annoyed that I wasted my time on this interview? Yes. Am I bitter? No. Just ignore those job posts and hope those posters get a clue.

You would think that INA
www.nanny.org
and
the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies
www.theapna.org
would issue a statement, at the very least, with regard to these online nanny agency, illegal practices. But no. Instead they accept $$$$$ from care.com

Why?

Another egregious conflict-of-interest by agency owners.

Title:
A Reliable Long term Sitter
Description:
I'm a house mom that is trying to get back out in the work field . I have a 10 month old daughter(will be 1 in June) , that I'm looking to get a sitter for . She's a very happy baby so she will be lots of fun . I work an average of 5 days a week . I'm looking for someone that has pretty flexible schedule.
Rate:
$70 / Week - $80 / Week

Title:
Full Time Sitter
Description:
Looking for a full time sitter to start April 8, 2013. I have two girls ages 2 and 3. Must be great with children and trustworthy.

Rate:
$100 / Week - $150 / Week

Skills & certifications:
CPR, First Aid and Other Babysitting Affiliations

Title:
Long Shifts and ready to play
Description:
Get my 5 yr old on the bus for the next few weeks until school is our on the 25th of May.Babysit my 1yr old during the day! Feed him meals and play and allow him to take a nap. I work long hours about an hour away from home so, I will need a reliable, respectable, honest, fun loving, ready to work person.
Rate:
$5 / Hour - $6 / Hour

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Clearly a typo. Calm down.

Not necessarily. I see ads like this daily.

Yes but the ad also said $5-$15/hr. So obviously there was a typo somewhere because even at $5/hr that's much more than $100/week. I'm not saying there aren't ridiculously cheap people out there but I think everyone needs to call down a little about this particular ad. Clearly she didn't mean $100/week or she wouldn't have added $5-$15/hr.

Maybe the poster didn't have the smarts to click the correct boxes for the pay. The lowest care.com allows you to put is $5/hour. So a lot of ads say $5-5 /hour. I understand that it seems so ludicrous that there is no way that it is real, but I assure you, it is!

Anonymous wrote:Clearly a typo. Calm down.

Have you ever visited care.com? There are a TON of jobs wanting childcare for $1-5/hour, TONS!

Anonymous wrote:Don't those greedy owners of care and sittercity have any legal responsibility?

NO. Sad but true.

Anonymous wrote:Care.com is at least up front about the requirement to pay at least minimum wage to a nanny. I messages sittercity about this and they responded that not only are they just a job board and aren't responsible for the content of an ad, but that I am mistaken that a nanny is entitled to minimum wage. For real?! How can you claim to cater to an industry and be so clueless as to the laws that govern said industry. I've also had my account suspended when I messaged a parent about how the wage they are offering is illegal.

As for the woman in this ad, she clearly just doesn't understand the difference between an in home daycare and a personal nanny, which by the looks of it she can afford neither. I'd love to hear some of these parents answer how they expect someone to live off of $100/week or if they'd ever work for $1.90/hour.

I was kicked off care.com for commenting about offering $1.33/hour for childcare! A**hats! I want to write to every one of the ridiculously cheap parents. Better yet, I want to create a fake account and take these ridiculous jobs and never show up. You get what you pay for! I see the same people posting over and over again (I like to look for fun). Also, you can create a new account with a different email. I hate care.com, but there is nothing else in the area I live. Luckily I have a very nice position that will last me many years!

I agree with OP.

On you, not one.

I'm a nanny, btw.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:An agency also charges quite the premium for their services. A website that charges $15/mo or is free can't do that.

If you don't mind sifting through ads of nannies or employers that you would never be a match for, these sites are useful.

It would be quite simple, to not allow parents to offer wages that are below the federal minimum wage. Sittercity and care.com should be ashamed of their selfish greed.

I disagree. The onus is one you. That would be a legal headache for them.

Anonymous wrote:An agency also charges quite the premium for their services. A website that charges $15/mo or is free can't do that.

If you don't mind sifting through ads of nannies or employers that you would never be a match for, these sites are useful.

It would be quite simple, to not allow parents to offer wages that are below the federal minimum wage. Sittercity and care.com should be ashamed of their selfish greed.

An agency also charges quite the premium for their services. A website that charges $15/mo or is free can't do that.

If you don't mind sifting through ads of nannies or employers that you would never be a match for, these sites are useful.

An agency is a privately owned company that works one on one with nannies and families. They interview both the family and nanny so as to find what both needs.
A website does not work one on one with the nannies or the parents. You are putting your info into a datebase and putting what you want, with the two sites i work with, they just send you notices when jobs in your AREA have come up.. not based on what you want wage wise.

This. It goes both ways on the websites. Parents can post any job offer but anyone can respond.

Agencies will only take on parents that will pay the fee and offer legal salaries. Agencies also screen their nannies and have baseline requirements. If you can't produce legitimate references, don't have legally documented experience, have no education, can't fill out the questionnaire, won't get vaccines or TB tests, etc etc, they will not represent you.