Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I once worked for a family who lived in my city (Chicago). They lived in a crappy area and told me they'd be moving to a better area that was closer to me. They put their loft on the market, but I guess no one was biting. Anyway. I got back from a mini vacation the day after Memorial Day and they told me they'd decided they were moving to a town 3 hours away and they wouldn't need me anymore. I had two weeks to find a new job.

Fast forward to the weekend before my last week. I needed to leave 15 minutes early one day to go to an interview. I texted mb. She was furious that I was "already looking for a new job when they hadn't even left yet" ummm...what did she expect. Anyway. She was absolutely not budging on letting me leave a few minutes early, so I told her I wouldn't be coming in that last week and it was absolutely not fair of her to expect me not to find a new job.

I went on that interview and fell in LOVE with the family and child and have been happily working there for two years.

That family was just terrible in other ways as well, so I'm not exactly devastated about it, and I don't feel a bit guilty. I could write a novel bout the horror that was the five months I worked for them.

Well that was REALLY shitty of you.

The only one behaving shitty here was MB. It's people like you, who think this MB's behavior was justified, that create situations where nannies have to quit last minute. Respect, flexibility and understanding go both ways. I know we are just "the help" but we care for your children and deserve much better than we often get. Making her stay 15 minutes so she couldn't go to an interview...that's shitty.

Leaving a family high and dry without childcare for one week? That's shitty, yes.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. The commute and not being reimbursed was just the icing on the cake. I won't bore you with details. I don't regret my decisions. Sometimes, people need to step on toes to get ahead in life! These people should not have nannies, they don't respect anyone's time but their own. If you felt disrespected months and months you would probably not leave professionally either. I think it's stupid to leave with appropriate notice, if they screw you over-screw them over!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had a family call me during my work day, with their kids, to let me know they would not need me anymore as they were going to start using family for childcare. I had JUST seen them that morning and they said nothing. They gave me 2 weeks notice, but I found a job sooner and told them on friday that it would be my last day. I wish I would have (been financially able to) tell them to have their family come and take the kids that day and left. How rude to call me to tell me this! I have been MUCH happier with my current position!

They gave you two weeks notice. Unless your contract called for longer notice, they did just fine by you. Telling you in person would have been nicer, but they may have been in a rush to get to work, may not have known in the morning that the family was on board to provide care, or may have been reluctant to keep you late to tell you after work. Their behavior doesn't sound like a big deal at all, and if you'd exercised your fantasy of walking off the job the minute they called, you would have been acting like a child.

Some of you should stop taking everything as a personal affront. People who walk around expecting to get shit on tend to create an environment of distrust, which only encourages others to shit on them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

OP here. The commute and not being reimbursed was just the icing on the cake. I won't bore you with details. I don't regret my decisions. Sometimes, people need to step on toes to get ahead in life! These people should not have nannies, they don't respect anyone's time but their own. If you felt disrespected months and months you would probably not leave professionally either. I think it's stupid to leave with appropriate notice, if they screw you over-screw them over!

You aren't just screwing them over by not giving notice, you are also double dipping, which makes you a cheat and a liar as well. You said you already signed the contract and started working for your new family. So you are being paid by two families for three weeks.

You are truly awful.

No you people are awful.

OP, you no this family. If they are the type to screw you on pay or give you a bad reference then I'd do whats best for me too, even if that meant giving no notice. Don't listen to these rotten hypocrites on an anonymous board. Just do whats best for you and don't take anyones crap.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I once worked for a family who lived in my city (Chicago). They lived in a crappy area and told me they'd be moving to a better area that was closer to me. They put their loft on the market, but I guess no one was biting. Anyway. I got back from a mini vacation the day after Memorial Day and they told me they'd decided they were moving to a town 3 hours away and they wouldn't need me anymore. I had two weeks to find a new job.

Fast forward to the weekend before my last week. I needed to leave 15 minutes early one day to go to an interview. I texted mb. She was furious that I was "already looking for a new job when they hadn't even left yet" ummm...what did she expect. Anyway. She was absolutely not budging on letting me leave a few minutes early, so I told her I wouldn't be coming in that last week and it was absolutely not fair of her to expect me not to find a new job.

I went on that interview and fell in LOVE with the family and child and have been happily working there for two years.

That family was just terrible in other ways as well, so I'm not exactly devastated about it, and I don't feel a bit guilty. I could write a novel bout the horror that was the five months I worked for them.

Well that was REALLY shitty of you.

You're joking right? MBs seem to think there are no consequences to their actions. If you are inflexible with your nanny, she will not be flexible with you. If you are inconsiderate, expect to reap what you sow.

I agree, you must be joking. They had no right to be angry with her interviewing for positions when they decided to move to a new city 3 hours away and had already given her 2 weeks notice! She asked to leave 15 MINUTES early one day (not even a whole hour!) for an interview. She wouldn't have had to be looking for anything if they had stuck to their original plan of moving CLOSER to her. I think that nanny deserves an award for dealing with such a crappy family in the first place. I hate when families make promises about something that are the reason you take the position, and then fall through with it. In this regards, they actually broke the "contract". They gave 2 weeks notice, when nanny asked for a small favor, family showed true colors, and so nanny then decided not to go in last week. She didn't ask for it to be paid, she didn't demand anything from them. She just left early which she had every right to do (especially since it seems like she would have needed that time to interview for positions anyways). No way was she in the wrong at all!

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is unprofessional. Even at the worst nanny job I've had, I gave 2 weeks notice.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well...our situation was much different.

We are the MB/DB and felt that we were very generous and kind to our nanny. When she let us know that she wanted to take a vacation to visit her husband's family (in a far and distant land) coincided with a business trip that our entire family was going on...we eagerly agreed. We asked her to take all the time she wanted...begged her actually, to take more time...because we knew the trip was long, and expensive, and knew that once they got there they may want to stay longer...but she said no, that she couldn't be away for that long, and she needed the income.

We arranged for temporary child care for the time she was going to be gone, went through all the hassle of taxes etc. for a new nanny...had the nanny live with us, because it was more convenient, blah...blah...blah...it was a HUGE effort.

She called the night she was supposed to have returned...she was staying an extra week, and could we be flexible and allow her to stay?

She was fired on the spot.

We were in turmoil...I had to head off the next morning for another business trip...my husband had to stay home with the kids and find another nanny. But honestly, it was worth the chaos.

She has not worked since...and she has never asked for a reference. Maybe good for her...maybe she got her Associates degree because she had the extra free time...I don't know.

BUT, in our area, it would have definitely been helpful if she had made sure she retained our letter of recommendation. Bad reps and news travels fast in our town.

Wait. So you to,d her to take her time, and encouraged it. But be sure she waited until the last second to de decided she indeed wanted to take more time, you fired her? I'm not going to bash you. I just want to know why you did this, if you encouraged her to take more time to begin with?