Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The good news is that OP is pretty clear about the kind of employer she is so she will end up with the kind of nanny she deserves.

To anyone else who is wondering about how to handle this, know that any experienced nanny will hear that you want to avoid paying the second-child rate and see that as a red flag. We have all worked with the school-aged/too-young-for-school combo and we know how often the school-ages kid actually ends up being home. And we know that, despite your insistence that your older kid will just play quietly alone while you work, it rarely works out to be true.

What this says about you as an employer is that you have unrealistic expectations and are nickel-and-diming us before we even start. We will never feel appreciated or respected.

So a huge swath of experienced, dedicated nannies will pass on your job. You will end up with someone either inexperienced or desperate. This is not a good outcome for you.

If you just up the rate by $1, you can list it as being the rate for two kids, one of whom won’t always be there and hire someone who is happy to pitch in with both childcare and logistics for both kids.

I’m the OP. Did you miss the part where I said I would up the rate by $1-2 after other parents weighed in. Also, I’m not sure why so many nannies are chiming in on a thread specifically for employers. I said I am not looking to undercut someone. I will pay a nanny the most I can afford and what I feel is fair. The reality is there is a range of hourly rates nannies will accept. And at the rate I’ve posted online I have had 50 applicant so despite your feeling that many nannies will pass on my job, there has been a lot of interest which means clearly I am paying market rate.