- Typical Nanny Duties
- Average Salary for nannies
- Videotaping the Nanny
Questions & Answers
Parents and Providers, All too many of us know what it's like to have a question and not know where to look for the answer. This is your chance to ask any child care related question and have it answered by other parents or providers.
In this Q&A forum, you have the opportunity to address such topics as:
As with all other pages here, please feel free to submit your ideas for additional topics of discussion.
To submit your questions or answers or other topics of discussion, send them to me at: LifeWithNanny@juno.com
All relevant responses to the following questions will be sent directly to the person who needs advice, as well as being posted here for all to see.
Q. I have been a nanny for about 6 years. I am also a certified Montessori teacher for preschool-K. I wanted to know how parents generally felt about the Montessori method and what the expectations would be if I were to use this method of education on their children in their home.
A-1. I do not care for the Montessori methods. I think children need direction. But, if you explain the methods to parents, and let them read more about it, they may be interested in you teaching that way. Just my own opinion. ~~ Jane, Nanny and Agency owner
Q. What do people think of Male nannys? Nannys: Do you know any? Parents: Would you employ one?
A-1. Thanks for this interesting question. I have not, honestly, given it too much thought before. Upon contemplation, though, I must say that male child care providers have an appropriate, even needed place in the rearing of children.
As a slightly silly example, the television show "Who's the Boss?" portrayed Tony Danza as the 'nanny' of Judith Light's on screen son.
I once interviewed with a single mom who had two boys - ages approx. 11 or 12 and one a bit younger, if I remember correctly about 6 or 8 years old. She was concerned about finding someone who could help her son come over his strong resentments, which led to physical altercations on more than one occasion, so therefore, the nanny had to be able to handle a rather large boy who had a bit of a violent temper. Of course, I turned down the position, knowing full-well that I would not want to be the object of one of his violent outbursts. But I recommended at the time that she contact Big Brothers of America, or some similar organization, because I realized that her sons needed a strong (emotionally - and physically for that matter) male figure of authority who would be their pal and confidante as well. Just my humble opinion. ~~ Christine ManiscalcoA-2. I do not know of any male nannies, but think that it is great that you chose this career. Congrats to out to you!!!! ~~ Jane, Nanny and Agency owner
Q. Would it be out of the "norm" of a Nanny's assignments to take our daughter to the pediatrician if we could not get an appointment at a time when my husband and I could take her?
A-1. This duty is one that relates directly to the care of the child. Provided both you and your husband feel comfortable with the driving habits of your nanny, there should be no problem with it.
Also, you might want to consider what type of information you may be interested in garnering from the visit with the pediatrician and ask the nanny to take notes specifically about such things. Also remember that the appointments that take place in the first few months of a newborn's life are critical, developmentally speaking, and it might be best for either you or your husband to be present. These appointments also give you the time to ask your pediatrician about all the new and mysterious happenings going on with your new little bundle of joy. Including the nanny in these routine visits will allow her to get to know the doctor and vice versa, should the need ever arise for her to keep scheduled appointments, and will keep her updated on the baby's development as well. ~~ Christine ManiscalcoA-2. Not wrong to ask a nanny to take to the doctor, sometimes an emergency will happen - sudden ear infection and the nanny is the one available to take to the dr. I have had this experience. Make sure that a parent or both make an appointment with the doctor to meet the nanny and that the dr. understands that the nanny has permission to take child and seek dr. opinion with care. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. We do want to give a Nanny two weeks paid vacation after one year's employment, which is standard in the business world. We would have to tell a prospective Nanny, however, that one of these weeks would have to be taken at the end of the year (my office closes) from Christmas Eve through New Year's Day. We would also prefer the second week be at a time when my husband and I, or at least me, could schedule another week. Is this unrealistic?
A-1. This seems fair to me. As a nanny, I would have no problem with scheduling my vacation around the parents' vacation time. As a matter of fact, having it separated into two different weeks kind of forces two separate vacations. ~~ Christine Maniscalco
A-2. One week can be at the disrection of the family and taken when they arrange - Christmas - but the other one should be when she wants to take it - summer vacation or maybe a few long weekends over the time. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. If my husband and I were to travel on vacation and elect not to take the Nanny with us, of course we would pay her. However, is it unrealistic to expect that she report to our house every day anyway to do other things--e.g., run errands (pick up dry cleaning), receive repairman (cable tv, telephone)?
A-1. This might seem like a bit of a tough question to answer, but try thinking of it this way: All duties that you ask the nanny to perform should be directly relating to the care of the child. If these duties are not ordinarily included in the daily activity of nanny and baby, I wouldn't expect them to be done during your vacation. Scheduling for repairmen and other service personnel is best when you are present, or easily reached. Remember that running the household is not a nanny's job - caring for the child is. I believe that if a nanny is asked (but not expected) to do these 'extracurricular' duties, she should be offered some sort of additional compensation, whether that compensation be additional time off, or monetary) ~~ Christine Maniscalco
A-2. Travel - depends if the nanny is a live-in/out. If in then maybe can arrange for these to be done one day so that she can travel or make plans of her own. If live out do the same but take into consideration the travel distance of her commute. Talk this over withthe nanny and see what her feelings on the situation are. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. If my Nanny calls in sick, are we responsible for paying her for the day even if we have to pay an "emergency" caregiver for the same time? Even if it's such a last-minute notice that I have to miss a day of work?
A-1. In my experience, when a nanny gets sick it is usually something she has caught from the children she cares for or other family members in the household, but there are always those times when she will come down with something she caught from somewhere else, and you will not want it brought into your house to your tiny daughter.
In the business world, I'm certain you will agree, most businesses allow a set number of sick days. Unfair though it may seem to pay someone for a day of rest and recuperation, you must remember that the best nanny is a healthy one. You don't need your nanny trying to work through the acute phase of any illness (which you may catch and as a result miss several days of your work) to make certain that her rent and bills are paid. Rest is the best way to ensure that your nanny will be back on track as quickly as possible. Knowing that she is not being docked a day's (or more) pay if she comes down with something will allow that rest to be more effective.
The standard amount of compensated sick days are no less than 10 per year. ~~ Christine ManiscalcoA-2. If sick days are in her contract then you need to pay her even though you may have to pay another caregiver or take a day off. That is the situation where most people work. If not in contract, make sure the nanny is aware that she will not be paid and see if can compensate in some way - overtime or night of babysitting. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. We would like to make it part of our Nanny position description that we would prefer someone who had a willingness to spend the night whenever the forecast calls for major snow the next business day so as to allow my husband and I to each get to our jobs; of course we would pay a Nanny an hourly ovenight rate for doing so. Is this unrealistic?
A-1. I understand your terms to be that you would compensate your nanny for time spent at your house because you required her to be there. Compensation, in this case, is fair. If your nanny is married, or has children of her own, or if she is being asked to cancel plans she had already made, then compensation is a must, because you are asking her to spend time away from her own family or friends for the sake of the job.
A-2. It is not unfair to ask to stay overnight and she is willing and will conform. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. We absolutely want to give a Nanny a week's pay for Christmas. However, if we have someone begin working for us the first or second week of November, what percentage of a week's pay is fair? Since she would only be working for us for about 4-5 weeks, would a nice gift suffice instead of cash?
A-1. While I was a full-time nanny, my employers did this for me: For my services, as an employee, they would give me a bonus equal to one week's pay. As a friend, they would give me a gift.
The decision, I feel, is a personal one. I think that your relationship, by the time Christmas arrives, will be the main determining factor in the decision how to reward your nanny for a job well done. ~~ Christine ManiscalcoA-2. Do a small gift and maybe 1/2 week pay as show of appreciation. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. I know I don't have any experience in infant care--yet. However, I would imagine that a newborn spends much of the day sleeping. What does a Nanny do during the many hours that a baby is asleep? If we paid a Nanny a fair amount (we don't want to take advantage of anyone) is "other" housekeeping ("other" referring to the usual items that don't relate to the baby) ever included in a Nanny's position description? We do pay a cleaning woman to come to our home every other week--my husband and I really don't need it more often--but we would not be adverse to paying our caregiver more to do household cleaning since we're not happy with our cleaning lady and have wanted to make a change there anyway. Is this realistic? Or, is it better to keep the two positions totally separate?
A-1. It is true that an infant sleeps much of the day away (although there are those occasional infants with colic, or those who enter into this world with eyes wide open not wanting to miss anything at all), however, it must be remembered that you are hiring a professional to come into your home to care for your daughter. She is a nanny, not a governor of your home. There have been a lot of people who try to emphasize this point with sarcastic statements and questions such as: 'Would you ask your ob/gyn to fix your air conditioner?' etc. While this does illustrate the fact that somehow the two professions of nannying and housecleaning have often been mixed and misconstrued, I, personally, feel as though it is a little harsh for those who have valid questions and concerns, such as yourself.
Please remember this as well, your daughter may be a tiny, sleepy little creature when your nanny begins her assignment, but she will grow rapidly, and will soon grow into taking fewer naps and being much more wakeful during the day, needing a great deal more attention. Your nanny will need to have her time free to care for your daughter as your daughter needs - without having to worry about whether the beds are made, the laundry is washed, folded and put away (besides the baby's laundry) or the dusting is done. Your baby will thrive on your nanny's full-time attention.
To be taken into your consideration is also the fact that you are asking your nanny to work about (if average) 1-2 hours longer, per day, than you and your husband. While she may be spending a lot of time, in the beginning, watching a baby sleep (and while doing so, reading novels, studying, or doing any number of things) she will grow into the responsibility of looking after a little toddler who sleeps only once or twice a day for a few hours. During those naptimes, your nanny will need to have her break during the day, perhaps to eat lunch, or rest a little. The nanny is about the only professional who cannot take a lunch break, with no responsibility. Often, naptime is the only time she will get a break in a 10-12 hour day.
All that being said, my advice would be to keep the two positions separate. Since you only -need- someone to come in twice a month, it would be better, by far, to take the time to find someone that you feel comfortable with to come into your home to do the cleaning. ~~ Christine ManiscalcoA-2. Depends on the nanny - some will do housework if compensated and some don't want to go near housework. Talk it over with the nanny and explain the situation. Have her do the maintaining and hire someone to do the really heavy cleaning. Once the child is active and starts to attend gymboree and such the primary care should be the child and the family should look into hiring a cleaner to come in on a regular basis. ~~ Kellie Geres
Q. We would hope that the two "housekeeping" things a Nanny would not mind doing is emptying the dishwasher on a regular basis (even if that means daily) and putting away its contents; and, in the normal course of putting items in the kitchen trash she wouldn't mind, when the bags got full, just tying them up at the top and bringing them down to the basement for my husband to bring up to the curb. Is this out of the realm of a Nanny who is just hired for child care?
A-1. As long as a nanny agrees to these two additional duties up front (and in writing) there is nothing wrong with expecting them to be done. Even though it was never required of me, I would often empty the trash, simply because it needed it, and the alternative would have been unsafe for the children (and I knew that the parents weren't leaving it because they knew I would do it). When it comes to emptying the dishwasher, I would say that this is one of those tasks that could fall into the category of 'other' duties that should not ordinarily be part of the responsibility of a nanny. However, if the majority of dishes are used by the nanny and children (i.e. bottles, nipples, pacifiers, etc) it would fall into the nanny's responsibility. Please remember this note of caution: As a child grows into a curious little crawler and toddler, they will get into everything the adults around them are doing. This includes trying to play with the dishes in the dishwasher, which often has sharp knives, forks and glass - a potential tragedy in the making. This additional duty would have to be performed only when the child could be safely removed from the situation.
A-2. This falls under household duties and maintenence as long as not taken advantage of. Not to do all the time - a cooperative effort by all. ~~ Kellie Geres
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