Coronavirus- can nanny still work?

That advice from the govt seems to suggest nannies should keep working unless they need to self-isolate.

Ah. I disagree. While it does say to go to work if you can't work from home. It also says to stay 2 metres away from others at all times. So unless nannies are working for much older and can keep the 2 metre distance then I don't think they should be working.

This is how other nannies have interpreted it anyway.

Great news, Thanks the link, it takes you back to the below guidance so confirms that it is still fine for nannies to continue to work as they can’t work from home. Brilliant. Thanks for sharing

Only go outside for food, health reasons or work (but only if you cannot work from home)

Nannies have been added to the government advice! Hallelujah.

www.gov.uk/guidance/ofsted-coronavirus-covid-19-rolling-update

@Hugglespuffed I’ve seen this quote too from their fb page, but it contradicts the gov. Website which says ‘where possible’ in regards to the 2m.

Please remember that this is from an association FOR nannies, so not entirely unbiased.
I’ve found not everything they include on their page to be entirely correct I’m afraid.

As the guidance still stands, a nanny can still legally work. Unless further clarification comes around this, or HMRC confirm nannies can be furloughed, we’ve agreed we’ll pay for April, but will then have to review the situation depending on whether I am being paid.
We love our nanny, but can’t afford to continue paying her if we can’t claim it back and I am not earning myself.

They say a lot more than just that though. The advise it to discuss your working environment with your employer, don’t just stop going to work and discuss furlough if you don’t want to work (although they admit that it’s not clear whether nannies will qualify for furlough yet). We already know all of this.

I have just this on Facebook 😬

Patchworkpatty I completely agree with you and that’s how I feel, mine and my families health shouldn’t be compromised but I also understand what eurochick is saying- that is my situation that they need their nanny to do their job effectively except I am the help. I see everybody’s opinions and have decided it’s basically down to personal relationships and thoughts with each employer and their nanny. I will have to be honest and voice my concerns and if we disagree I hope it will be amicable.

@MolyHolyGuacamole if I am not getting paid and we don't qualify for the furlough, what other choice do I have?

We will be in financial difficulties ourselves. Obviously I really don't want to do that. But equally, if it's permitted under the rules and she is refusing, it's unfair to keep paying her to do absolutely nothing when I am not able to do that?

A mortgage holiday won't make much difference. Our nanny costs are significantly more than our mortgage.

There are no easy solutions here.

Fingers crossed they get clarification soon, it seems a pretty straight forward question to me

I just got this from nanny tax

I want to Furlough my nanny, what do I need to do?
It is important to highlight that HMRC have not confirmed the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is available to employers of nannies (Domestic Employers).

We can still proceed on your behalf without the confirmed details from HMRC, however would ask that prior to us doing so you agree to the following and reply with your consent:
Download our Furlough Worker Agreement here, complete sections in yellow and send to your employee to agree to. We do not need to see the signed agreement this is for you and your nanny.

Email [email protected] detailing your payroll number and confirm you agree to the following:
You have the agreement of your employee to make them a furloughed worker
Whilst the details of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme are being finalised and published by HMRC you agree to absorb all wage costs
You are aware that if you, or your employee does not meet the criteria when published by HMRC, and are therefore not eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (reimbursement of 80% of their wages up to £2,500 per month), you will be liable for all wages paid
You can confirm that due to COVID-19 you are choosing this option to avoid redundancy
Whilst your employee is furloughed, you are aware that they remain employed by you
You agree that your employee cannot work whilst they are furloughed
As soon as we receive your consent, we will make the adjustments to your April payroll. We are unable to make any amendments to March payroll as information for March has now been submitted to HMRC.

Molly but that includes older people, if you look at the under 40s even in Italy it is below 0.4%. But that rate only includes people who are hospitalise, if you include those at home the rate is below 0.1%

Not a reason not to work if you don’t have u deleting health conditions.

@BumbleNova if by difficult decision you mean you'll have to give her her notice, do you think you will be able to find another nanny while this is still going on? Obviously this 'lockdown' is only for 3 weeks but at the end of it we could be facing even stricter measures

@Reddottys12 totally agree.
@Stuckforthefourthtime , yes, sadly it really isn’t as simple as some like to make out.

@Kittensupmycurtains please stop spouting such utter, emotive, rubbish.
Stick to the facts rather than questioning other’s motives. This thread was set up by genuinely concerned employers. The insinuation that anyone not immediately requesting their nanny remains at home, on full pay is unreasonable/a terrible employer is downright wrong.

Home work is allowed and as @eurochick rightly stated, the point of the reduced mixing/movement is NOT to stop the spread completely, it’s to reduce it somewhat so the NHS can cope.
It’s totally ridiculous to compare frontline NHS staff to a nanny entering a single household, where I might add, everyone is well and has been self isolating.

Saw this online today:

'The mortality rate is only 3%, if you were given a jar of 100 jellybeans and told that 3 were poison and would kill you, you wouldn't eat ANY of them'.

Sorry, but when I'm seeing that people my age and younger with no underlying health conditions are dying from this, I'm not willing to risk contracting it.

Some of the advice to employers on here is to:

1. Ignore gov advice.
2. Furlough your nanny before you 100% know that you can.

There are also implications that employers couldn’t care less about their employees. Awful judgement to make when you have zero insight into their beliefs, their relationship with their employees and their financial situations AND zero insight into the employee themselves.

This was an informative and pleasant thread with interesting differing view points on both sides but now it’s become about employer bashing.

Should add to the above... Of course health comes first, and if your nanny needs to take public transport, has their own family etc, those are all also factors to consider - and ultimately if an employee isn't happy to come in, as it is hard to minimise risk, then we should furlough where possible. It's just also important to consider that a furlough isn't a simple pause that can easily be fixed in a few months.

People on here keep saying that nannies will be furloughed on 80% salary. This is only up to a cap of £2500, gross and not net (though NI and minimum pension is on top). For many full time nannies this will be below their current earnings - and for many parents, who will not be able to work themselves if the nanny is not working, it will be hard to keep paying all the extra given that this is likely to be an extended situation, even the furlough amount is tricky when it has to be paid upfront with fingers crossed that the govt will repay it later.

We've continued to pay our cleaner though she is not coming, and asked our nanny to stay home for the initial 3 week lockdown while we pay her 100%, but realistically with 4dcs it's utterly impossible for me to keep working if she chooses not to return afterwards, so all we can do then will be to pay her the 80% furlough rate through to May, while I'm not being paid at all, and hope that the govt repays it and that I still have a job to go back to so I can re-employ her afterwards - far from guaranteed, as our industry is badly hit and they'll be looking to made redundancies asap, and those who were home will be first to go. With a deep recession coming, that will be two jobs gone.

It's not as straightforward as some of the #stayathome crew on here like to make out.

Agreed @eurochick and @Pidgythe2nd.

The agitated moral frothing that this has attracted from some posters is bizarre.

Our nanny is currently at home on full pay but I think I have come down with COVID 19 and I'm almost certain my DS has already had it. Once we have done our full 14 day isolation I will be asking her to come back. No risk of her catching it and no risk of her infecting us. She drives 2 mins to us and lives alone. I can't see that is increasing anyone's risk.

Frankly my DH and I are on our knees juggling full time jobs and childcare. If I start needing to take unpaid leave we can't afford to pay her. So she comes back or we have to make difficult decisions.

it in fact states people should continue to work, the 2m distance is only ‘where possible’.
Plenty of people are still being asked to work... why is nannying any different? I’d say the risk is far smaller than many other jobs!

Why is nannying any different ?

1. Because Nanny comes in and out of my HOME. !
2. Because it is our duty as human beings to do e wry thing in our power to stop this spread .
3. To keep 2 metres distant 'where possible' refers to people doing essential work ! Of course you can't keep 2m distant as a nurse/doctor/carer and they are ALL provided with PPE . Are you providing gloves, mask and apron for your Nanny. ?
4. Do you really believe that despite many construction sites closing down because of the inability to either keep 2m apart .. you as an employer can't also see that you should be making that decision too ? Construction sites haven't been 'told' to shut down. Many have made the correct moral judgment to do so.

My staff are furloughed . Not on advice of any 'website' but through our accounts speaking to both HMRC and ACAS.
The advice and confirmation is out there if people want to bother to ask.

It's obvious that some of you do not think your staff deserve this duty of care and will try and justify having someone risk their health and possibly life to look after your children. When you should be doing it.

I am leaving this thread now

The point of the lockdown isn't to stop the spread. It's to slow it, so the nhs can cope. Without a vaccine or cure there is no way out of this except for most of the population being exposed to this virus, while the most vulnerable are shielded. Most of us will get it at some point, hopefully mildly. Just not all at once.

It’s such a small risk to anyone well, no underpaying health conditions s and below 40.
I have a higher chance of dying of cancer or getting hit by a car. As long as the two households are not mixing/on public transport etc.

But you right, we should self isolate in case we get hit by a car

Agreed Pidgey.

I'm a lawyer. I've actually read the legislation and the accompanying official guidance. The misinformation and accuracies on this thread and elsewhere are frustrating.

Eurochick Ok I accept that the rules do not say essential work.. they say ;
Work from home where possible.

However the entire point of this lockdown is to stop the spread and people having to go to work in non essential businesses because the employer is too money driven to put the health and well being of its workers first .. is not an excuse for me to treat my employees with an equal lack of care for their health and well-being.

I can't actually believe the people are actually questioning this.. If you have domestic staff who come in and out of your home - why on earth would you WANT them in your house ? Do you know where they have put their hands in the last day ? Do you know who they have met ? Where they have been after they left your house? It's unbelievable that anyone would choose to keep doing this. There are choices that you can make. Yes you might earn less, or have much reduced income for a while but there are schemes in place to mitigate this to make it easier to do the right thing.

3 month mortgage holiday.
ClIm from the self employed fund announced last week.
If you are employed through your own company , furlough yourself.
Live off savings for a while whilst taking a mortgage holiday.

Do you all (who want to keep making your nanny come to work) really value your money making abilities /house/possessions/things above your families health. ? .. and your employees health. ?

How would you manage if your nanny got ill ?