To be appalled by this job advert?

[hardboiledpossum]

www.gumtree.com/p/jobs/part-time-assistant-nanny-4-hours-per-day/100842117

The job is offering a salary of £170 every 2 weeks for 20 hours work. This works out as £4.25 an hour, which is under minimum wage. Not only that but the two week trial is UNPAID. Surely that isn't legal?

I have increasingly been seeing jobs advertised at less than £5 per hour. Surely this is exploitation?

Omg ebb and they go away overnight! With no set hours just 'as needed'. Would prefer a mature responsible person. Which is unfortunate as a mature responsible person wouldn't touch it with a barge pole!

Does anyone remember that program about au pairs 10 years ago? There was an awful au pair who abandoned some children at a bus stop. But some dreadful families as well.

I'm not wrong though, am I? They are actually illegally advertising for a slave?

I'vs just sent them a message saying their ad is a disgrace.

I think it should be reported to Trading Standards, or whatever the authority would be. I suspect there is something deeply dodgy afoot.

Can't they claim them to be apprenticements or something similar. don't have time to google but a couple of months ago when I first started looking for work, I turned down a couple of £2.40ish an hour jobs/apprentice ships/ments whatever the ending is.

I just emailed the £400/month woman and she replied asking what my problem is and that 'other' people are advertising jobs at £70/week.

Obviously if 'other' people are doing it it must be ok!

Yeah, stop being Ghandi. Astonishing isn't it?

I bet the others at least get their own bedroom!

Gumtree is full of jobs advertising jobs under the minimum wage and all sort of other things breaching employment law. I once saw one advertising especially for a Polish women!

I am really shocked by these ads. However, I just looked up a nanny website and found this:

"In some circumstances, where they "live as part of the family and share in leisure activities with the family", for example eating with the family at mealtimes, residential nannies are not covered by the minimum wage regulations."

So that basically gives recourse to these 'employers' to pay whatever they like?! This seems a bit of a grey area to me. I mean, the 'leisure activities' are hardly going to be, erm, leisurely because you're looking after children. Same goes for mealtimes, sleeping - all done alongside the children. It's not a lifestyle, it's a job!

LeBof,

Yes it would seem to be. Though I am not sure anyone would entrust their children to such a shoddy looking enterprise.

Maybe Ofsted would be interested.

Yes live in nannies are exempt from NMW as food and accomodation are taken into consideration. It does seem that some employers take this as meaning they can pay very little for quite a lot of work. On the other hand, if they state the hours, conditions and pay and people apply and accept those terms then so be it! more fool them!

"Yes live in nannies are exempt from NMW as food and accomodation are taken into consideration"

If the food was lobster and caviar eaten off silver plates and the accommodation was the west wing of Buckingham Palace it would be ok. But it's bunking up with a small baby and probably living on fish fingers. Feel very sorry for anyone this desperate :(

I know quite a few people who have au pairs and thinks it's fine to pay them very little as long as they allow them one day off a week for 'cultural experiences' and use of their second hand small car for ferrying their children around in because the car is for the au pair you understand, not for the childrens transport