To think it's illegal to pay a nanny a set salary rather than rate per hour?

[DettolElephant]

I've heard this is the case but yet to find anything to support the claim. I've been offered a salaried position but I would be earning well under my usual fee p/h. All of the nannies I know including myself charge a rate per hour & any overtime we get on top. Can anyone clarify this please?

There are some jobs where it's worth working unpaid overtime, e.g. - if you are trying to get a promotion, if your employer is flexible in return and lets you work fewer hours if you complete a task early - but those situations don't really apply to nannying.

You are making a commitment to care for children for a particular period of time, and if work more you should be paid more.

@AbbyHammond - I thought that was the case, but something in the phrasing of the OP implied being able to pick and choose hours (which I didn't think was usual for a nanny) which could pass the HMRC test. I may have read too much into her posts.

For most roles I'd say that's fine, but as a nanny I'd be nervous of this. So many of the nannies we've interviewed have been looking for new jobs because of current/previous employers taking the piss about coming back late, or requiring an early start and promising an early finish that never really happens.

We'd consider ourselves responsible employers and pay a total salary, but hours are agreed in a contract and any extra is paid as overtime (though usually cash, as it's a paid to have to get in touch with the payroll company for the sake of an hour's delay due to a cancelled tube)

My nanny has a salary - it is easier than per hour as it is a fixed amount per good good for budgeting for both of us. She works her employed hours - overtime would be paid extra as per contract but we dont generally need in - in fact she tends to leave a few minutes early as I allow for delays / handover time. If the wage is not what you need then you need to keep looking.

It's only illegal if it works out to under the minimum wage.

Lots of jobs do unpaid overtime, and a salary regardless of hours is quite common. It may not be for nannies though.

Paying X amount for hours up to X each week sounds reasonable.