to think teenagers should be cheaper than qualified people?

[Topofthepopicles]

We regularly use an agency for babysitting and have a level 3 qualified registered childminder who is in her 50s babysit for us.
She is fab, but for times when we are (literally) down the road we’d love to have a cheaper babysitter in their teens. Our children have never woken up in their sleep and are in bed by the time we go out. We could literally be home in 5minutes.

Loads of people advertising their teenager sons and dds are available for babysitting on Facebook (obviously would check them out first) but AIBU to think teens these days expect a lot!
So have 3 I have casually enquired about have want more or the same as the agency rate I pay for our qualified, experienced babysitter!

I am not that old and babysat a lot in my teens - I never expected the (equivalent) rate these teens expect.

Are people going to book them? Are they out of touch or is it me who is BU?

(For record even though this is AIBU I am not in a fury and will just carry on using our babysitter - so no drama 😁)

@ThisIsStartingToBoreMe

When you pay for a babysitter you are really paying them for working anti-social hours and not being able to go out on a Saturday night like everyone else.

Regardless of whether they have a childcare qualification, they are still giving up their Saturday night, so yes, I'd say it was fair.

There’s also the element of paying them for being in a hand for what might happen.

Same reason fire fighters get paid even if they stay in the station for the whole shift. Or an person on call gets paid even if they don’t get called out.

😂😂😂 pisstakers. When I was a teenager you got a tenner or 20 quid for the whole evening.

I don't think it's bizarre. It's not meant to be a universal statement obviously. Just a hypothesis based on my observations of the market round here. Obviously you can get work as a babysitter many ways but it's a lot easier if your parents say "oh my older daughter babysits" to a crew of people they know with the money to pay and, having agreed, they're less likely to haggle over the price than they would if it was a more arms' length transaction. I am not saying this in a snarky way, just thinking about who I have paid to babysit in the past - they're generally childrens of colleagues and friends even though I know I could find people willing to do it cheaper if I shopped around. Equally, though, I've often decided not to use a babysitter and find another way around the issue (babysitting circle, family help or whatever) or I've paid a more qualified sitter, rather than employ a teen I don't know. Not saying I resent any of the above - I just don't think it's a straightforward free market economy. There are other factors at play which will influence rates.

@Topofthepopicles

Sorry for drip feed.

We pay £15 per hour via an agency to childminder babysitter (which take a cut so it becomes £12 per hour plus we pay an annual fee). She has always been very happy to do more hours for us and makes positive comments. So never got the impression she feels under paid.

Teens are asking for £15/hour direct via Facebook advertising (from their mums) which is effectively more than the childminder.

I think this is overpriced given they are 16/17 years old.

I bet they aren't paying tax, insurance, NI, pension contributions, first aid courses, professional memberships and whatever else out of that either, like I said, pisstakers.

It's been a few years since we used a babysitter (c2012-2015) but when we lived in London the nursery staff charged £8ph for evening babysitting, and friends' teenagers were usually about £5ph or £20 for an evening.

But with teen babysitters we provided snacks (sometimes dinner in the form of a frozen pizza!) and often needed to drive them home.

why do you think you are entitled to pay someone for next to nothing because you fancy going out? It doesn't matter what YOU can afford (not you as a person) it's about what people should be paid!

I don’t think I’m entitled to anything. I’ve literally just said I rarely go out

The price of drinks doesn't stop pubs from being full either

Honestly I think you’re living in cloud cuckoo land. That’s literally the reason pubs have been closing in their droves for donkeys years. People walk to the supermarket, buy their booze abd get pissed at home.

@FreeBritnee

The price of drinks doesn't stop pubs from being full either

Honestly I think you’re living in cloud cuckoo land. That’s literally the reason pubs have been closing in their droves for donkeys years. People walk to the supermarket, buy their booze abd get pissed at home.

true before the pandemic, but not at the moment, pubs are packed!

Because there’s about three still standing 🤣

Anyway I’m delighted to hear that the market rate is so high. When my kids become teenagers I’ll be telling them to find out the rate, undercut all the other greedy little sods and make an absolute fortune every weekend 🤑