Sick baby - should nanny work?

[Jellybean2010]

Our baby has contracted it's first virus, it's mild but infectious. Our nanny doesn't want to work in case she picks it up and passes it on to her own family. Which we think is understandable, surely you can't expect someone to work in a "dangerous environment"? But, just wondering what the general etiquette and norms are in this regard?
Thanks for any thoughts or advice

Picking up viruses is part and parcel of the job when working with babies and young children. Your nanny is taking the mick.

OMG, if our nanny decided not to come to work when one of the DCs was ill we'd never see her!

I would have assumed that most nannies would still look after poorly children. Ours does.

That said I guess it depends on exactly what your baby has and whether there are any extenuating circumstances to take into account (e.g. our nanny never had chicken pox so I would not expect her to work if/when DC get it)

I thought one of the big advantages of a nanny is that they look after your children when they are poorly surely?

Erm what does your contract say? Mine says I look after sick babies as part of the job. One of the reasons you have a nanny is so you don't need to worry about replacement childcare when your children come down with something. If she follow proper hygeine procedures then she shouldn't be at risk - being super vigilant about hand-washing etc.

The nice thing to do, however, is to pay her in full any days she has to have off sick if she gets it.

Nurses work in 'dangerous environments' all the time and childcare is just one of those jobs where you need to be prepared to pick up whatever's going round the office...

sounds like she is looking for a day off at your expense.

that is plain lazy and not acceptable.

babies and toddlers pick up lots of things all the time.

as your babys illness is mild there is no reason for your nanny not to work.

i have a lady who comes twice a week for a few hours while i attend physio to look after my dd (15 months) and she looks after my dd even if she isn't well.

i hope you are able to put her straight.

nanny is pulling a fast one - one of the biggest selling points of having a nanny over a cm/nursery is that you still get childcare if child is ill

the only thing i would say is if the nanny gets it, then she may want/need time off and this should be paid at full pay

what does your baby have and wishing a speedy recovery

pmsl @ deedar reply

if your nanny has full pay if she gets sick then she should be in work regardless of how ill your child is.

If she only has SSP then I think she be worrying about her own health and that she can't afford to get ill herself

As a nanny (with own children), I would never not turn up to work to look after an ill child - this is one of the major perks of having a nanny over any other childcare

I agree - she works, She gets ill and you make sure she has recovery time and full pay. The only exceptions to this are if serious harm might ensue - so she's pregnant (when a whole different duty of care should apply anyway) and your child has something that could ham the pregnancy. Or she or somebody in her family has severe immune system issues - in which case tbh she probably needs to reconsider her career path.

Heck i've had impetigo, scabies, measles and countless other infections because i worked with sick kids - as a nanny it's my job.

What virus?

Yep, nanny is taking the mick here. If I would go to work, I expect him/her to come to work.

Unless, as has already been said, there are extenuating circumstances like nanny is pregnant in first trimester and your DC has rubella.

Any nanny who doesn't want to look after a child when he/she contracts one of the usual and childhood illnesses (i.e. chicken pox. a cold, conjuntivitis, etc.) should reconsider his/her career path.

Childhood illnesses often have incubation periods, so if the nanny was working on Monday or last week, then they may already have been exposed to the virus.

It's part of the job. Nannies tend to be fairly immune to getting mild things - least I seem to be. Maybe due to our immune systems having a good workout on a frequent basis.

Yeap as a nanny for over 15 years I have always looked after sick children.....its just part of the job!!!

Is your Cousin the nanny? If so, maybe they feel that being a family member (well extended family) they can pick and choose when to come to work. Remind them it's a job like any other, caring for mildly sick children is part of being a nanny.

Thanks everyone, this has certainly given me food for thought!

My nanny works through all bugs, it's part of the job and as others have said, it's one of the reasons I hired a nanny, it means I don't have to work if DD just has a bit of a bug. Clearly if she was seriously ill I would take time off work. Just make sure your nanny writes down all Calpol etc so you know what has been given when

agree nanny should work

only time she may justify not working is if she was pregnant and your child had some illness which if she caught it could cause serious harm to her unborn baby..

say chickenpox, if nanny hasnt had it yet (although ofcourse would have already been exposed)

Hey, as a nanny myself and having many friends also nannies, many qualified nannies and live-out nannies don't work when the child is ill and should not be expected too, many nannies have contact with not just one but many children including young babies and as such it is not safe or appropriate for them to care for a sick child invade this is then passed to a young baby. It's important to remember that as it's there job they wouldn't be expected to care for a sick child in a school or nursery and so it's the same concept for them not to be expected to care for a vomiting child. Personally I work with the child I care for when he is not too unwell but if vomiting or seriously I'll then I refuse and my boss knows this. It's should be in most nannies contracts, most nannying agencies will tell you when you employ a nanny also that they do not expect and advise their staff not to work when the child is ill, in most contracts as this is not the nannies fault they are also expected to be paid.

I totally disagree nanny911. 100% of all the nannies I know would go into work or be willing to work with an ill child/baby. I was ill last week but came into work because basically I spend 50 hours a week with my charge and if I get something she'll get it and vice versa so we just get on with it. If she came down with a virus I would expect to get it as I'd been with her when she got it and was incubating it. If she was really ill my bosses would probably try and look after her themselves but they have work and my job is to look after the baby regardless of whether she's healthy or poorly.

this thread is 4yrs old, but my reply is still the same as was then

nanny911, this is your first post, assume you reg today with 911 as user name

regardless of that, im the same as deargirl all nannies i know will look after sick children, that is the perk/advantage of having a nanny

when i told my agency what you said about agencies telling nannies not to work if child is ill, she said what total bullshit

ZOMBIE THREAD!!!