Extra duties for nanny, what is reasonable?

[Knackeredmother]

My ds is sick with many, many hospital admissions. We aren't coping at all, not eating properly, house a state etc.
Thread here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/1322320-To-want-our-family-and-friends-to-help-us
This is primary reason we have a nanny. We are very happy with how she cares for the children however we are at the point where unless we get extra help around the house one of us will need to give up work (and thus she will be jobless).
So is it reasonable to ask.....,
She does children's ironing when dd at school and son asleep
Tidy kids rooms
Hang out washing
Empty and fill dishwasher (including any dishes made by us that are there)
Hoover living room floor (this needs doing daily and I find myself doing it at midnight if they have been in all day)
Pick up medications/post letters etc
Cook extra meals to freeze for when we are in hospital

The first 2 are actually already in her contract but don't get done.
As I said we are at the point of one of us leaving work as our life is unmanageable at the moment. The above requests would prevent this.
She is on nearly £10 p.h gross in the midlands. We are never, ever late home and flexible employers (I hope).
So is this reasonable or am I likely to offend?

so your nanny does look after your sick child you do

sorry about that

yes my all means replaced your nanny but make sure you tell the new one that cleaning is what you need not child care.
You are asking a nanny to do a cleaners job.
i think you need to rethink what you need.

Longjane - you are clearly not reading what the OP is writing.

longjane - you need to reread the op. KM is really not asking for anything over and above what a nanny would normally do - even the hoovering of the lounge, if nanny has been using it with the children and they've left a mess from their shoes/arts & crafts etc then she should stick the hoover round.

Chipping got it spot on when she said there were 2 types of nannies - those that care and those that work for the money and work to rule. KM's nanny isn't even working to rule as she is not doing the children's ironing or tidying their rooms and it is in her contract.

Employing a nanny should make your life run smoothly, not make things more difficult - especially when you are having a stressful time with a sick child.

KnackeredMother - I hope now that you've had a word with your nanny that she pulls her finger out, it does sound like she may do. Maybe she is just young and naive and didn't realise you were struggling, or maybe to her it looked like you were coping - particularly as she came into the job without knowing what your life ran like before your son was ill.

I think nbee you are reading the posts wrong
the nanny has own school age children so wont be that young

what do your kids do when you are doing the cleaning
or ironing
I dont iron when any children are around ever
but if the parents are looking after the children surely the parents should be telling the nanny what they want them to do instead.

knackeredmother employed her nanny so her son did not go to nursery not to do the cleaning.
but she or dh looks after son if he is sick
so what should nanny do then oh yes the cleaning

would like this job be employed to do look after the child but find out the parents are doing that and they want you to clean.

she really needs to think what she need with the help

ps i feel really sorry for the dog
kept out of the way
does not even get let for wee let alone a walk
glad the nanny is not expected to look after him
wonder who does .....

longjane, you really are not doing yourself any favours. You appear to be talking rubbish, and if (it's a big 'if') you do have a valid point, it is being very well-disguised under a deluge of barely legible trite. You have not read the OPs posts clearly because if you had, you would know that the nanny has time on her own when the kids are out of the house, for example.

And your attack now of OP's treatment now of poor little doggy is frankly ludicrous. Even if the dog were a 12month old puppy (which I am, sure it isn't) if I had a child in hospital I wouldn't give a stuff if the wasn't out and about 24/7. The mum clearly does give a stuff and has talked about trying to organise for it to be walked and so on.

I really would give up on this thread because every post you make is displaying maximum ignorance and minimum empathy. Not a good combo.

longjane - I think you are reading the posts wrong - op has a dd as well as a ds. DD is at school, but there will still be time before and after school that she will need care. Km has stated that the children's ironing is to be done when ds is asleep (and presumably dd at school)

Most nanny jobs will include nursery duties (children's washing, ironing, tidying and hoovering their bedrooms and play areas, fresh cooking and batch cooking) There will be very few jobs out there where the nanny only cares for and plays with the children.

Anyway, I am not going to post to you about this anymore. Read other peoples replies too - no-one has agreed with your heartless rants.

Im a nanny myself, looking after 4 children, i think all the above you mentioned are totally reasonable things to ask of her, it makes me wonder why shes not doing them already, i get all the children involved in the tidying, cooking etc, she needs to learn to manage her time more efficently

The OPs nanny does sound rather cold as the child is ill and she doesn't want to help out a little above and beyond the call of duty indeed she isn't even doing basic nursery duties. However general housework is not part of a nannies duties unless it was created by the children during the nannies working hours. I have emptied dishwashers hung out washing left in the machine by a busy mum and am not precious about doing the odd extra thing to help.

Although I don't agree with her in this instance; Perhaps longjane had been taken advantage of in the past. In one of my early nanny jobs I worked for a woman who mistook the title nanny for "subservient victorian housemaid" I soon put her rightand gave in my notice! Since then I have had many lovely employers and provided they do not take advantage I will do the odd extra thing for them.

even if this nanny wants to seperate her own family time from work she could show more sympathy and understanding. I hope your child gets better soon and maybe you need to rethink the type of nanny/childcare you need. I once took on a temporary job as an extra pair of hands to help a mother who was poorly herself and helped out in all sorts of ways that I wouldn't strictly expect to do as a nanny.