What would be reasonable rate of pay for this nanny?

[BoffinMum]

I live in East Anglia. I've been advertising a nanny job recently, offering what local agencies recommended, for a full-time permanent post. Then one nanny who used to work for my friend got in contact, who has a child of her own, who would have to be part of this arrangement, and she told me all the nannies locally were earning £8.50-£10 an hour net regardless of whether they brought a child to work or not. And they didn't do any cooking for children, or cleaning of their rooms for that either. So £36,000 a year or so gross for a job where you have no childcare costs of your own and your employer presumably does a fair bit of running around getting things ready for you behind the scenes.

This sounds a bit so I wonder if the Michael is being extracted here, as they say? What does everyone think?

Uhoh. Why you advertising boff?

Oh and no, nursery duties/cooking definitely expected! That's a very high rate net for every nanny and the own child 'reduction' may manifest through no payrise.... I'd point out that they can take the reduction or put their child into childcare which would earn them significantly less though. It's a huge advantage.

Have you seen the thread below about employing a nanny with their own child? There are many benefits and many employers would not reduce the rate for this.

Regarding the housework, this is acceptable and quite standard for nannies: loading and unloading the dishwasher, cooking for the children, tidying up and cleaning up after yourself and the children, putting the odd load of washing on. And for that salary I'd have them running the Hoover round too.

IMO she is taking the mick with the housework, not with bringing her own child and being paid the same. As I said in a previous post, I would never dream of adapting a potential employee's salary around their childcare costs.

sounds ridiculous. she's trying it on.

It's not about just the childcare cost though, and along with the advantages there are significant drawbacks.

• shared care
• potentially running round after nanny's child (works both ways)
• potential for it to break down as nanny's child grows up due to different schools/activities
• increased wear and tear and costs
• potentially baby equipment around longer than it needs to be

It's not a share but it has many of the disadvantages associated with it that are made more palatable by a reduced price tag.

I wouldn't reduce for an existing employee but if I were recruiting from scratch I'd think very carefully about whether it balanced out for me, or whether I could get similar advantages from a share with another family at a much lower rate.

Plus if I go back to nannying I will quite happily work at practically min wage if I can take DS. No question about it.

Last one has got bored and resigned, Frak. But she has been with us two years. She wants to go back to nursery work.

Wedonot, if I shared a nanny with another family, I would probably pay 2/3 of what I pay now, because my children would get less attention. It seems odd that if it happens to be the nanny's own child that forms part of the share, suddenly I have to pay full whack while she has no childcare costs whatsoever. Anyway, I don't like this have my cake and eat it mindset, and I never hire people for anything, at home or at work, who dictate terms in this way. It always ends in tears.

Frak, that is exactly how I see it. It's not a balanced arrangement otherwise. If you weren't at the other end of the earth I would hire you immediately on a mutually favourable and pleasant basis.

PS DH phoned Eden and they were super crap now Mel has left.

Well we are coming back in July! To where I'm not entirely sure but the likelihood of it being near you is slim to none.

Well that's a bummer. What's wrong with where I live??????

Fair enough, it's obviously not for you and I can understand you being unhappy with the ridiculous lack of domestic duties.

Frak, yes it does have some disadvantages but what about the benefits? The child would be cared for in their own home but still have the advantage of mixing with another child and learning to share their own things with another child.

It may well break down as the nanny's child grows up but as a poster said in the other thread, often the nanny will be extremely loyal and flexible to an employer who lets them work in this way. With regards to baby equipment being around for a long time, this kind of arrangement works best when the children are of a similar age and if they are not I would expect the nanny to bring their own equipment and then take it away with them at the end of the day. So much depends on finding the right match of family and nanny.

I still wouldn't consider someone else's costs like childcare when employing them but we all work in different ways. I hope you find someone suitable, good luck with your search.

I can get those advantages with a share though.

Loyalty and flexibility is a plus but not enough when it comes with a £36k gross price tag. Plus costs.

I think NWOCs genuinely do not realise sometimes how much they are costing over a share and how much benefit they are getting. It's a benefit in kind, just not a taxable one. The pigheaded insistence on being 'worth' exactly the same infuriates me. It's not the same service and it's an enormous perk.

I do agree, Frak. Sometimes I think they spend their lives in a little nanny bubble completely out of touch with the rest of the world. Worth it? They have done a two year course as a teenager, practically nothing since, spend their days doing a job that all parents automatically manage to do without any qualifications whatsoever, and reckon they are up there with teachers and junior doctors in terms of professional knowledge. Er no, you are not. Sorry guys, but if people won't pay you that kind of money, you're not considered worth it. And I am not shelling out for you to sit in my house with your child with my heating on, eating my biscuits, with your feet up half the day while DC4 is at nursery or having his nap, because you are too grand to fling a duster around or unload a supermarket shop. £36k for what is actually 30 hours of actually work a week and the rest of the time twiddling your thumbs? Piss right off.

As you can tell, this stuff gets to me. Don't know why, but it does.

And I don't need my youngest to be mixing with a nanny's child. He's got two elder siblings at home and will be in nursery half days. He's probably more socially adept than the nanny's only child, tbh. We would be doing them a favour in providing her child with stimulation during the day.

I'm going to email you byw. I have a place we do not name story to share.

Agree with you and frak boffin re nwoc (and your logic) -but I would be more concerned about the way demands being put. There is nothing wrong in nanny being straight on what she wants but if it veering into a communication style that is indicative of someone who isn't likely to listen/communicate well I would have warning bells.

I wouldn't have someone with their own child for the reason that they would inevitably focus on their own child foremost. Whether they meant to or not.

Just want to make sure you know she's talking rot with the no 'cooking for children, or cleaning of their rooms' because of course that's what domestic duties are. Nannies cook, and look after children's rooms and clothes.

But in my experience people have kept paying their nannies the same after they had their own child.

What a nasty rant. You were asking for people's opinions and you got some. No-one was rude or confrontational but you feel the need to criticise nannies in an offensive tirade. Most nannies are not on 36k and their qualifications and experience will vary massively.

Some parents feel inclined to pay people who work in childcare a decent living wage as they are entrusting them with the most precious and important thing in their lives - their children. I don't think many nannies would want to work for an employer who has such little respect for the person fulfilling that role.

Pay what you like but basic respect for employees should be standard.

Nope, I don't have a great deal of respect for employees whose work ethic is rather lacking and who don't bother to engage in CPD at all because they're only interested in the job for the dosh. Shoot me if you like, but I think kids deserve a bit more, tbh.

Cool, Frak.

FWIW I am not too grand to give my desk at work the quick once over with a duster, replace the cups at the water cooler, buy things at the supermarket for office parties or empty a dustbin in the shared office kitchen. I would have assumed this is part and parcel of any modern job,

If nannies are so awful maybe you should consider another form of childcare?

Or as it's sooo easy and so well paid and you can bring your own kids along you could become a nanny and solve all your problems in one go!

BoffinMum - I think with your comment you will have upset a lot of nannies on here.

It seems that you appear to have had a bad experience with a nanny/nannies in the past and are tarring us all with the same brush. I work hard for my pay and tend to go above and beyond the call of duty quite often for my employers and I am happy to do so as they treat me well and respect me. I certainly do not have my feet up or munch on biscuits. Do you take the heating for granted at your place of work? Do you not want your children to be warm and comfortable?

As for CPD opportunities I keep up to date with current first aid, research activities and new opportunities for the children and have been on many courses to with one of my charges additional needs. I think that most nannies do all they can to increase their professional knowledge and skills so that they can provide the best care and often education for your children.

I feel for the person who does become your nanny. I would hate to work in a place where my boss obviously thought so little of me and my important role in their family life.