Reduction in nanny's hourly rate if she brings her own child

[happyjustobeme]

Our lovely nanny is pregnant. She has been with us for nearly ethree years, and we have said that we would consider her brinmg her own child if she decides

Posted too soon, sorry

We have said that we would consider her bringing her own child, should she decide that she would like to return to work after maternity leave. We really like her and would like to keep her.

She currently earns £11-20 per hour gross. She looks after DS1 who is in year 1 and DS2 who is one yo. How much of a reduction do you think we should ask her to take?

why would you reduce her hourly rate, i dont understand

This seems a debated issue on here, if I had a nanny I'd want to pay less if she is caring for her own child/ren while also caring for mine but a lot, nannies I imagine, think the pay should be the same. It gets even more complex when thinking about food and other resources as the child grows.

Speaking as a nanny who returned to work after maternity leave with baby, i would be more than a little miffed in having a reduction in pay esp if i was still doing the same job!!

I wouldn't reduce her hourly rate if she is still expected to do the same jobs, although maybe discuss a payment for her child's food ect or ask her to bring her own for her child.

It becomes shared care, so it's not the same job... there is another child involved, a child who in theory could be cared for by someone else. So a reduction seems reasonable to me (being a childless nanny) but if I were a nanny with my own child would I feel the same? Not sure if I would.

Employers do not need to accept a nanny back with their own child, it is a change to the job. So in exchange for being able to bring their child to work, what changes do they expect?

I would expect a reduction as it is effectively a nanny share-I.e. the nanny is sharing her time with an extra child.

It's like a nanny share, except the family you are sharing with is the nanny's own family. Of course there shld be a reduction. The nanny must pay toward the share.

I interviewed a few nannies with babies, they generally asked for about 30-40% less than the nannies who weren't proposing to bring their own children.

I'm not sure on whether or not you should or shouldn't and I'm sure others will be much more knowledgeable but... maybe if you checked the hourly rate of local childminders and reduced your nanny's wage by a percentage of that? Possibly a third of the childminders rate as there will be 3 children. Not sure but I do agree that the job has changed to shared care.

I think it sounds perfectly reasonable to expect a reduction but I'd actually be more concerned about how the presence of a baby would affect what the nanny is able to do with your children i.e swimming / after school activities .

In general nannies going back to a job don't seem to have their salary reduced. Nannies looking for a new job with their own child coming too get 60-80% of what they would otherwise.

If you're in the habit of giving pay rises you can always freeze pay because she'll be bringing her own child but if you reduce it you risk her taking longer off work because it's less financially attractive for her to come back.

The level of care isn't the same when there's another child, particularly a baby, involved. A good nanny will recognise that. They may not, however, make the leap that parents pay a premium not only for care at home but also the 1-1 attention that they'll no longer get. IMO it's fair that said premium aka higher pay for the nanny be affected.

I would expect to have money reduced - it then becomes a nanny share in a way and you aren't getting full attention on your children all the time which is what you pay for. Also limits what you can ask her to do - eg maybe can't take them swimming as then over the numbers etc.

A baby needs more care than an older child, I think a reduction of 33% would be acceptable.

Yes THe nanny should get a salary drop as effectively she is getting free Childcare - I think about a 20% drop is fair

No other job would allow a mum to bring their baby to work and nwoc should reliese it is a privilege not a right

And obv the employers wouldn't be getting 100% of the attention of their nanny anymore so does turn into a kinda nanny share

Of course it is fair to ask the nanny to take a paycut. I can't believe that anyone thinks it would be unreasonable.

When thinking about how much, I think it depends on whether you want a nanny-share arrangement or a NWOC arrangement.

In a nanny-share things must be split equally. The nanny's child would be of equal importance to your children. If the nanny wanted to do something with her baby or take her baby to a doctor's appointment, for example, you will have to accept your children going as well, in the same way the nanny would have to take her child to an activity your children want to do. I think you would have to expect a reduction in other jobs e.g. laundry etc as well. In this case I would reduce her wage by 33%. It's a share, you have two children 66%, she has one so she pays 33%.

In a NWOC arrangement, the nanny would put your children first and her baby would just 'come along'. She wouldn't be able to dictate what activities she wants her baby to do, she would carry on with your children's routines, activities etc, her child just fits in. She would be expected to do the same job as before. In this case I would reduce it by 10-15%.

All the nannies I know who bring their DC to work have a NWOC set-up i.e. their child fits in with the other child's needs.

When I went back to work with my baby 11 years ago. She just came along with the other 3. I did have mornings in between drops off's to go to a local to work group. I didn't loose any money going back but I also didn't get any more pay rises. They wanted to keep me as their younger 2 only had a year until school. They also new I already new their children and would put them first. I also new it would work as I agreed with the way the parented their children. It worked really well. The boys got to have a part time sibling, my dd got to be 4th and wait her turn for me. It was a 2 day a week job so I had the best of both. Going back would not of worked with my other job. I also decided that I didn't want to look for another nanny job as I did'nt want to put my dd through a not very nice job.

Always took my children to work and never took a pay cut . However my children did all their classes and things on my days off. They had to fit in with the job.

Nannies wages vary a lot anyway the job I went back to with my baby they didn't want me to leave so no they didn't cut wages. The next job they wanted someone with child. Got slightly tricky when I had number two but I have never been out of work and I did have my mum up the road to have mine if needed.

Thanks for the replies. its great to see a mix of replies from nannies and nanny employers. I think the overall view is that the nanny should expect a reduction in salary. I agree. I'm not sure how this will go down with our nanny though - I very much get the impression that a friend of hers who had a baby and then returned to her nanny job with her child has not had to take a reduction, and she might see that as the norm. Posters are suggesting anything from no reduction to a reduction of up to 40%.

I think (although I'm not sure) that our nanny is paid towards the top end of nanny salaries anyway (£11.20/hour gross outside London but within the M25), not that I begrudge paying it, as she is very good. But I would not be happy paying that rate when its not sole care. We always give just less than a week's wage as an annual bonus, and generous Christmas and birthday presents.

Outraged Thanks for separating out your view on the nany share role and the NWOC role, and the reduction that you think goes with each. I hadn't made any distinction in my mind between the two.

Blondes I always respect your opinion - what do you think about the differences between a NWOC and a nanny-share, and do you think the roles are that distinct in practice?

I have also started a thread asking NWOC and employers of NWOC for their expereinces.

I was a nanny for 3 years before I had my baby and took him with me.
I did not take a pay cut.
Because:
My boss didn't want anything to change!
My situation is nothing like a nanny share!!!
Because:

• I get no say in start and finish times ( in a nanny share I would) my baby has to 'slot in' with my job.
• I get no say in activities. ( In a nanny share i would) We continue to do all the classes and activities we've always done.
• I can't take my baby to baby classes. I can't say 'ohh I'd like to take baby here or do xyz.' My baby has to tag along to the things my mb's children do.
• I'd love my baby to have his 2 hour nap at home in a cot. I can't because we're busy with activities.

-I certainly don't get any nursery duties done at my house!! (in a nanny share you'd possibly split time between houses)

• I'm not allowed to bring my baby if he's ill ( grandparents help) in a nanny share I would.

Basically my baby comes second. He fits in with the job. I accept that. That's the price I pay to have my baby with me full time.

Op - if your situation will be like mine and you want your children's routine and likes/dislikes to come first and be unchanged, I think your nanny should be paid the same. Also if your nanny is fab, and believe me a good nanny that stays with a family for years is worth their weight in gold! Then maybe it's worth paying her the same to keep her.
Good luck x

I would keep it the same tbh.

I also don't agree it's a nanny share, a nanny share would equally split attention between the two children. A nanny will always be more focused on their charge than own child IMO. As they feel they are paid for that child, therefore the focus will be on them with their own child fitting in.
If their own child likes swimming, but their charge prefers dancing, then it's likely they will both go dancing for example.
They are of course closer etc to own child but in working hours work is put ahead.

I would say the current pay is average tbh, central london would be more like £12-13.50 an hr gross, so £11.20 just outside sounds ok but not top end

Can't speak to the money but I would certainly think very carefully about the logistics of all of this and have some detailed discussions as to how it will all work in your particular case. What happens if her baby is ill? What if one of yours is ill? Who pays for the extra equipment needed and food for the baby? What about appointments for the baby such as jabs if these can't be done out of working hours? Are there any things that can't be done anymore because of an extra child eg swimming or certain classes that your one year old (who presumably will be 2 then) where it wouldn't be suitable for the baby to go? What about driving (if she does), will that still work? If there are extra charges to go into a class, who pays for the baby? Who pays if her child damages things in your home?

None of this is insurmountable and many people have a NWOC working very well but worth working through all the issues carefully so everyone is on the same page.

agree not a nannyshare but still think the nanny should have a lower/less wage if take their own child as effectively they are not giving 100% of their care and attention to the employers children

for those of you who went back to work and stayed on the same money, you are very lucky - but i wouldnt expect it

as i said, no other job would allow you to take your child to work, and if you did have to pay for childcare you are likely to lose 50/75% of your salary (like a typical mb) so taking a paycut of 20%ish seems fair

but in the end its up to the nanny and employer

I'd expect a wage cut too. I guess there are nannies out there who are lucky to still get full wages (like those nannies who get to sit and watch telly while kids are at school instead of doing jobs around the house)
But for a nanny to pay childcare costs while she goes to work, well that's going to work out as a hige chunk of her wages so a small deduction like blondeshavemorefun suggested should be perfectly acceptable to your nanny.

I did not cut pay but have not given her pay rises. If I was employing a new nanny bringing her own child I would expect to pay a little less from the outset. I have to say it all worked really well when nanny's baby was a toddler but struggling much more now he is a toddler as she needs to keep a constant eye on him (writing on the wall etc which my DC never did). Change in my job means we need fewer hours which I don't think will work for her so will probably end up making her redundant. I have to say that although we will all miss her and her DS, in some ways I am relieved.

Thanks for all of the replies. There are lots of things for us to consider, and pay is only one of those things (I have started another thread on this forum asking nannies with their own child and employers of nannies who bring their own child to work to give me their input on other areas that I have identified). Please feel free to add to that too if you'd like as I am realy keen to get a broad range fo opinion.

I have only just found out that our nanny is pregnant - she hasn't yet started her maternity leave. So there is time for us to consider everything. Our priority is finding cover for her maternity period and we'll go from there.

I am very grateful for your views. I think I've come down on thinking that a pay cut of around 20% is appropriate. We have always given an annual rise of 3-point-something per cent, so I don't think I could go along with not reducing wages, but not giving pay rises as that isn't what i think is enough of a reduction to reflect the changes that there would inevitably be in caring for our 6yo and nearly 2 yo.