How much au pair 'housework' is reasonable?

[katieks]

Hi, we have an au pair looking after kids (age 4 and 5). They help for 40 min before school to get them ready then picks up from school at 3.15 until we get home and take over between 6-6.30. Pocket money is £80.

How much of helping around the house do you think is reasonable i.e. unpacking dishwasher, tidying kids rooms, washing up non-dishwasher items, odd hoover of livings areas? Currently not doing any and feel I'm getting a bit resentful as was expected from initial agreement, yet they only started a month ago, so don't want to cause friction/upset.

So if that's a complete list of the aupair childcare (ie no evenings or weekends) that is 20 hours a week.

I don't think it would be unreasonable for that to increase to 25 hours so 5 hours of light housework isn't a big ask.

If you do ask for more on evenings weekends and school holidays it would be different though.

I always see these as two different sets of jobs hoovering and tidying kids rooms part of au pairs role, mine does 3 hours per week and some ironing.
Washing up and emptying the dishwasher jobs that we all do as we live in the house. I often wash up and equally which ever one of us is around when the dishwasher finishes empties it ( often me). Equally the AP put some washing on for herself last night so I hung it out for her this morning.

No weekend role, no school holidays (and if there was a need, our agreement means it has to be paid more and mutually agreed), babysitting maybe once/month weeknight, if that.

Dishwasher is unpacked by us too on weekends/when we're around, but generally goes on in morning after breakfast dishes cleared away. It's demoralising to find it still unpacked when get home at night, plus au pair's dirty oven tray from her cooked lunch...

Think will bring it up as sounds as if not expecting too much.

I wouldn't think much tbh, if she's doing an hr am, plus 3 and a bit afternoon that's already 22 hrs a week. Presumably she has to start earlier than 3.15 as has to actually get to school by then so probably leaves 2.45 to school, so that's 23-24 hrs a week.

So no I wouldn't add any chores on top. I would get her to tidy up after herself though

Fortunately we live 5 min walk from school

If she's doing 20 hours of childcare, I'd say an hour a day of house stuff is reasonable.

I would specify exactly what you want because I think sometimes the problem lies with vague instructions.

I would do a timetable e.g.

Monday

8am-9am - get DC ready and take to school
9am-10am - empty dishwasher and tidy and hoover DC's bedroom.
3pm-5pm - pick DC up and entertain
5pm-6pm - dinner for DC
6pm-6:30pm - clear up from dinner (wipe table, stack dishwasher, wash-up)

The 9am-10am slot can be different each day so e.g.

Monday - dishwasher and DC's room
Tuesday - dishwasher and hoover living areas
Wednesday - dishwasher and change DC beds and put sheets in the machine (and then on 3pm-5pm put 'hang sheets up' or 'put sheets in drier')
Thursday - dishwasher and put online shop away
Friday - dishwasher and.....something else that needs doing.

If the children are very good at entertaining themselves I would add a small task into the 3pm-5pm slot as well. Maybe hanging up some washing/putting dry washing away/putting a load on for you to hang later etc.

I think it does depend on how much input your children are needing after school. What's your feel for that?

You could actually give everyone jobs in one sweep.

So daily

Au pair -
unload and reload dishwasher once
Wash and dry one load of washing
Hoover/mop living areas non/wed/fri
Tidy toys away with kids daily
Strip and wash beds Tuesday/Thursday
Make cooked brunch Saturday morning

Your children's daily jobs
Make beds/open curtains/put washing in washing bin
Lay table daily

Yours/husbands jobs
Cook
Clean loos/bathrooms
Hoover bedrooms weekly
Recycling
Food shopping
Work!

I think an hour a day is fine.

Timetable a good idea, will look into that.

Kids aren't too demanding. Quite happy playing with toys, colouring in, looking through books. One of them is at various after-school clubs 3 days out of 5 anyway.

I timetable our au pairs housework, our does kids rooms and beds, the kitchen once a week, dishwasher, kids washing (with strict instructions not to do ours!), hovers and cleans playroom.

1 hrs a day is fine.

I always used to include a 4 hour stretch once a week for cleaning and other than that then general washing / ironing and putting away of kids clothes, making their beds & tidying their rooms plus emptying dishwasher