Coronavirus- can nanny still work?

[ChloeR81]

Hi, hope I’m not duplicating a thread but I couldn’t find one.

I have a lovely nanny who comes 2 days a week. Where do we stand regarding isolation etc? Can she refuse to come to work when we’re all well? At what point would she be able to not come to work, e.g. what level of official lockdown etc.

Want to be totally fair to her and follow the rules, but equally if I don’t have childcare I can’t work and earn money to pay her. Thanks, it’s so difficult to navigate

Sorry my language isn’t good above. I meant it’s ‘not backtracking’

Why do you think someone would qualify because they just don’t want to work?

This is what worries me.
A nanny can legally work and in our case we do want our nanny to work, but have agreed short term she won’t come in.
She was already mentioning furlough very early on, and I’m certain she thinks we’ll be Doing this indefinitely.
We’ll review on day 21and if she doesn’t come back furlough will be stopped as I am increasingly thinking I’ll get a temporary nanny.

I think this thread shows the confusion currently. It’s clear you can furlough when yourself have been impacted, I think you haven’t been financially impacted we move into grey territory.

Personally I don’t want to see furlough abused. My older son is at private school, his fees have stayed the same for next term but I know they have furloughed staff members. Why should the school qualify for furlough if their income hasn’t changed?

Why are certain firms still paying dividends to shareholders and qualifying for furlough, they should not pay dividends and not furlough staff

Sorry, should say our nanny doesn’t want to come in, so we begrudgingly agreed she wouldn’t come in. I’ve explained that the risks are low to all involved, and we still need her/role is not redundant.
I wasn’t 100% clear on the guidelines and understand she is worried, so wasn’t going to force her to come using pay (even though I think we legally could have). We agreed to pay her for April even if furlough was confirmed definitely not to apply for nannies.
This lady is part of our family, I trust her with my babies, so our relationship is key, but sadly, as said above, she is replaceable.

@Bringonspring I agree I believe the furlough scheme is being misused. It was never designed to simply pay people “free” money because they don’t want to work. Its aimed at saving jobs where people would otherwise have no work and so be made redundant. That’s so in some nanny scenarios but not all.

Yes agree it isn’t there for all non key workers, who can’t work from home, and don’t work in isolation, to get paid to not work when their job is still there.

I wouldn’t feel comfortable taking money from the government to furlough my nanny now.

Nannies should not be working unless one or both parents are key workers. If they do work , how can you abide by the recommendation of social distancing. It would be impossible . When your nanny travels from home to work she is likely to come into contact with other people, she / he will therefore be putting your family at risk, adding to that all other childcare ,schools, nursery settings have closed for all children except key worker families , why would nannies be exempt. The rules are you are not allowed to visit family or friends so only your family should be in your home.

A nanny can legally work if you or a partner are keyworkers. That’s it. If neither of you aren’t then she should not be working.

@Wendy555 what if a nanny for keyworkers doesn't want to work? What then would be a fair and reasonable approach?

And another one!

@Wendy555 read the thread and stop spouting incorrect information. It’s totally misleading.

Pidgythe2nd Please highlight where my information is incorrect...? what l am finding is that as soon as individuals are inconvenienced they are happy to manipulate the rules to suit their needs.

@wendy more employer bashing! Why don't we just not employ anyone, ever? Would that be preferable? I'm a key worker but my nanny does not want to work, and is not working, What would you recommend? Genuinely, what's your view on that?

Pidgythe2nd

You have just regurgitated exactly what l have said. Please re read what l have written before accusing me of “sprouting” incorrect info.

I would recommend that you except her desire not to work and together decide on weather or not she/ he will be paid .

@Wendy555 Thats what we have done. I trust you accept therefore that not ALL nanny employers are seeking to bend the rules (as you put it) as soon as we are inconvenienced? And by inconvenienced you realise you mean being unable to work, whcih work earns the money to pay the nanny salary too. In the circumstance I now find myself, being unable to work without childcare, what do you think would be fair to pay my nanny, if anything?

Interesting @Wendy555. As you are advising on the law, presumably you are a solicitor or barrister?

And this is very naive. "Do you really think HMRC is going to be chasing after working parents/individuals who are nanny employers, rather than businesses with many employees on furlough?"
HMRC will always go after easy pickings. Nanny employers, many of whom are professionals with professional registrations to maintain and so need to be scrupulously honest in their financial dealing are easy pickings.

I agree that nannies (obviously) have the choice not to work.
I also think that nannies who choose not to work (those who are not in a vulnerable group or shielding another family member) should not be eligible for JRS (and the advice I got from my payroll provider is that indeed they are not).
So of course, employers should understand if a nanny does not want to come in to work in current circumstances but should then provide unpaid leave - it’s not fair for nannies to take advantage of a scheme that was designed to help those who no longer have jobs.
The rules are to keep a 2m distance at work where possible. Supermarket workers, postal workers, and many other jobs out there are at a far higher risk than nannies but people are still applying for those jobs because they want to earn an income and contribute to the economy.

@Wendy555 what’s your source for that law/ policy statement? It’s entirely out of line with anything I have read or been advised

@eurochick

There’s no need for INSULTS

just because you disagree with something you presumed l said. One does not need to be a lawyer or solicitor to have share on here.

FROM THE GOV.UK PAGE

It is important to underline that schools, all childcare settings (including early years settings, childminders and providers of childcare for school-age children), colleges and other educational establishments, remain safe places for children. But the fewer children making the journey to school, and the fewer children in educational settings, the lower the risk that the virus can spread and infect vulnerable individuals in wider society.

Schools, and all childcare providers, are therefore being asked to continue to provide care for a limited number of children - children who are VULNERABLE , and CHILDREN WHOSE PARENTS ARE CRITICAL TO THE COVID -19 RESPONSE and cannot be safely cared for at home.

VULNERABLE CHILDREN INCLUDE : children who are supported by social care, those with safeguarding and welfare needs, including child in need plans, on child protection plans, ‘looked after’ children, young carers, disabled children and those with education and health care (EHC)plans.
As l said in my first post. Nanny’s should not be working unless you or your partners are KEYWORKES

It is frustrating to see people who don't understand the law purportedly advising on it. As you did. How can it be an insult to ask for the legal qualifications of someone trying to convince me of a legal position? Putting it in caps doesn't make it so.

The law is clear. People who can't work from home can go to work (unless they work in one of the classes of business that have been ordered to close, such as bars and restaurants). That includes nannies.

@Wendy555 a nanny working is nothing to do with being or working for a key worker.

Eg at my work (a law firm), the vast majority of staff at working from home. But there are still a few people that go to the office to sort post and scan documents etc, to support the others working from home. They are not key workers. But the risk of them going into the office, given the circumstances where everyone else is socially distancing, is minimal.

And if they do not want to work then they need to resign. No furlough, no unpaid leave. Their job is still required and it can't be done from home. It has absolutely nothing to do with being or working for key workers.

I agree with you. It’s a tricky one but from what l have read , l don’t really think nanny’s have a choice. Under the “ covid19 What you need to do, it states “ Do not meet others, even friends or family , a live out nanny would already be breaking this ruling. Secondly it also that schools and childcare providers can continue to care for a limited number of vulnerable children and children whose parents are critical to covid19 response etc, so it seems that if you do not fall within those categories there are restrictions

@Wendy555 the do not meet others rule is a social rule. It does not apply in a work situation otherwise as you say it clashes with the "work from home if you can" guidance.

@eurochick
Do you know what find frustrating, is being accused of doing something l didn’t do.