Nanny pay rise - what should I do??

[knakered]

My nanny will be with me a year in April. She has been brilliant. The children love her and she is very caring, organised, efficient etc. I pay her £10/hr gross (8-6, M-F) which I think is about right. She has to take dd1 to school, then look after dd2 during the day, the pick up dd1 at 4 and ds 3&4 are delivered home at 4.30 (boys leave with me at 7.30 in the morning). I am home at 5.30. I have been working on a full time project this past year hence the M-F childcare...next yar I dont want to work more that 3 days a week - nanny not interested in a nanny share - so I have decided to keep her on 5 days although I only plan to work 3. As she has been so great i am prepared to make this sacrifice - in exchange for a pay rise - could I offer her early finish on fri say 3pm and late start monday say 10am ..this would equate to 10%...but would this be rude??...not sure what my plan b would be....? what is a standard annual pay rise?

I don't think there is any Standard Annual pay rise. As a nanny, my boss tries to pass on any pay rise she gets (as a teacher, her pay does not rise that much - I think rises have been about 2%). Over the past 3 years, my pay has risen a total of 31p an hour.

Your requirements have changed. You could terminate the contract with your nanny, and get another nanny, who would only work 3 days per week (saving you £200 per week). Your nanny knows this. I think it is therefore great that you are still prepared to offer your nanny a 5 day job... it saves your nanny job hunting, means they don't need to get to know new children (and parents).

I think offering an early finish on Friday would be nice. Late starts in my view make little difference - as a daily nanny can commute some distance and may still need to leave home at the same time, due to traffic etc. If getting up late one morning, it disrupts the wake-up routine... far easier (at least I find it is) starting at the same time each day.

Does your nanny understand that you will be around at home 2 days per week? Some nannies work well in a sole-charge position, but don't work well when it is shared care. It can also be confusing for the children, they don't know who is in charge - you and your nanny will need to discuss that and come to a decision as to who is 'in charge' on the days you are both there.