My Nanny thought her salary was net and not gross so now she wants a rise

[PanickyAnniky]

I've just hired a Nanny to look after 8 month old DD and she's just finished her 3rd week with us. I stated 400 pounds per week in the advert, but my Nanny has just said that she hadn't realised she would have to pay tax etc on that money and that she wants me to give her 400 pounds after tax. I suppose I should have said 400 gross for super clarity, but with every job I have ever gone for myself I've always assumed the salary was gross and that I would have to pay tax. Has anyone else come across this and if so, what did they do?

My Nanny is working 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, so she is doing long days, but all this was clearly gone through in the interview. I am also offering 28 holiday days per year, 8 pound an hour for extra time (babysitting, weekends etc) and a 1000 bonus after a year. Does this sound reasonable?

PA, if you havent already spoken to her, then here is what I would do:
rip up the old contract and settle for a new one which is half way between what you offered and what she is asking for.

I have had APs asking for a pay rise after a few weeks, they always know what the pay and situation is before they come, but some people will always ask. If you are able to give them a little bit more, it buys a huge amount of goodwill.
(Slightly different business, but my father who is self employed, used to add a weighting to his quotes, that he would deduct when people quibbled that the price was too high. Because he found that they quibbled anyway.)

It is entirely possible that she showed her contract to a helpful friend/relative, who pointed out your mistake with net/gross, and suggested that she try to exploit it.

I would say that looking after 1 8month old is not that hard work (I have 4 children), and it seems that the hours are not unduly long, so you dont really have a moral obligation to overpay.
I do pay over the going rate for APs, but I feel they need danger money to handle 4 children from 4 - 11 yrs old!

I think in general we work hard in respect that we have long hours ( i often put in a 65 - 70 hour week every week)and it can be stressful dealing with tricky parents (sorry) but then again it can be a very lovely way to get to spend the day .

I think if the nanny accepted the job then she should have sorted out the conversation about tax and i def wouldn't give her a payrise i would rather get a new nanny. If the job is live out then the salary isn't really that good to be honest unless she is living with her parents. It's really hard to live in London and rent somewhere to live on those wages but of course she doesn't have that much experience so it's very much a balancing act. It would worry me most that she doesn't seem that clued up re tax, what other things is she going to space out on?

Am off shopping now to spend my huge salary in Selfridges.

should obviosuly have been sorted in contract BEFORE she started (you will BOTH learn your lesson there)

and i would not work those hours for £400 gross either.

I think your options are

1. stick to your guns... and loose nanny some time in future when she finds beter pay job... possible leaving you with jsut a few weeks to find new nanny
2. try and negotitate somewhere in between
3. let her go and look for another nanny, though i think you may find it difficult for all those hours for £400 gross...

BUT right now i know many more nannies job hunting, than nanny jobs avalibel so you might be lucky.

paros that is above and beyond the call of duty (still a useful thing to put on your CV!)

paros, you sound just like me. I've also done such things as clearing the drains, plumbing in dishwasher and washing machine, rewiring ceiling lamp so it actually turns off at the light switch instead of the fusebox! Think as a nanny you have to be quite multi-skilled I wonder what other 'extra duties' nannies do.

£400 a week????????????????????

NAB3, you're shocked by how much it is, or how little it is?

How much!

Mind you, I left my last nanny job seven years ago and I was on £245 a week for a daily job so I guess it has to go up.

I was always quoted net and the employers sorted out tax/insurance on top of that.

I also think the £1000 bonus is way over the top and it should be an earnt thing, not a right for having stayed for a year. What if she hands her notice inthe folowing month?

One of my employers were really lovely but I would get £100 for bonuses and was very happy with that.

Agree, the bonus seems high. I don't get a bonus in my job. PanickyAnniky consider using that bonus amount to off-set the tax/ni charges - as mentally you have already allocated that 1000 to your nanny, I would suspect.

NannyTax Wages Survey
Central London rates certainly seem to have changed over the years.
Live-In 1998: 200 net Live-In 2007: 355 net
Daily 1998: 262 net Daily 2007: 466 net

NN fixing the curtain rod in the spare room .ie putting the whole bloody thing back up again ,and removing dead or live (which is a bit tricker ) mice that the darling cat has bought in . LOL

Biggest shock for me on this thread is how things vary across the country- my sis in Somerset manages a large and successful Nursery (3 branches, health club creche and an after school club) and gets £15k a year (is NNEB)- when she nannied live in (admittedly a decade ago) she was lucky to get a take home of £60 a week.

Perhaps they should move to london!

we currently haev a mothers help (moving on next week)

unqualified, only 6 months experience when she started with us, only 20yo

we're in south east (home counties)

as i mentioned, not sole charge

but we have paid her £1,166 net a month for only a 8-5 day (=£17.5k gross pa approx)

so i would say £400/wk gross would be reasonable. you're offering good holidays, and the days aren't unusually long

she's moving on to her first sole charge job - longer hours (8-6) and will be on £320 net a week

Please tell me this nanny is live-out because £400 net per week is a lot of money... and for a first nanny job?!?!? The world has gone crazy. I can understand this for a nanny with 8 years experience and glowing references. But, first time entry level salary? No, I don't think so.

Nanny wages are usually quoted as net so I'm not suprised she assumed that it was 400 net since you didn't mention gross to her - I would assume net too.