Nanny and infectious illness

[travellinglight]

Hi - our nanny says she won't come to work because one of the children may have scarlet fever. It is only a slight possibility but one of the things the GP is testing due to an unexplained rash. It's quite rare and unusual for both children and adults to get it. She is putting us in a difficult position.

What do others think?

I think she should come to work or not get paid.

Catching stuff off children you work with is the hazards of the job. (some caveats for pregnancy etc)

I thought that that was one of the benefits of having a nanny over external childcare...the fact that if your child was ill they still get looked after ,certainly was for me,in fact it was nanny who discovered chiken pox in one case.Is there any chance she could be pregnant and that is why she doesn't want to come into contact?

what a wuss - one of my charges had suspected scarlet fever and I still came to work!
surely the point of a nanny is to cover these situations so it doesn't affect your work?

Catching coughs or colds is only to be expected in such a job, but I think scarlet fever and other infectious diseases should not be so casually disregarded. Surely it will be a far more difficult position if she catches scarlet fever from your child and you have to pay her sick pay as well as take time off work/find alternative care? Its my opinion that she's being sensible and this is in your interests as much as her own.

How long will it take for your GP to rule out the possibility of scarlet fever? If it were the other way around, would you have been happy for her to carry on working and potentially put your family at risk or would you have expected her to wait for test results before returning to work to ensure the well-being and safety of your family?

i have always gone in when children are infectious

having a nanny is a majot bonus when children are ill compared to having a cm or nursery

i would insist your nanny to come in, unless she was pregnant which could put a different spin on things

I agree with Blondes. Unless your nanny is pregnant then I would expect her to come in to work. A rash could mean anything and 9 times out of 10 a child would be infectious before a rash appears anyway. On the flip side, if she did catch it I would expect her to be paid in full. As a nanny, I would only have hesitated whilst I was pregnant. Hope your DC is okay.

I can't help thinking she is being a bit precious. You go to work.

i think she is being quite rediculouse

(unless she is preganant and getting it could hurt her unborn baby (no idea if it would actually matter if you were pregnant, just if it actually did)

unless she is pregnant and a doctor says it is a risk she shouldnt take while pregnant she should come into work or not get paid... or even a verbal warning?

she is putting you in a very difficult position and it seems very unproffesional to me

I have a clause in my contract which says I work through any serious infectious illnesses that I have immunity against, acquired either naturally or through vaccination. I am entitled to refuse to work with a child who has an illness to which I don't have immunity. And then if I do work and fall ill then my sick leave is paid in full.

There is no vaccine for scarlet fever but as I've had it I'd work through it.

But as it's a rash and not confirmed then she's probably being a tad precious!