Showing posts with label Nannies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nannies. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

How to Choose and Monitor the Nanny

A babysitter, also known as a nanny is a woman who will stay with your children when you have to leave the house for work, a date or any kind of family emergency. These nannies will be responsible for your children while you are away. They will change their diapers if they are newborns, feed them and drive them or pick them from any given destination if needed. They will make sure that your kids go to sleep on their bed time. This is why babysitters and nannies became very essential and vital for many families, especially for working parents.

Parents will have to be very careful when they are choosing the nannies because they will be fully responsible for their children in every aspect. So if any emergency happens, the lives of the children will be in the hands of the nanny. This is also why parents should make sure that the nannies can handle emergencies, they will have to make sure that they can perform CPR and can use a First Aid kit. This could be the difference between life and death for your child in case of an emergency. Therefore, it is important to sit and talk with the nanny before you hire her.

This interview will give you an idea of the abilities of the nanny and what she is capable of. It will also give you an idea of her character and how she plans to deal with the children. The first thing you should ask the nanny is her past experience; this will give you an idea of her service quality. Then you should tell her the tasks and what she will be responsible of doing while you are away. You should also see how she reacts with the children by calling them and letting them interact with her to see how she deals with them.

Some people are very skeptical and they worry about what is happening back home when they are not there. These parents can monitor everything that goes on in the house when they are not away by using the latest technology in cameras. They will use a nanny cam. This camera is designed to fit in small places so it cannot be seen by the nanny. So after the first day, parents will be able to view the whole day from the point of view of the cam to see how the nanny dealt with the children.

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Hiring Professional Babysitters from Professional Agencies

Some teenage girls work as babysitters in order to earn some quick cash. On the other hand, there are many women who make a career for themselves as nannies. These women become professional nannies who work for nanny agencies.  Using your neighbor’s daughter to babysit your children can be very effective but she will not always be available and when she grows up, she will not be able to babysit your children. This is you will have to start using the services of professional babysitting agencies.

There are many advantages of using the services of professional babysitter agencies. These agencies will guarantee you a nanny or a babysitter of high quality. This is because these agencies implement very strict guidelines and rules in their agencies. For example, they only hire responsible girls who are older than 18 years old. These babysitters have to go through a prescreening procedure. The agencies also require the babysitter to issue a Certified Sitter certification in order to signify that the babysitter already went through all of the needed procedures. These professional babysitters also have their own transport vehicles or other means of transportation so they can be asked to pick up your child or drive him to any given destination. The professional babysitters are also backed with extensive experiences in babysitting. This guarantees you that these babysitters are qualified and they know all what needs to be known when it comes to dealing with children of different ages.

These nannies are going to engage your children in numerous educational and productive activities. These activities will vary between one age and another. These activities will help increase and enhance the interaction and educational skills of your children. Another advantage of professional babysitters is that in order to pass the exams of the agencies, they will have to be able to perform CPR and 1st Aid. This will ensure you the safety of your children in case of any emergency.

The best way to find these professional agencies is to go online. The internet will enable you to find hundreds of professional agencies. You will be able to compare between these agencies so you can get the best service with the best price. You have to view more than one agency because they will not offer the same kind of service and they will have different prices.  Checking the reviews of previous customers will help you determine the quality of each agency.

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How can you find the Best Nanny

Hiring nannies became very essential in any family that has children, especially if both parents have a day job. This is because the demands of this job can be overwhelming. The parents will have to spend effortless nights at the office. While they are at work, they can’t leave their children alone in the house, especially young ones. This is why a lot of parents are forced to hire the services of nannies in order to be able to work late. There are other reasons to hire a nanny other than work. Some parents do not have time to spend with each other because of the needs of the children. In order to be able to go out and have a dinner alone without the children to have quality time with each other, they will have to hire a nanny.

Before choosing a nanny, you have to make sure that the nanny knows her work and that she can be trusted. There are several reasons for that. The two most important reasons is that she is going to stay at home with your children alone, so you have to make sure that your children are in safe hands while you are away. The second reason is that she might steal anything from your house while you are not there. This is why you have to sit down and interview each nanny before you select one. This interview will help you judge on the character and the quality of the nanny before hiring her.

In this interview, you should first let the nanny introduce herself. You will be able to know a lot about her from the way she talks about herself. After the introduction, start talking about the tasks that she will have to take care of while being at home. You should also introduce her to the kids, see how she deals with them and how do they react with her.  She can be the best nanny but if your kids do not love her, she is not the suitable nanny for you.

Last but not least, you can ask family and friends for recommendations. Ask them for the contact information of nannies that they hired in the past that were good at their job. If a nanny is recommended by a close family member or a friend, it means that she is trustworthy and knows how to get the job done.

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Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Ensuring Success With Nannies - The Nanny Contract

The process of hiring nannies can be overwhelming, but one tool you can utilize as an employer is a nanny contract, which will help to ensure that all of the terms and conditions of employment are understood by both you and the nanny candidate before hiring. The biggest mistake that you can make during the nanny hiring process is being vague or unclear about expectations. Communicating in a straightforward and direct manner with your nannies from the start will help to ensure that there are no unpleasant surprises down the road for either party.

Communication is Key
One of the most essential components of a successful parent-nanny relationship is clear and open communication. Families who foster an environment where communication is not only expected, but praised will set a precedent for the nanny and the children as well. A thorough nanny contract that is agreed-upon before the hiring process is complete is the first real step in a successful nanny-family relationship.

Due to the untraditional working environment of most nanny jobs, nannies are often expected to work odd hours and the boundaries of expectations between the family and the nanny can easily blur. This is true for all nannies, but especially for live-in nannies. A nanny contract should establish these boundaries right from the beginning so that both parties are comfortable in knowing what to expect. One of the primary causes of disputes and, ultimately, high nanny turnover tends to be parents who make unexpected, and, for the nanny, unreasonable requests in the form of extra hours or additional tasks. On the family's side, parents are often displeased with nannies that use their cars for personal errands, leave the house without permission, invite overnight guests into the home, or make unapproved purchases. Oftentimes, nannies tend to be non-confrontational, while parents can be quick to reprimand a nanny who is behaving outside of the terms of what the family expected. Many nannies will avoid conflict and decline to discuss their issues or dissatisfaction with their jobs, letting tension build to the point where they will leave the job abruptly rather than attempt to resolve a dispute.

You and your nanny can avoid these types of issues by agreeing on a mutual nanny contract before the hiring process is complete. An effective nanny contract should contain an itemized statement outlining the nanny's responsibilities and your expectations pertaining to discipline, growth and progress of your family. It should provide a thorough explanation of your nanny's salary, benefits and pay dates, along with any deductions for applicable taxes, Social Security, and health insurance. One mistake that many families make with nanny jobs is declining to file appropriate taxes and paying nannies "off the books." This is a bad move that can jeopardize the family and the nanny and comes at a high price financially due to fees and fines if you are audited. Including an outline of who is responsible for the various types of employment taxes in the nanny contract ensures that each party knows what taxes it is responsible for covering. In addition, it is important to check into your state's requirements for disability, unemployment and worker's compensation insurance for nannies.

Furthermore, the nanny contract should specify working hours and whether or not you expect some flexibility in terms of when you will return home each evening or when you need your nanny to be on-call. When you specify hours, you need to include how many hours per week qualify as overtime and what wages nannies will receive for additional work.

The following list itemizes important issues to address and include in the nanny contract:
  • Salary: State the nanny's base salary as well as the family's expected timeline for salary reviews based on the nanny's accomplishment of agreed-upon goals.
  • Benefits: How many sick, personal and vacation days will the nanny get? Is there a provision for paid time off in case of personal or health emergencies? Will the amount of time off increase based on the time the nanny works for the family?
  • Set the expected schedule of hours and include provisions for pay and necessary requirements for notification if special circumstances require extra, unexpected hours.
  • Rules for use of the family car, including provisions for automobile insurance--if the nanny will be using her own car, detail the amount of mileage the family will pay.
  • State which children the nanny will be responsible for during what hours. One child may be in school every weekday, while an infant will be at home with the nanny all day, every day.
  • State the children's out-of-residence activity schedule, including times that the nanny will be responsible for transporting them to and from school, activities and the residence.
  • Boundaries for family-approved approach to discipline; i.e. time-outs, loss of phone or television privileges, etc.
  • An outline of expected chores and housework--stating that "light housework" is expected is not specific enough! Itemize specific chores that you would like the nanny to complete and how often.
  • Expectations for children's arts and crafts and other supplemental, educational activities, including tutoring and specialized learning projects.
  • Expectations for meetings to review children's activities/daily accomplishments. Setting recurring daily, weekly, or monthly meetings encourages ongoing communication between parents and nannies.
  • Rules for obtaining permission to leave the house, or take children outside of the residence, other than for outlined expected activities.
  • An agreement concerning the nanny's mealtimes and what food items will be provided for the nanny in accordance with his or her dietary needs.
  • An agreement concerning the children's dietary needs and what meals the nanny is expected to prepare.
  • Expectations for overnight care: How often it is expected and what additional pay will be provided per hour.
  • A detailed vacation schedule for the year that includes dates that the nanny is expected to leave town with the family, what provisions will be made for the nanny's comfort while traveling, how many hours of work will be necessary while out of town, and what additional pay will be provided.
Your nanny contract should be agreed upon and signed by you, your spouse, and your nanny. You and your nanny both should have original copies on file, and you should not hesitate to refer to or even to amend the contract, with mutual consent, if you are dissatisfied with the original terms.

Conclusion
A detailed and mutually satisfying nanny contract is an important step to achieving a successful, long-term relationship between families and nannies. Keeping the lines of communication open and upfront will lead to a nurturing environment that holds no unpleasant surprises for the parents, children or nanny. A fair contract will ensure that all parties involved with the care of your children understand and agree upon the terms and expectations of the nanny jobs, increasing the chances of a good fit between nanny and family.

Steven Lampert is the president of eNanny Source, an online nanny screening service [http://www.enannysource.com/nanny/background-checks.aspx] that brings together families and nannies or au pairs. Lampert previously ran a successful, award-winning nanny agency in a major city for over 10 years, during which time he worked with thousands of families and nanny candidates. Through this experience, he became familiar with the important steps in a nanny search, which he continues to apply to his business today.
To learn more, please visit www.enannysource.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Lampert

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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

The Nanny Needed Situation

A nanny needed situation is one where one needs the services of a nanny. Finding out the purpose of hiring a nanny isn’t exactly rocket science, as in these fast paced times, career driven parents simply need help in raising their children. The act of employing nannies to help them deal with the challenges of rearing a child, or children, is known to help parents cope with the stresses of their careers, as well as with the stresses at home, with a child, or children to take care of.

The whole concept of a nanny needed situation dates back to the late 19th and early 20th century. Nannies then were often referred to as nurses, with some households even integrating them within the family household itself. Certain nannies were/are known to take care of up to three generations of children, keeping true to the nature of their profession, and are at times, genuinely loved by households, even referred to as members of the family.

In a bookish dictionary definition, a nanny is one who looks after the child or children of a family, who employs them for such a service. A nanny needed situation is one where parents simply need the physical presence of someone to take care of their child or children, or help them take care of their child or children.

On a general scale, a nanny needed situation asks this list of responsibilities from nannies:

- Nannies provide childcare, ideally within a timeframe agreed upon between her/him and her/his employers. Should there be schedule related problems, a nanny should ideally inform his/her employer, or employers regarding the situation.

- A nanny is not only concerned with the physical well being of the child, or children, but should aid him/her/them in the social, emotional, creative, and intellectual sense of his/her/their development.

- Keeping the child, or children away from physical harm, stands to be another responsibility nannies should shoulder.

- Providing proper well balanced meals and snacks to the child or children rank as another responsibility for a nanny.

- Though spending a lot of time with a child, or children, a nanny should know that he/she shouldn’t outstage the role of the parent in the child, or children’s live/lives. By informing the parents of their child, or children’s concerns, a nanny actively involves the parents’ the child or children’s lives.

- Maintaining a clean and neat environment is also a nanny’s concern, keeping the household clean and neat, the ideal ambience for a child, or children to grow in.

Bottom line, a nanny needed situation is truly a stressful state where parents simply need the services of a nanny. Getting one may cost more, but the benefits which follow are altogether worth the cost in resolving a nanny needed situation.

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Saturday, June 16, 2012

How to Find a BabySitter?

Today, more moms are getting employed full-time or part-time, increasing the need for babysitters. There might be hundreds of babysitters in your area, but only a few are qualified. The last thing you want to happen is entrust the welfare of your child to an inexperienced babysitter. So how do you find a babysitter?

Foremost, several babysitting businesses are sprouting in response to this demand for babysitters. Many high school or college students are also inclined to find extra incomes by babysitting. It is no longer hard to find a babysitter. The difficult question to answer is, "Can you trust a babysitter?" Thus, the question should be, "How to find a babysitter you can trust?" Now that's a totally different one.

If you're searching on the Internet to find a babysitter from online babysitting clubs, you might have a rundown of babysitters within your own zip code. These online babysitting sites usually have a database of babysitters residing in different states. What you do is type in your zip code and view babysitter profiles.

This can be an opportunity to select a few babysitters with profiles that match your preference. Do not stick on one babysitter. Instead, interview a few, one at a time, and go on to another batch if none of them would meet your expectations. Don't rush when trying to find a babysitter. Often, many parents rush at finding a babysitter but regret, eventually. Some babysitters do this job solely for the money, which make them sloppy at childcare.

Another good way to find a babysitter is through words of mouth. Most experienced babysitters had probably watched over your neighbors' children several times. Ask your neighbors for babysitters whom they trust and see if she is available when you need her. Most babysitters are college or high school students, or may have full-time jobs, that baby-sit only during their spare times.

Through Job Posting

Many babysitters are simply waiting for job postings of parents. You may post them around your neighborhood or the next and wait until babysitters start calling you. Be sure that the telephone number you indicate is easy to reach. You may use the direct line to your office phone number or better yet, your cell phone.

Job posting may also be done in babysitting online sites, where babysitters may find you. However, these sites require subscription. It's up to you to subscribe to them for a fee or stay to the traditional paper job posting.

Find a babysitter whom you can trust, is reliable, responsible, and someone who will truly care for your child.

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Thursday, June 7, 2012

Ensuring Success With Nannies - The Nanny Contract

The process of hiring nannies can be overwhelming, but one tool you can utilize as an employer is a nanny contract, which will help to ensure that all of the terms and conditions of employment are understood by both you and the nanny candidate before hiring. The biggest mistake that you can make during the nanny hiring process is being vague or unclear about expectations. Communicating in a straightforward and direct manner with your nannies from the start will help to ensure that there are no unpleasant surprises down the road for either party.

Communication is Key
One of the most essential components of a successful parent-nanny relationship is clear and open communication. Families who foster an environment where communication is not only expected, but praised will set a precedent for the nanny and the children as well. A thorough nanny contract that is agreed-upon before the hiring process is complete is the first real step in a successful nanny-family relationship.
Due to the untraditional working environment of most nanny jobs, nannies are often expected to work odd hours and the boundaries of expectations between the family and the nanny can easily blur. This is true for all nannies, but especially for live-in nannies. A nanny contract should establish these boundaries right from the beginning so that both parties are comfortable in knowing what to expect. One of the primary causes of disputes and, ultimately, high nanny turnover tends to be parents who make unexpected, and, for the nanny, unreasonable requests in the form of extra hours or additional tasks. On the family's side, parents are often displeased with nannies that use their cars for personal errands, leave the house without permission, invite overnight guests into the home, or make unapproved purchases. Oftentimes, nannies tend to be non-confrontational, while parents can be quick to reprimand a nanny who is behaving outside of the terms of what the family expected. Many nannies will avoid conflict and decline to discuss their issues or dissatisfaction with their jobs, letting tension build to the point where they will leave the job abruptly rather than attempt to resolve a dispute.

You and your nanny can avoid these types of issues by agreeing on a mutual nanny contract before the hiring process is complete. An effective nanny contract should contain an itemized statement outlining the nanny's responsibilities and your expectations pertaining to discipline, growth and progress of your family. It should provide a thorough explanation of your nanny's salary, benefits and pay dates, along with any deductions for applicable taxes, Social Security, and health insurance. One mistake that many families make with nanny jobs is declining to file appropriate taxes and paying nannies "off the books." This is a bad move that can jeopardize the family and the nanny and comes at a high price financially due to fees and fines if you are audited. Including an outline of who is responsible for the various types of employment taxes in the nanny contract ensures that each party knows what taxes it is responsible for covering. In addition, it is important to check into your state's requirements for disability, unemployment and worker's compensation insurance for nannies.

Furthermore, the nanny contract should specify working hours and whether or not you expect some flexibility in terms of when you will return home each evening or when you need your nanny to be on-call.
When you specify hours, you need to include how many hours per week qualify as overtime and what wages nannies will receive for additional work.

The following list itemizes important issues to address and include in the nanny contract:
  • Salary: State the nanny's base salary as well as the family's expected timeline for salary reviews based on the nanny's accomplishment of agreed-upon goals.
  • Benefits: How many sick, personal and vacation days will the nanny get? Is there a provision for paid time off in case of personal or health emergencies? Will the amount of time off increase based on the time the nanny works for the family?
  • Set the expected schedule of hours and include provisions for pay and necessary requirements for notification if special circumstances require extra, unexpected hours.
  • Rules for use of the family car, including provisions for automobile insurance--if the nanny will be using her own car, detail the amount of mileage the family will pay.
  • State which children the nanny will be responsible for during what hours. One child may be in school every weekday, while an infant will be at home with the nanny all day, every day.
  • State the children's out-of-residence activity schedule, including times that the nanny will be responsible for transporting them to and from school, activities and the residence.
  • Boundaries for family-approved approach to discipline; i.e. time-outs, loss of phone or television privileges, etc.
  • An outline of expected chores and housework--stating that "light housework" is expected is not specific enough! Itemize specific chores that you would like the nanny to complete and how often.
  • Expectations for children's arts and crafts and other supplemental, educational activities, including tutoring and specialized learning projects.
  • Expectations for meetings to review children's activities/daily accomplishments. Setting recurring daily, weekly, or monthly meetings encourages ongoing communication between parents and nannies.
  • Rules for obtaining permission to leave the house, or take children outside of the residence, other than for outlined expected activities.
  • An agreement concerning the nanny's mealtimes and what food items will be provided for the nanny in accordance with his or her dietary needs.
  • An agreement concerning the children's dietary needs and what meals the nanny is expected to prepare.
  • Expectations for overnight care: How often it is expected and what additional pay will be provided per hour.
  • A detailed vacation schedule for the year that includes dates that the nanny is expected to leave town with the family, what provisions will be made for the nanny's comfort while traveling, how many hours of work will be necessary while out of town, and what additional pay will be provided.
Your nanny contract should be agreed upon and signed by you, your spouse, and your nanny. You and your nanny both should have original copies on file, and you should not hesitate to refer to or even to amend the contract, with mutual consent, if you are dissatisfied with the original terms.

Conclusion
A detailed and mutually satisfying nanny contract is an important step to achieving a successful, long-term relationship between families and nannies. Keeping the lines of communication open and upfront will lead to a nurturing environment that holds no unpleasant surprises for the parents, children or nanny. A fair contract will ensure that all parties involved with the care of your children understand and agree upon the terms and expectations of the nanny jobs, increasing the chances of a good fit between nanny and family.
Steven Lampert is the president of eNanny Source, an online nanny screening service [http://www.enannysource.com/nanny/background-checks.aspx] that brings together families and nannies or au pairs. Lampert previously ran a successful, award-winning nanny agency in a major city for over 10 years, during which time he worked with thousands of families and nanny candidates. Through this experience, he became familiar with the important steps in a nanny search, which he continues to apply to his business today. To learn more, please visit www.enannysource.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Lampert

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