Nanny Employer Blog

If you are considering hiring an estate or household manager, you may have some questions. Among those questions could be: How much do I pay my household manager? What duties do they normally perform? How many hours a week will they work? How does my job description and compensation compare to other positions? A survey recently conducted by ‘The Caretaker Gazette’ can help provide illumination to some of these questions.

‘The Caretaker Gazette’ surveyed 151 individuals that consisted of “property caretakers, major domos, estate managers, household managers, personal assistants, and butlers.” and asked “salary, benefits, responsibilities, and regional data correlation.” Below are the answers to these questions.

The employees’ salaries ranged from under $20,000, which is listed at 1% of those surveyed, to over $100,000, which is listed at 3% of those surveyed. The salary range claimed by the most employees is $61,000-$70,000, which is 24% of those surveyed.

In terms of scheduling, employees were asked how many hours a week they work. The lowest amount listed was less than 40 hours per week, which is listed at 4% of those surveyed. The highest is over 100 hours a week, which was listed at 1%. The amount of hours claimed by the most employees is 51-60 hours, claimed by 33% of employees.

Another area covered by the survey is responsibilities. More than 90% of employees listed in-house system management, security, contractor and concierge-guest care as duties they perform. More than half listed butler duties, vendor and contract management, accounting, event planning, travel arrangements, entertaining, and grocery shopping as responsibilities. Some other less-mentioned duties include antique care, horse care, indoor plant care, gardens, and automobile care, to name a few.

Lastly, another interesting group of questions presented to employees revolved around benefits. More than 90% of employees receive a housing allowance, overtime, a medical plan, retirement plan, either an automobile or automobile reimbursement, vacation (1-4 weeks annually), sick pay, annual bonus, and internet access.

To view this survey and for more specifics on all of these topics, please visit: http://caretakergazette.blogspot.com/2009/11/caretaker-gazette-estate-and-household.html.

Mom’s Best Friend has many wonderful household managers and other estate staff available for immediate placement. Contact an MBF placement counselor if you are interested in meeting any of these wonderful candidates.

One of the questions that I am frequently asked is how to handle taxes with household employees. Like any profession, it is crucial that you comply with the IRS and file taxes for any and all household employees you employ, including nannies, chefs, housekeepers, estate managers, and sitters just to name a few.

Unfortunately, it’s estimated that up to 80% of all household taxes are not paid. Opting to not pay taxes has multiple drawbacks. Should you decide to not pay taxes and are ultimately caught you will not only pay back taxes, but potentially fines and interest. This burden to comply legally does not fall on the nanny, but instead is the solely the responsibility of the family as the employer.

The economic downturn has also brought a new issue to light when it comes to taxes. With many nannies being laid off across the country, unemployment offices ask nannies to fill out an application for assistance including the names and addresses of her past employers. This sets in motion an investigation of why those employers have not been paying into unemployment during those years. Families across the U.S. are having to “catch up” with all of their tax obligations at once.

Like many premier agencies in the United States, we at Mom’s Best Friend walk our clients through the entire hiring process. One of the critical steps in this process is setting clients up with a household tax and payroll company that can assist those who have not previously employed someone in their home with all the right steps to ensure appropriate legal compliance from A to Z, as well as to help advise on how to best take advantage of any applicable tax breaks.

Breedlove & Associates specializes in household employee taxes and payroll, are experts in this niche field, and have been helping Mom’s Best Friend client families for more than 15 years. They charge families a nominal fee of between $150-200/quarter to handle everything from payroll, to direct deposit, to end-of-year tax forms. This is such a small price to pay to sleep better at night knowing you are doing everything legally. Further, most accountants recommend you use this type of service because they are typically not well versed in accounting or legal issues associated with employing household staff. Breedlove and Associates, on the other hand, may even save you money by educating you on the tax advantages associated with paying your nanny legally.

As an employer of household staff, I know firsthand the importance of following the IRS guidelines and utilize Breedlove to help make sure I am complying with all applicable laws and procedures. We want to be a resource for you, so please let us know if we can help you obtain answers to any questions you might have in this area.

One of the main reasons anyone looking to hire a nanny should go through an agency are the steps we take to protect you and your family. The main avenue in which we do this is a extensive, thorough background check. Now you may be asking yourself, “can’t I just perform a background check myself online for a few dollars?” The scary truth is that those background checks rarely perform an extensive search that covers all states in which an applicant has lived.

An article published by APNA, the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies, states:

“Top notch nanny agencies will require that applicants’ social security numbers are traced to identify every state in which they have lived. That information is used to check records in those states – a process that costs more than $10.”

Furthermore, many less thorough online agencies will offer a nanny placement for a fraction of the price of traditional agencies. Beware of this tempting alternative because these online services never meet their nanny candidates in person and even have disclaimers on their websites stating that they do not perform background checks in all states a candidate has resided. This issue is elaborated on by Lynn Peterson:

“I’ve found that most nanny candidates with criminal records have committed misdemeanors which rarely show up on the various nationwide computer searches that are offered. Felonies are more likely to be listed. So, the nationwide computer check sounds good, but it probably won’t find a person’s minor run-ins with the law which can tell you a good deal about their past and their character…There is simply no substitute for a county, criminal-court search and a statewide check in every location where an individual has lived,” says Peterson. “It takes time and knowledge to do it right. And most importantly, it should be a human being conducting that search, not a computer.”

Mom’s Best Friend employs CSIdentity for all of our background checks. They provide the most comprehensive background checks made available today. CSIdentity will authenticate that the caregiver is who they say they are. They will also run a driving record check to make sure their license is valid and that they have a clear driving history. Additionally, CSIdentity checks the caregiver’s criminal record. It checks every county that he or she has lived in. Most background check companies limit themselves to counties that have information digitally stored, but CSIdentity does not. If a county has yet to make the conversion to digital data, they will send a ‘runner’ to collect the physical file of the caregiver to verify that their background is clear in that county as well. For an additional cost, MBF can also provide a credit check and/or drug test.

At Mom’s Best Friend, we continually strive to make sure we are always offering the most extensive checks and screening available, for the peace of mind of our client families who have placed their trust in us! After more than 15 years, families continue to come to us based on our reputation for weeding out 92% of all applicants with this comprehensive sifting process! Your children deserve the best, and you come to us for peace of mind!

I am asked this question on a fairly regular basis: Why should I hire a nanny versus using a daycare? Ultimately the choice is yours but I can share with you many of the things I have learned over the years while being in the childcare industry.

One-on-one attention:
The quality of care your child will receive from a qualified, screened, seasoned caregiver is almost incomparable to the care your child will receive in a daycare setting. While many daycares strive to provide all the children under their care with individual attention, it is nearly impossible when many teachers are assigned 12 plus children. In an 8 hour day, this translates into your child receiving the equivalent of 40 minutes of focused attention. When a nanny comes to your home to be with your child, she is able to devote her entire day to your child.

Illness:
One of the biggest complaints I hear about daycares is the rapid spread of illness from child to child. I know families that spend a large portion of their income on doctor’s visits, prescriptions, and time away from their own work when their little ones come down with something that was being passed around at daycare. Illnesses your child contracts at daycare can adversely affect your career. When a child is sick, according to daycare rules, they cannot be taken to daycare that day, and sometimes even require an additional few days to ensure the sickness has passed. This means that either you or your significant other must stay home from work. I have spoken with parents who were on the brink of losing their jobs solely from absences due to their children’s contracted illnesses. As a two parents working family, hiring a nanny will not only reduce the number of illnesses your child contracts, but can also minimize the number of sick days you will need to use.

Behavioral Issues:
It is not unusual for a child to pick up one, or many, bad habits from other children at daycare. Recent studies have shown that habits learned at daycare can stick with children well into middle school. A recent article published by APNA (the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies) states:

“Children who spend large amounts of time in child-care centers exhibit more minor behavior problems, such as aggression and disobedience, than other children, at least through sixth grade, according to a long-term study that followed 1,364 children from birth through age 12…Children who spent large amounts of time in other setups, such as nanny care or family child-care homes, weren’t affected.”

This is also something to heavily consider when making your childcare choice.

Better overall experience:
When you hire a nanny, you truly gain a better overall experience. Your child’s schedule is customized to his or her needs and wants. You can plan extracurricular activities for your child that your nanny can execute such as play dates, trips to the museum, and athletic outings. Furthermore, if you decide to hire a nanny manager, who is compensated an additional amount to assist with helping to manage the household, he or she can take some extra responsibilities off your shoulders such as laundry, grocery shopping, and additional errand running. These are all tasks that, for you, can come at the end of a long work day and take away from your time with your children. Value of outsourcing these jobs: priceless!

Last weekend, I attended a conference of the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies (APNA) in Philadelphia. It was my first meeting as a member of the board of directors. I have been a member for many years and I am honored to now have a more participatory role, serving on the board. APNA is an organization that represents the best and brightest agency owners from across the country who have averaged at least 10 years in the business, many closer to 20 or 30. Keynote speakers included Alyssa Dyer who gave us some great marketing ideas from her book, No Time Marketing, and Deborah Smith, queen of social networking, who shared with us all the ins and outs of Facebook, Twitter, and more.

The conference format was a “Apprentice” style case study on a fictional struggling agency (whose P&L’s were in need of serious help) which was given $5k in marketing funds to spend on generating additional clientele most effectively. Attendees were divided into 5 groups and given a few hours to compose the most convincing PPT presentation. Some interesting ideas were inspired from this creative group of entrepreneurs.

It seems very apropos that such originality would flow in a city with such rich history and the origin of such creative genius as the Declaration of Independence. The beautiful architecture and historical significance of the location were not lost on this group. I look forward to getting more involved in the running and management of this important organization whose mission is to “establish and enforce standards of professional industry practices.”

Last weekend, I attended the inaugural conference of the International Association for Private Service Professionals (IAPSP) on the “Secrets of Service”. I was very impressed with the caliber of household service professionals gathered to learn more about their vocation, meet others in the field, and share resources. We heard from industry experts and those with services that cater to the high end clientele, such as tax and payroll expert, Stephanie Breedlove, of Breedlove and Associates, Chubb insurance on risk management and documentation, Dan Carlin of World Clinic (concierge medical services), and experts in Smart Home Technology and Moving/Delivery of fine antiques, art and other specialty items. Especially entertaining were tales from Bonnie Low-Kramen, Celebrity Assistant to Olympia Dukakis, as well as long-time estate manager, Bobby Dean Phillips, who enlightened us on employee image and ethics in the private home.

To learn more about the International Association for Private Service Professionals, visit http://www.iapsp.net/. Mom’s Best Friend (MBF Agency) is a proud member of this association of committed individuals working to advance the private service profession and maintains an excellent pool of these highly qualified professionals in household and estate management. If you are interested in considering any of these executive level candidates for your household, please inquire with a placement counselor.

Over the last 15 years, it has been my privilege to see some amazing nannies come through our doors seeking placement. Every fall, we hold an event, in conjunction with the Association of Professional Nannies‘ National Nanny Recognition Week, to celebrate such inspiring talent and commitment to the nanny vocation. Despite the inclement weather, we celebrated our local Austin talent with music, crafts, food, festivities and fun! Five caregivers who were nominated by their employers were recognized and two were presented awards for part-time and full-time Austin Nanny of the Year, respectively.

These two outstanding nannies received a basket which included a membership to the International Nanny Association and a massage courtesy of Breedlove and Associates. The profiles of our two winners, and many others, provide a small glimpse into the type of top tier caregivers that Mom’s Best Friend continues to attract, from word of mouth referrals and returning caregivers seeking placement, after so many years in business and its solid reputation for quality.

Patricia Kinnie, nominated by the Keen Family, won our award for outstanding full-time Austin Nanny of the Year. Patricia is a very experienced nanny and worked for over 6 years with a family while she initially cared for their premature newborn. Families have noted that she is “very invested in seeing the baby achieve developmental milestones.” Patricia is very easy-going and is very nurturing towards the baby, and the entire family as a whole.

Mandie Hull, nominated by the Cook Family, won our award for outstanding part-time Austin Nanny of the Year. Mandie is a graduate from UT and studied History/ Women and Gender. She recently spent a year and a half in Australia, teaching children education and self-empowerment. She is very good at interacting with children and getting on their level and has been described as fun, outgoing, positive, and educational.

Congratulations to all of our winners and nominees!

     A trend that we have seen recently has been for two families to pool resources and share a nanny for their combined children. Not only does this significantly reduce the amount that each family pays, but it can be a great avenue for children to play and socialize with others outside of their immediate family. I have touched on this issue in previous blogs in reference to long-term options and advocated that families consider this when determining the solution that best fits their in-home childcare needs.

     However, lately, we have been experiencing this same trend among temporary client families who call in for a need that is brief in duration, and can even be last-minute. Families may forget to mention in advance that there will be children present in the home that do not belong to the client family or commonly, neighborhood kids may wander over to the home for a spontaneous play date. We want to make sure that we are doing a good job of locating a suitable caregiver based upon the information provided so that she is prepared to handle the number of children and particular ages present at any given job. In order to do this, we need to make sure that we are notified in advance of the addition of more children needing supervision.

     We can usually accommodate these needs but our caregivers may be thrown for a loop if unprepared. It is also critical that the family lets both the agency and caregiver know who can or cannot come over to the home while parents are away (eg. neighborhood kids). As a reminder, in order to prevent complicated billing, any additional children that will be cared for at any point in time within the job assignment will incur an additional $1 per hour charge for the job’s entirety, even if the extra child is only there a portion of the total time.

     As a reminder, per the contract that you signed with MBF, the other family may not call the MBF caregiver directly to book her to watch their children without going through the agency (this is referred to as an “indirect referral” by you). Your caregiver has also signed an agreement committing to redirect these inquiries to MBF. Thank you for helping us to enforce these agreements without which we could not remain in business.

     Our sitters love your kids and want to make sure we can always over deliver on our attentiveness and care for your little ones, so please make sure to let your placement counselor know of any additions the next time you book a job!

Hiring a nanny can be a daunting process and, for many, the idea of bringing someone new into their home and leaving their kids in the sole care of someone they don’t know can be scary. It’s very important to identify each step needed to carefully navigate this search, the end result of which yields comfort and peace of mind. Whether using an agency or not, this same 10 step process will help you gain a better understanding of how to approach hiring a professional and loving caregiver who is the right match for your family and your unique needs and expectations.

1. Determine your needs: map out the criteria most important to you, from personality to special skills, hours and schedule, salary/package, age experience, education, training, childcare and discipline philosophy, responsibilities, etc.
2. Write a job description: put your thoughts down on paper and spell them out in a one page summary that you can share with an agency and/or potential candidates. This will be the framework of your future employment agreement and a conversational piece for an interview.
3. Register with an agency or post your job: turning over your search to a reputable and experienced agency will allow you to greatly minimize your time and effort in the remaining steps. However, if you are a do-it-yourselfer, you can write a short blurb with the key points in your job description and post it online or in the paper, but be prepared for a flood of unqualified applicants you may have to weed through in order to move on to the next step(s). If your needs are time sensitive or you are very busy, this may not be an option for you.
4. Screen applicants/conduct phone interviews: make sure to screen for the most important criteria (hours, salary, age experience, responsibilities willing to perform, area of town) before moving on to any more detailed probing (an agency will already have done this for you). Above and beyond having the right experience on paper, you will want to have enough chemistry on the phone to warrant an in-person meeting. A good fit is a combination of both!
5. In-person interview: arrange for promising candidates to come to your home to meet with you and get a preview of the potential future work environment. You may want to meet without the children in case it is not a good fit, or bring the kids in for part of the interview to observe the interaction. This initial meeting mainly serves to feel out compatibility (assuming the main needs will be able to be met by this person); a good candidate should interview you too!
6. Trial time/working interview: observing someone while working will give you the best indicator of future performance. Trial time is typically 3-5 days for local non live-in candidates. Try to duplicate the duties, hours, etc. as closely as possible so that the candidate can experience the job as accurately as possible (ex. morning traffic patterns) before moving forward. This time should serve as reinforcement for your decision or bring up possible red flags to halt you from moving forward. A good agency will provide a guarantee period (typically 90 days) in which you can get a free replacement.
7. Reference/background checks: when deciding between two great candidates, a reference check can be the tie breaker. An agency will already have checked references prior to sending you a profile. However, after you have interviewed with a certain candidate, you may have specific questions that are generated that a former employer can specifically address, above and beyond verifying simply whether or not they are qualified for the job. Background checks are essential for peace of mind and the security of your children. Individual families may not know how to conduct these checks themselves or where to go to obtain the most comprehensive and up-to-date information. An experienced agency can assist and can provide ongoing monitoring services as well.
8. Job offer/employment agreement: an extensive written agreement is the key to a long-term relationship where expectations are clear and misunderstandings minimized. An agency may provide a template for you that addresses the most typical scenarios in question in a comprehensive way. The job offer should come in the form of this written proposal with an expectation for some negotiation back and forth to ultimately arrive at a clearly spelled out and mutually beneficial , agreed upon working arrangement. An agency can act as the middle man in cases where negotiating directly is uncomfortable or an awkward way to kick off the new relationship.
9. Job begins: the employment agreement is signed and a start date is set!
10. Post-hire relationship maintenance/job satisfaction: the greatest way to ensure success is to set up regularly scheduled one-on-ones to discuss the job and what is working well and what is not. Providing an open forum for communication and discussion of struggles, obstacles and accomplishments as well (recommended at least monthly) will ensure the long lasting satisfaction of both parties involved. Semi-annual reviews and annual opportunities for bonuses and raises will also demonstrate the perceived value of the performance and relationship.

Good luck in hiring a great nanny! We would love to assist you in this important process with our years of experience and expertise!

The International Nanny Association just released its 2009 Salary and Benefits Survey based on 2008. 667 in-home childcare providers responded to the survey. 86.6% identified themselves exclusively as a nanny, while others were temp nannies, travelling nannies, involved in a nanny share, newborn care specialists, doulas, governesses, etc.

Almost 30% reported completing a Bachelor’s degree, 36% completed some college, and almost 20% completed high school only. The majority are live-out (85%), while 13% are live-in. About 25% have 5-10 years experience, 20% have 10-15 years of experience, and 11% had 15-20 years of experience. Most care for 2 children (46%), ages 3-5 (41%).

Of these professionals, 46% reported using an agency to find their current position.

Salaries are all over the board, typically ranging from $300-1000 per week (pre-tax). About two-thirds report employers withholding federal and state taxes, while about 27% do not withhold taxes. About 24% get paid $15 per hour for hourly babysitting, while 19% get paid $20 per hour, and almost 30% get paid between $10-12 per hour. Full-time live out nannies in Texas earn on average $12.54 per hour.

About 45% of live-out nannies are paid between $50-100 for an overnight, while another 15% receive no additional compensation and 25% report receiving other types of compensation. Most did not receive additional compensation when (and if) they travelled with the family. 74% are paid their normal compensation if the employer doesn’t need them to work and they have the time off. About 18% received the equivalent of one week’s pay as a year end bonus. Many others received bonuses or gifts as well of a different equivalent. However, over 80% of employers did not report their end of year gift as taxed!

About two-thirds receive paid national and religious holidays and paid sick days. 47% report receiving 2 weeks paid vacation (26% receive more vacation), 20% get paid personal days. 17% get their health insurance completely paid for, while 12% get half paid by their employer. 34% get reimbursement for use of their own vehicle, while 34% are provided a vehicle to use by their employer. Others get additional reimbursements like health club memberships, travel, conference fees, retirement plans, association dues, college education contributions, disability insurance, and clothing allowance.

About two-thirds work for a professional couple, 12% work for a family where at least one parent works from home, and 11% work for parents where one is a professional and the other is at home.

We, at Mom’s Best Friend, try and attract the highest caliber caregivers, and thus want to help equip our client families with information so that they can then put together an appealing package that is in line with the current market.

If you would like a copy of the entire survey and results, please feel free to email me at kathy.dupuy@mbfagency.com.