Sick Days for Nannies
Does your nanny get paid sick days? Whether you officially offer sick days as a part of the job perks or whether you unofficially add some extra cash to your nanny’s paycheck even though she missed a few days, offering paid sick days is increasingly popular in the child care world — though not everyone agrees with it.
In a Wall Street Journal blog post, the blogger paid her daycare provider even though she closed they daycare one day due to a brief stint in the ER. The blogger didn’t think twice about it, and even says that, “most of the parents get paid sick time from their employers, and besides, [she] probably got sick because of one of our little germ-carrying children.”
Shortly after, the blogger found herself in the middle of a debate on that same topic:
A parent email group I belong to recently had a debate as to whether one mom should pay her nanny while she was on jury duty. The mother, who would have to pay for a back-up sitter, was indignant when the group said she should: Sure, they said, the nanny will get a small $40 or $45 daily stipend, but she’s earning more than double that for a day at work and it’s not her fault she got called. Another dad warned, “Don’t give your nanny any reason to look for work elsewhere or feel less connected to your family.”
The comments that followed this post were very similar to the thoughts surrounding the aforementioned email debate. Here were a few:
We have had live in nannies for more than 10 years. Our rule: Treat them as we would want to be treated in their place. This means some considerable give and take, and includes paying for sick days and — during one memorable summer — paying her salary when she was on a jury for 3 solid weeks!! The payoff is that we have had very little turnover, and my kids are doing great.
=== Our nanny is very devoted to our child and we pay her her salary no matter what. She’s called in sick once in about nine months, so I know if she’s sick, she’s sick. We don’t feel any pressure from her to bend over backwards to keep her, but we accommodate her and she does the same for us.
=== My wife and I are both physicians — if our Nanny is “sick” we either have to cancel a day of surgery for multiple sick people or a day of clinic appointments. She was hired with the understanding that she was to work on “sick days” although she would have the latitude to make it a very quiet day at home.
=== We have always given our nanny sick days. I don’t feel like she takes advantage of it. Unfortunately we can’t afford to give her health care benefits so I feel like sick days are the least we can do.
=== My nanny is a FT college student who works about 25 hrs/week for us. I don’t pay her sick days because it is not a full time job. I know she also does other part time jobs on the side so she is not fully dependent (although largely) on us for income.
=== We absolutely paid sick days — even when it was our nanny’s child that was sick.
=== I am amazed by all of the self-love on this board about how incredibly well everyone treats their nannies. Funny, the owner of the nanny agency that we use has mentioned repeatedly that most families treat their nannies poorly.
=== Overwhelmingly, we have learned that most sickness is of the emotional distress variety and there are nearly always other issues involved, including fights with boyfriends, hangovers from a weekend of partying, the need to move to a new apartment, searching for a puppy at local animal shelters — you name it and we’ve seen it. Sick days occur far more frequently on Fridays and Mondays, which is telling. What’s also strange is that we have always been very close with our nannies and they usually tell us the real reason for the “sickness” after the fact.
=== In most regular jobs, benefits such as sick leave aren’t available until after an employee has stuck around for at least a year. If a nanny had an emergency 1 month into her employment I don’t think I’d be as accommodating as with a longtime nanny who has proven reliability and trustworthiness.
=== I was a nanny at one point in my life and there are some really nasty people out there but the norm was that I was treated very well.
=== As a nanny for 18 years, I’d like to add that many nannies I know, including myself, don’t take sick days unless they have one foot in the grave.
=== I have worked as a Nanny through college. The families I work for expect me to come when the children are sick and when they (the parents) are home sick with something. About half the time I end up catching what they have and then they complain when I take a sick day (unpaid).
=== Treating them fair is right — paying for sick days is right and if they are genuinely sick and go beyond the allocated sick days, paying for that is right too.
So, parents, do you offer paid sick days? Nannies, have you ever worked for a family that did so?
July 15th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
As a nanny I’ve worked for families that paid for sick days. I think the key to that was because I never missed work days so parents knew if I said I was too sick to come to work I was really sick. I have gone to work when I wasn’t feeling well but was not sick enough to stay home. I realize what a cramp it puts working families in. I held a position for 5 yrs with a family and never missed a day of work until I got the flu. I was out the entire week and was paid for the entire week. Since I have worked in both centers and homes, I usually inform parents that if their child was in a center and missed days due to illness they would still be responsible for paying for that time. I haven’t have a problem.
July 15th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
The agreement with the family I work for is that they will pay for sick days. We don’t have a certain number of days set for sick days to use per year or anything. Just, if I am sick, I stay home and am still paid. I tend to go in most of the time when I am sick, and then when I get there, it is up to them whether or not they want me to work or go home and get better. Mostly so that they can see that I’m not fibbing about it… I guess because I feel like a lot of people do lie and use sick days for reasons other than illness.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
We had a full time nanny for nearly five years. We offered her vacation and sick time, or what some organizations today refer to as PTO (Personal Time Off). At the beginning I was a bit worried that the time would be abused, but I was soon proven wrong. She rarely called in sick and took care of me and my children many times over the years. I actually had to send her home on a couple of occasions because she was obviously to sick to be taking care of children. How many of us have the patience and fortitude to give young children the attention they need when we’re really sick? Why would a nanny be any different? If we still had a full time nanny we would gladly pay her sick time.
July 16th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Hmm, I’m a sitter and have never thought of this or even considered it. If your sitter is that picky then they SHOULD leave and find a regular job, besides, the parents deserve someone who enjoys thier work (as the sitter) so much that it really dosen’t feel like work (then you will KNOW that your children are in good hands).
July 16th, 2008 at 7:41 pm
As a nanny I have a fixed salary. Luckily they are doctors. lol. However, when I am sick, I still attempt to drag my sickly self to work. I hate pity. If I absolutely cannot tolerate a day at work, I have a back up nanny. But some nannies do take a great deal of advantage of the family. I couldn’t imagine taking advantage of the family I work for. They have been nothing but AMAZING to me and my whole family too. =]
July 17th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
I am a mom who has to hire a sitter for my children before and afterschool and I am also a fulltime nanny and have been for 13 years. In that time I have taken maybe 5 sick days and only when I was really sick or my children (I have two) were. As a parent on a very fixed income I see how hard it can be to pay a sitter who is not there and then either take time off myself or hire a fill in (but I still do it). As a nanny who hardly ever takes time off I would be very upset not to be paid. I see this as a career and so I act accordingly when on the job and expect the same in return. I have been very luckly with all families I have worked for in that I have been paid for evey sick day I have taken. I started a new job just five months ago and after being here only 4 weeks my 5 years old was throughing up and my husband was unable to take a full day off. I called my new boss the night before I was to take the sick day and explained the situation and said my husband could stay home for half the day if I could be home the other half. She said she had a few meetings she had to attend would be back by 11am if I could come in the morning for her. I was paid and she apreciated that I was flexable with her so she did not count this a one of my sick days. What a great way to make me never want to leave, she didn’t have to do it and I would still be here and still love my job but when she is in a pinch I think about how greatly I was treated and so am happy to help her out in anyway I can.
July 18th, 2008 at 11:23 am
I go 2 my families sick. Just as they give me their cold I give it back to them.
July 20th, 2008 at 10:04 am
While I was a nanny, I would get sick occasionally just like any other person. I would try to call as soon as possible, either the night before or early in the morning and tell them I am sick, the nature of the sickness and see what they think. Many times they would tell me not to come if it was potentially a cold, flu, stomach bug etc. and often they would pay me for that day or at least half that day. If they were sick or their daughter was sick, they would do me the courtesy of calling me and telling me not to come, and of course would still pay me.
I always thought this was fair, even if they didnt pay me (which only happened maybe once or twice) because I worked essentially full time for them, but we did it all under the table. I had no taxes taken out, and they paid me well enough ($11.hr) and I had a good relationship with them (we still make plans together even though I no longer work as a nanny). However, if I was hired by a nanny with a contract and it was expected taxes would be taken out and its a full time year long commitment, I would expect a couple sick days be allowed, a set number, just like any other regular salary position because life happens, we get sick, usually because of the cuties we spend all day with, thats just how it is!
I believe being a nanny is special, and the conditions are often different from regular daytime jobs because they rely solely on you! Its not like a daycare center where there are other teachers, or subs, its just you and if you call 5 min before your supposed to be there and say, sorry Im sick, your really putting them in a bind. Be considerate and hopefully, they will be to : )
July 21st, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I have never been a full time nanny, but I would hope that if I was, I would be allowed a few paid sick days. As a college student, I have to budget my money very carefully. As if feeling sick isn’t bad enough, I would also have to worry about what expenses I would have to cut back on that week. Also, would it be fair to show up to work feeling sick and possibly infecting the children as well? Younger children especially, are extremely uncomfortable and miserable when they’re sick and I would hate for a family to resent me for the hours of sleep they missed out on because little Tommy was up coughing all night. Day cares and nursery schools and breeding grounds for germs that cause children to catch colds etc. Just because nannies are older, doesn’t mean they are immune to germs! I would feel put down if a family didn’t offer to compensate me any money (even an hour’s worth of pay to be able to buy some benadryll would suffice!) for a sickness I most likely caught from their sick child. I hope that all of the nannies out there will continue to use their granted sick days responsibly so that more families will continue to treat them well.
July 23rd, 2008 at 8:39 pm
I have been a part time nanny for three years. The family that I nanny for pays me sick days, within reason. I have also received several weeks of paid vacation! It is just one of the perks of working for a great family!
July 26th, 2008 at 3:53 am
I think that nannies should be given a certain amount of sick days for the year. Everybody gets sick and you do not want a sick nanny taking care of your kids. I think if the nanny takes advantage of the situation, well then that is a different story.
That’s why giving a certain amount of sick days should work and if she goes over she does not get paid.
Babysitting is a job like any other and it should have the same perks or close to it as a regular job.
July 26th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
In my nannying experience I have not had paid sick days, but the family that I work with has been very understanding the few times that I have needed to go home because of illness or have not been able to come in. They know that I am very commited to them and that if I tell them that I’m not feeling well then I really am not feeling well to the point that I wouldn’t be able to give their child the care that he deserves.
That said, I think it would be wonderful to have paid sick days. Perhaps some would take advantage, but many nannys are very committed to the families that they work with and give them their all. Paying your caregiver for a needed sick day, especially one that you know is committed to your family, should be a given, I think, although I don’t think that a lot of families would even consider it, and I certainly wouldn’t require it from a family I worked for. I don’t know so much about occasional babysitting, but I do wish that nannying would more often have more of the “perks” of a regular job. It might make it more doable for truly wonderful caregivers to continue to nanny if they had benefits.
I can’t believe that anyone would say that “if they’re so picky they should go get a regular job.” Caring for children is a calling for me, and probably for many others, and it IS a real job. It is difficult, and requires a lot more from you than most “regular” jobs require, in terms of being constantly alert and working without breaks, as well as the attachment that is formed with the family that you work with. As a nanny you are often responsible on your own for the children’s care for many hours at a time, and you cannot ever just leave work, as someone in a “regular” job might when they needed or wanted to do.
August 7th, 2008 at 10:15 am
nmbr1nanny
I have been a nanny for 5 yrs and worked in day care centers before that. It is a REAL job, nannies and child care worker are not slaves!! We have worker’s rights just like any full time job. I can’t believe some people seem to think that a nanny is their personal servant and has to work non-stop without the benefit of having time off when they are truely sick. If a parent was very sick, they would be home and very likely receiving sick pay themselves. A nanny or caregiver is no different!
August 7th, 2008 at 11:47 am
I am a nanny for two family’s and they bought offer me “Sick Days”. Although I have been with the family almost two years and only taken 6 days off from them. And also get salary so I get paid anyways.
August 7th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
I think that nannies, as opposed to just sitters should get sick days. If you are a sitter, working a few days a week, a few hours, or just making your schedule as you go it is not the families duty, nor is it your right to get paid sick days, you wouldn’t if you were holding a part time job most anywhere else. On the other hand, full-time nannies who devote the majority of their time to the families and the kids do deserve that time if they are truly ill. I don’t think it is right to have a certain number of alloted sick days because then they are more likely to be abused, rather the family should have some give when the nanny is in fact sick.
For me I have found that giving the family the option of wether they want me to come in or not is a great thing. They are thankful that you are thinking of them and not just leaving them in the lurch and because of that they generally either won’t want to get sick themselves or get this kids sick or they want you to get better faster so you will take less time off so they usually just give you the time off, pay included.
August 8th, 2008 at 10:06 am
Hi, I have been a professional Nanny for 24yrs. I get paid sick days, paid vacation, and paid personal days. I would not work for a family that did not give me these few benefits. As a professional of any career deserves!! I am very close with the families that I work for, but the job will end with ME having a huge loss. Getting benefits for my job is the gentle reminder needed to keep the employer/employee relationship lines clear! I also receive a bonus at the holiday time and several small tokens of appriciation throughout the year. I receive a salary of a Professioal($17-$20hr.)level and in return do professional work and do a great job helping to care for the children!!
August 25th, 2008 at 9:37 am
This is for Laurie…Sorry I couldn’t get past your comment…First of all I do get paid for sick days, just as I did when I worked what you call a regular job. The people I work for get sick time and personal time. When they take vacation time or sick time and they don’t need my services for that time than why should I be penalized. I am willing to work and if they are home or on vacation, than I lose money. This would be unacceptable in any other industry why should childcare be any different? For your information, I worked other jobs in my 54 yrs of life and this is one of the hardest jobs I have ever had. I love what I do, but don’t ever say it isn’t a REAL JOB. I don’t get an hr lunch or breaks during the day. When one the the babies are sick or having a hard time teething, I am there to comfort them. Just because I love these babies doesn’t mean it isn’t a real job!! The parents of the babies I care for certainly understand how hard I work and appreciate everything I do for their children. I care for 3 children , a 3yr old and 1yr old twins all boys, so I definately work. These parent can’t put a price on peace of mind knowing that their children are being well cared for and they. I, also am fortunate to have found such wonderful people who truly understand what a difficult JOB I have.
September 23rd, 2008 at 6:40 am
We hired a nany about 6 years ago and she was with us for 1 1/2 years. She recently came back and has been working with us for 2 years now. We have a special needs child that she helps me care for who is in school all day. She has gotten very lazy and calls in sick all the time. She gets all Federal holidays off and at least 2 weeks paid vacation. We have to give her the vacation when we take ours due to our circumstances. She now wants a 3rd week paid. She spends a lot of time in her room and less time on the house. She is however great with our son. Do we give her the 3rd week paid or do we ask her to take it without pay since I will need to hire someone to help me the days she is away?