Monday

Joyce in Raleigh/Durham

Received Monday, December 18, 2006
Nanny Joyce in Raleigh/Durham area spends entire day on myspace.com, not watching kids. Neglect led to injury of young infant that she tried to get away with (didnt call parents). Computer logs show the days she was with kids she was literally on the computer from the minute the parents left to 30 mins before they were expected home. This was a nanny of 7 years experience, screened by a nanny service, 6 references!! Parents: check your computer logs! Put unbreakable passwords on your laptops, your desktops, everything. Who wants to pay $600 a week for someone to ignore kids, put their wellbeing in jeopardy, so that they can chit chat with their myspace buddies????? Parents be wary!!

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

That's what you get for $600 a week, dumbass. Red Alert parents, a nanny with 7 years experience doesn't work for a measley $600 a week. If a nanny is willing to work for $600 a week, you best ask yourself "WHY".

Anonymous said...

I am not sure how Myspace works, but could it be that your nanny logs on but is not at the computer the entire time she's logged on? I have instant messenger on at work all the time but that does not mean I spend the entire time chatting.

Anonymous said...

I think that 600 a week is pretty good pay for a nanny. With that being said, I think this post is very one-sided. The problem with a post like this and all posts on sites like this is that they are complete and utter hearsay. Keep in mind there are two sides to every story.
I am a parent as well as a past childcare provider, and it is possible that the nanny was logged into a site and just didn't log out or forgot to.
I was once babysitting for a family and they had told me I could feel free to use their computer whenever the child was sleeping. I went onto a nanny/parent blog site and read and responded to blogs that they later went to and assumed I'd written myself about them! I hadn't, I had merely read them and copied and pasted them in replies. (all blogs were anonymous, only way you can see who posted them is by going into someone's email account.)
They then went and told other families they knew about these false accusations. I was very upset by it since I had always taken very good care of their child and had never left the baby unattended. We live in a very small community and she really did some damage to my reputation. Luckily, the people who already knew me didn't believe her and are still great references for me, helping me get the job I have now.
It just goes to show you that you cannot always believe what you hear (or read!) This nanny could be being unfairly accused. Like I said, this is my take as a parent and a past babysitter. (and for the record I was making way less than 600 per week and I have a college degree and many years experience.)

Anonymous said...

$600 a week is pathetic. It is the bottom of the barrel starting salary in NYC. Not a salary for a nanny with a reported seven years of experience.

Anonymous said...

oh sure you did. you were such an ace babysitter that you spent your down time on a parent and child blog. give it a rest! I aint buyin' what yo sellin.

Anonymous said...

I don't know about any of this whether it is true or not. I do know that I made the mistake of leaving myself signed in to my email account throughout the day on my home computer which was on. I am a stay at home mom with a full time housekeeper. I found out too late that the housekeeper was much more computer savy then she ever let on. If you knew my housekeeper, you too would be surprised to learn how proficient she was. She would go into my email account and forward to herself my email correspondence. She would also delete the outgoing mail after she sent it so there was no record of it.
This is an individual who had worked for me for 15 months, and never would I have guessed she knew anything about computers. She also updated her ipod at my expense. I didn't even know that she had an ipod. (That would have been a clue as to her proficiency). And this is a housekeeper, so I would definitely listen to this person's advice and passowrd protect your computer if you have people working in your home. And always sign off and out of your email program! And clear your most recently visited sites. When this finally came to reveal itself my housekeeper was able to throw at me some very personal information she obtained by frequently checking on the sites that I had visited.
A computer is a diary. Whether you know it or not. It should be under lock and key! And no one who gets in your business is going to let on until it is too late and it will end up costing you $33,000 to quietly send her on her way.

Anonymous said...

they are right she my just be logged in but not by the computer. I do the samething some time. I the kids are sleeping and you are on the computer and one of them gets up I leave my computer and usually don't git back to it for hours. so if I don't logged off then it would look like I was on all day when I am not. As for those nannies that are computer smart they could just delete the cookies on the computer and the history for the day and no one would know.
I have my own personnal computer.All who use Mozilla firefox beware that people can git all your pass words if they are on your computer and know how. use internet explorer.

A first time nanny in nyc live-in starts at about $350 unless they know that I should git more. It all depends on who you work for. I know alot of people in the ny area that don't want to pay more then $400. Note to all make sure you pay on the books.

Anonymous said...

$600/week might be pathetic in NYC but in Durham, North Carolina it's pretty damn good (as the cost of living her is MUCH less)... If you're going to leave an ignorant, degrading comment - please make sure it's accurany

Anonymous said...

Anonymous 12:31,
Why would she be lying??? What makes you think that it's not possible for her to be spending her downtime on a site just like..... THIS ONE??? Isn't that when YOU'RE here??

Anonymous said...

I have been a reader of this blog for quite some time, and this is the first post I will respond to.

I am a 24/year old nanny, and I have been taking care of children since I was a teenager.
I am currently looking for a new position as the position that I most recently had has laid me off due to their having to shut their business down. In looking for a new position, because i'm searching solely for a live in; i've had to screen out the families i know that i would not "match" with. Recently, i went on an interview, and i mentioned that i spend a lot of my "off" time on the computer, communicating with friends/family. When i mentioned this, (keep in mind i have my own computer) the father of the children asked what kind of sites I like to go to. This question kinda bothered me, but I do understand that if i was using THEIR computer they'd have a right to know if i was going to off-the-wall sites. So, I reminded them that i wouldn't be asking to use thier computer, that i have my own; and that it WOULD be off-hours that i'd be on the computer, unless maybe the baby was sleeping and i needed to respond to emails or something.
The next question came from the older child. SHe was 14. She said "well, i know how to hack into computers, and with the last nanny she was fired because i found out she had a myspace and was bitching about the amount of work she had to do here and i emailed it all to mom and dad and she got fired!"
You could imagine my reaction. I was waiting for the parents to stammer out some kind of explanation, appology, something!.. but they sat there. I said "Is this something that you encourage?" to the parents, and the father, without missing a beat, says "Well we feel if the nanny isn't going to any bad sites or putting any bad information on the internet, then she shouldn't have anything to worry about."

Also, one weekend i went away and left my computer on in my room. I came back from the weekend and realized that a whole bunch of my bookmarked pages were no longer in my favorites and that my computer had been generally searched as evident in the many open pages that whoever it was didn't bother to close.

... so basically, it's a two way street. I'm STILL reeling from that interview. lol.

Also, about the 600/week thing.. Well, i've applied to a lot of different positions in a lot of different areas (because when you're live in it doesnt' really matter much where you're located), and it's been very rare that even a nanny as experienced as myself has been offered more than $450 for a position.. so anyone who knows where these 600/week jobs are, feel free to point them out to me!!!

Anonymous said...

What IS a decent salary for a full-time liveout nanny in NYC? I have over 10 years experience and am making $575 a WEEK.

Anonymous said...

$575 a week with ten years experience? That must be some line of bull your employers feed you to keep you in line. Unheard of. In NYC, a good, professional, legal, driving, educcated nanny makes $1k a week EASY

Anonymous said...

The OP was talking about a nanny with 7 (SEVEN) years of experience. Not a first time nanny. And a first time live in nanny in NYC does not make $350 a week! Not even if she doesn't speak a word of English! Who in the F do you work for? Word to the wise, if you can't spell "get" and it's all about "gitting" you aint gonna git much because no one is going to pay for some uneducated ignorant schlub to take care of their kids.

Anonymous said...

you know a lot of people in new york that don't WANT to pay more than $400. You make me laugh. If you hire someone without experience or references, sure you can pay them $399. The people you know and yourself=you sound desperately poor. I suggest you put your children in daycare. I would never work for a family that wasn't of substantial means and didn't employ other household staff. With all the money in the the NY metro area, there is no reason to slum it with some bitch bozo in the hood when you can make boo yah most anywhere you want. Good luck to you. And you're $400 nanny.

Anonymous said...

Haha, I sort of thought the same thing!

Anonymous said...

I am kind of blown away by the fact that someone who sats "git" knows how to sign on to a computer.

Funk & Wagnall's Baby!

Anonymous said...

I think the poste who keeps saying that no professional nanny will work for less than 600-1000 weekly should research the rates in other states. the cost of living differs from state to state, and so does childcare, real estate, etc.
this person sounds very uneducated. in reality, I doubt anyone would pay her even the minimun wage. she probably lives in her parent's house and doesn't work at all...

Anonymous said...

This post is very similar in writing style to one below that is also from Durham NC. It was also about someone who wasn't actually the poster's nanny, and it gave her first name. I think these are fake posts.

Anonymous said...

maybe not fake. maybe with someone with a nanny axe to grind. these are also the only posts from that state! and both written raleigh/durham. hmmmmm. prove yourself, poster. state your case.

Anonymous said...

It's so funny that the posters who criticize spelling, grammar, or perceived lack of education invariably have spelling and grammar errors in their own posts. Hahahaha!!!

Anonymous said...

Hahaha!! Yeah, let's make fun of bad grammar!! You sure are perfect youself, 819. And fuuunneeey, too.

Anonymous said...

I live in Raleigh/Durham and have never posted here before, but I have to say that $600 per week is a FORTUNE for a nanny. I have never heard of anyone paying their nanny that much, here or elsewhere. Our nanny made $400 a week for 2 kids and that was a lot. The offensive poster sounds as arrogant and uppity as the people who she claims to be employed by, making "boo ya" (which I seriously doubt). I certainly would not be paying that kind of money for her to be setting that example to my kids.

Anonymous said...

I just filled out the family application for a nanny agency on Tuesday. The starting live out salary for 2 children is 650 per week. NYC. I mean of course I require experience and references, but there are nannies that make a thousand a week. I just can't afford to hire one of them!

Annie said...

I was a nanny in Raleigh/Durham for five years before relocating to Atlanta and I made right around $650/wk before taxes. That's pretty standard for the area. I make substantially more now (with 5+ years of experience and a college degree) but it's definitely plausible that a nanny with seven years of experience in R-D would make around $600/wk.

It's not acceptable for a nanny to spend all day on the computer, but I'll ditto the earlier commentor who mentioned that computer logs can be deceiving. My previous employers were PARANOID about how much time I spent on the computer. I was allowed 45 minutes during naptime. No exceptions. And they checked the log daily...which was fine, except that sometimes I'd be online for five minutes and then the phone would ring or the laundry would need to be folded, etc. and I'd leave the computer but forget to log out. And then I'd be subjected to a scathing note the next morning about not following the rules, neglecting my charges, etc. It was infuriating and demeaning.

So I would just ask that parents talk to their nannies about their computer use before immediately assuming they are spending all day glued to the monitor.

Anonymous said...

I had a nanny for 7 months. She was on myspace pretty much anytime that she was home. We checked the history and she logged on like a hundred times a day. Yet she could not find the time to do anything else around the house or even take the children out for fresh air. The rest of the time that she was not on myspace she was sleeping while my 4 year old ran around the house by herself.

When she did take them out, it would be to run her own errands in the Bronx or Harlem where I told her not to take my children to. And she would leave them alone in the car.

She also was getting paid to do other people's laundry in my house. As soon as we left the house in the morning she would bring bags and bags of laundry and do them while on myspace.

When I confronted her all she could do was apologize for making our lives miserable and then quit. She couldn't even deny it because she knew that we treated her really well and she took advantage and was a really, really bad nanny.

Another one was the same way. She was on myspace all day and when we checked we found that she had a website with provoctive pictures of her in her underwear and bra and called herself "Hot Ass Trini" with a tag line that flashed "Naughty." This was 5 days after she started. I got rid of her immediately after finding the site without even telling her why and she knew exactly why as she had NOTHING to say but take her stuff and vacate my house.

So, yes a parent has every right to know what site their nanny goes to no matter who's computer they are using. Apparently my nanny was a call girl on her spare time. Who wants a hooker living in their home????

Anonymous said...

here in palm beach county florida, nannies typically make 15-20 dollars an hour, depending on live in/live out and responsibilities. i currently work part time and bring home 500 cash each week, no taxes-no way. there is a high demand for nannies down here and the pay is pretty aggressive, i've seen many positions where pay is 800-1200 weekly. i'm in school also, otherwise i would be working one of those jobs!! and yes, i do get on myspace and check my email and stuff when i have down time, kids sleeping.. i do erase history and clear cookies just in case. be smart!