Received Friday, October 19, 2007- Rant
I was looking for a nanny and having little luck with the agency I was using, I announced my intention to use Craig's list. There were frowns, fearful expression and eye rolls. So I wanted to take this forum to clear this up. If you are looking for a nanny, you should feel free to use Craig's list because the agencies do. Look here. This nanny agency won't mention it's name, just the jobs it has available. This agency lists the candidates they have available, note that one prospective nanny is working in "Scaresdale" in horrible conditions. This "agency" is serving up European nannies, should they be your fancy. This agency is appealing to families. This agency lets us know that back in 1998, they were voted best agency. Back in 1998, we actually may have needed to use agencies. These days agencies are 100 percent irrelevant. You can do background checks, credit checks, verify phone numbers and addresses all online. You can check your own references, then verify that the reference actually lives where they say they do-all using free Internet technology. Placing an ad on Craig's List is free. Do you think that the family using an agency to find a couple to work in their home is aware of this ad? And I have to wonder which agency posted this under the headline "Are You Scared":
Are you scared to hire a stranger to watch your pride and joy. People that waste your time and do not show up for a interview? Not able to perform background checks the proper way. To to be able to tell if the reference is a liar. Because you are not trained. I thought your child is the most precious thing to you. Then use a professional service like I did. And stop wasting you time. Please be careful.
These are just the agencies that advertised today, before noon- on Craigs List.
Myself, I used an agency once. An agency located two miles from my home. They sent me a psychotic housekeeper with memory problems and assured me she had a childcare background.
No one in their right mind would have ever left her alone with their children, not for a second. Fortunately I realized that during her first trial day. I opted out of using that agency, but would you believe the agency placed psychotic housekeeper in a home with three children under 3? This despite the fact that I informed the agency how clueless she was and listed three potentially life threatening situations that occurred in that single day. So yes, be careful. Be very careful when it comes to children. But I would be more concerned about the deceitful practices of agencies than I would be about using CL to find potential candidates. -Liz
33 comments:
Liz,
The psycho housekeeper who leaves buckets of ammonia around the house? Let the 3 year old play with the grill tools? Didn't she also give the 3 year old a bag of semi sweet chocolate chips as a snack?
Huh?
What I really want to know is the name of the agency that is 2 miles from your house that sent you the psychotic lady, so we all can decide for ourselves not to use it. Thanks.
It's 1:40pm again here. I checked the ad links that you posted for us, OP, and most of the ads are so poorly written and have lots of spelling errors. Who would trust these agencies to evaluate a candidate anyway, with their error filled ads. Their ads are such a poor reflection on themselves. Thank you for your interesting post.
The O.P. is right. The agencies post on Craigslist, because its cheaper than them placing a ad in the paper. I know a couple of agencies that do that where I am. Advanced Nannies is one, Noble Nanny is another, and Apex Agency is another one.
lol she also conveniently leaves out that avoiding an agency keeps her skinflint booty free and clear of taxes and a paper trail not mention a big fee. Agencies have thousand of incredible nannies, don't listen to this cheapo.
I found a nanny and she has been with us 3 months now. She makes 58k on the books and in three months will have the same insurance as our family. She gets two weeks of paid vacation, her birthday and all stock market holidays off. I was not looking to save money. I don't need anyone trying to "sell" me someone who is not a worthy candidate. I speak from experience as it has happened before. The head of the agency personally vouched for the psychotic housekeeper saying how long she had known her. And the worst thing is after I fired the housekeeper, she showed up on my doorstep asking for a second chance. Crying. I was as polite as I could be and got her to leave. She asked me if I had spoken to my husband about firing me and I was evasive. I did not wish to give her any additional information. She met my husband for four minutes during our interview at the house (which preceded her trial day). That same night, she phoned my husband (crying) and promised she would do better and begged for a second chance. Keep in mind, I had not officially hired her. We were paying her to work a trial week to see how things went and she revealed her psychotic, careless and unschooled ways on the first day. The woman at the agency, her response? "That surprises me". As it turns out, I investigated the psychotic housekeeper and her written reference and found out she had behaved psychotically at her previous job and was also fired. She had never taken care of the two children as the letter said. And the woman who ran the agency was all too well aware of the psychotic nanny's behavior.
I think it is like everything else, if you get an agency's name out of a phone book, you are running a risk.
Ask everyone you know with a nanny what agency they used. If you see a great nanny, ask her who placed her. It pays to ask around - a lot.
I used an agency. The agency spent five minutes telling me about horror stories that came by way of people using Craigs List. They spoke about how their pre screening ensured a high caliber of candidates. I do agree that prescreening can save you from having an awful person in your house, but prescreen yourself. You know what you are looking for. Don't allow anyone to shape and mold a candidate who does well through an interview.
AND Make sure that if you use an agency, that every person the nanny agency suggests as a fit for you has already had her references and background check done. MAKE SURE OF THIS!
Unscrupulous agencies dont believe in their candidates so they wont do the legwork unless they know they have someone ready to hire the candidate. Saves money.
Liz is awesome.
Please remember that there are a lot of really good Nanny agencies out there. It is like any other business, you must sort through and research to find the good ones. As a professional Nanny for over twelve years, I have also found that I am better protected by going through an agency when it comes to those things that lots of "Craiglist" families don't want to deal with, such as paying taxes and providing benefits. For those of you in the San Francisco Bay Area I would reccommend Aunt Ann's Agency. They are the real deal - professional, friendly, and put their candidates through numerous interviews, background and medical checks BEFORE their resume is even submitted to any family. They also stay in contact with the families and nannies and will jump in to mediate if there are any issues to be worked out.
The good agencies are out there!
The only person who is going to provide loving, competent care to your child in your absence or alongside you is a nanny with a huge, kind heart, compassion, empathy, sense of humor, sense of responsibility, work ethic, someone who takes pride in her job and takes pride in being a part of your children's lives. Sadly, this is less than 1/2 of one percent of the nannies out there.
PS If you find her, be good to her.
Life isn't the same without her.
And this doesn't scare any of you away from hiring strangers to raise your children instead of just doing it the tried and true old fashioned way...doing it yourself?
Good Evening ladies, I am new to this arena, I am actually a Mature woman, who is looking to start a career as a Professional Nanny in the NYC area. I know that I have a lot to offer, including US citizenship, clean driving record as well as a clean credit rating. I have gone on craig's list to offer my services, to no avail in the past month. I have no experience working for a family on a FT basis, but did raise a family of my own, and I babysit PT for a wonderful child in the evenings. Any suggestions from parents and Nanny's? Can you recommend a reputable agency or another site such as craig's list in the Manhattan area? I walk by my local park and just shake my head at what I sometimes see going on, and for the life of me, I cant understand how come I won't be considered for a position, Any suggestions how to overcome not having FT childcare experience. I am happy to have found this site, the next time I witness something inappropriate, rather than shaking my head , i can actually post on this site. Thank you for this opportunity.
Oh the agencies must want to kill you!
I graduated college in May 2008. I was raised by a stay at home mother and a nanny. My father was often away, working or..chasing other pursuits. My mom and I have the best relationship. I don't resent that she took some time for herself. I had one nanny for ten years, a nanny who is still a vital part of our family. Try not to be so judgmental. I know alot of people who had nannies growing up and the nannies enriched their lives. I was fortunate that my mother didn't work but I know alot of women who did work and their daughters are so proud of them. After your children grow up, you want to maintain a good relationship with them; one based on respect and truth and you also should be able to have a life that makes you happy. I hate to judge but I do wonder about you who post such venimous comments on every post about working mothers and nannies.
I also used an Agency- they sent horrid canidates! I ended up finding my Mary Poppins on Craigs List. She is educated, a professional with a nursing background as well as a former Pre K teacher among other things. We were lucky she decided on our family as she was highly sought after with amazing refs and plenty of options. She has been with us almost 2 years and is like a part of the family as well as a close friend. I read about this site on her blog- interesting stuff!
Amen, 7:33.
7:20 - try enannysource.com
7:20 Try sittercity.com, posting your hours available. You might not get a FT nanny position right away, but a few good occasional or temporary sitting jobs can get you the good feedback you need to be considered for a FT position by some of the families on the site.
I LOVED Greataupair.com - for nannies too :)
Denise
what is to love about great au pair?
they suck balls. they allow parents to slander nannies who decide not to take their jobs. and post pictures of them.
great au pair sucks balls.
well I guess they sucked 4 u :P
I think since sites such as Craigslist and other boards with postings for nanny jobs have become available, you will find that more and more high quality nannies will be using them. Nannies have just as many complaints about agencies as parents, so don't assume top nannies only look through agencies. I once interviewed with a woman straight out of The Nanny Diaries, and when I turned down the offer, the agency got very pissy.
I found my current job with a wonderful family through answering an ad they posted on Craigslist.
I had very specific things I was looking for in a job, and I was able to vet jobs that didn't fit my criteria, rather than be pressured by an agency to take a job I didn't want.
NYC Nanny
12:00 am, I wish you'd regale us w/ the story of your interview with the Nanny Diaries employer clone! I loved that book. Not in NYC so that particular subculture is really foreign to me. It's hard to believe that there are people as weird as that family in real life!
11:08, have you actually used Sitter City? I have been browsing it, at the suggestion of an online friend, looking for very part time help...like a couple hours a week. Just wondering if it worked out well for you.
Siitercity.com worked well for me. I wasn't looking for a full-time job though, I'm a full-time student so I just wanted part time work. However, I found several great families by using sittercity so I recommend it!
Sitter City used to be awesome. It was for Americans, usually college students or college educated. Now it is loaded up with a bunch of UNEDUCATED people who barrage you with emails. They never meet the qualifications. The person who founded Sitter City needs to go back to her original format before it goes under. No one is going to hire 60 percent of the crappy people on their posing as nannies. Why not retool your sight to feature the kind of nannies and sitters that used to be on there? Fresh faced, fun, people who drive, swim, alot of them had CPR, first aid and even lifeguard experience. I dont know how anyone has a good experience with sitter city now. It jumped the shark two years ago.
Thanks for the sitter city info from both of you. Maybe I just need to talk to a few potential babysitters and see what I find. While I am only looking for someone a hour or so here and there, it is still my children I am leaving with them and so they still have to be up to par. Thanks again.
This is 11:08. I used sittercity.com when I was looking for a full time (7:00-3:30) temporary for 6 weeks last summer. The person I found is actually a teacher in my school district and lives less than 10 minutes away. I still use her now as a once a week after school tutor. I also found two other good people I have used as sitters (one is a retired teacher in a neighboring district and the other is a graduate student training to work with children with special needs). I never had anyone respond to my ad who was illegal although there is some variance in the quality of the people. Because parents can rate the candidates they meet (and sitters/nannies can rate the families), I wouldn't think the site would attract illegals or deadbeat families. The site has both people looking for short term/occasional work and full time nannies on it. I've been pleased and have recommended it to several of my neighbors who have also started using it.
I don't understand why a housekeeper must have a childcare background, and I don't understand why OP is assuming that the housekeeper should be keeping her children safe. Did you hire a housekeeper expecting her to do nanny duties?
A nanny usually does not do housekeeping or a housekeeper does not do nannying. However there are some positions that are nanny/housekeeper positions. Most often they are 85 percent housekeeping, the mother is a SAHM and on occasion and for brief periods the nanny/housekeeper will watch the children. In this case, the OP interviewed a housekeeper who had a glowing letter of reference from another family she supposedly worked as a nanny/housekeeper for. The letter was absolutely false. The housekeeper worked in a home where there were multiple nannies and the housekeeper was never allowed to be alone with the children for a second. The housekeeper had no contact with the children except to pass them by in the hallway. Liz did not know this until it was too late. The lady who ran the agency knew the letter was a fraud, in fact she sent the housekeeper to go get it. I know the story.
So if you, Mel, know so much, why can you not tell us what agency this person is from??? Please do! I asked earlier but for some reason Liz never told us.
If it is not in NYC at least tell us what town the agency is in.
Thank you.
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