Received Thursday, September 18, 2008. - Perspective & Opinion
Hello. I love this website so much. I have it on my favorites and check it out at least twice a day. Being a nanny can be lonely at times, especially when I don't know any other nannies to relate to. It's good to know I am not alone in this!
I have a question I hope you can help me with. I live in San Diego CA and I baby-sit for a few families, about 8-12 hours weekly. I really need the jobs, so I post ads on craigslist and only ask $8/hr for one child, $10/two. Sometimes I have to drive about 30-35 miles round trip to the homes. I am 39, have 3 teen-age children I have raised very well, I do not bring along any of my own children to work and I have my Associate Degree. I am currently in school at night to finish up my Gen. Ed. to transfer to a University someday. I always make sure the child's toys are picked up and any dishes used are washed as well. I do not smoke and I take very good care of the child.
My problem is my friends and family are angry that I am charging only $8/hour w/my education, age and experience. I do not have CPR/First Aid nor do I have fingerprints on record anywhere, however I would like to obtain both in the future. I also am open to any background checks as well. The reason I charge $8/hour is because in my area I see on Craigslist the other nannies/sitters are asking between $10-20 hour. Hardly any advertise for less than $10/hr unless they provide the care in their own homes (SAHM'S). I am a single mother and a student and really need the money so I feel if I charge a bit less, then maybe I will have a better chance to find a job. I always secretly hope though, that the parents will toss in an extra dollar or two an hour once they see how good I am. People are telling me these families are taking advantage of me by paying me so little, but I am the one who advertises $8. They tell me that even if I do, no family should be paying me that regardless of what I agree to. They compare it to a depressed man who is in the street throwing away all his savings....yes, he is making the offer by throwing his money in the street, but are the folks who take it taking advantage of a vulnerable and disadvantaged person?
Occasionally when I speak to other nannies at the park and playgrounds, they practically laugh in my face when I say I make $8/hr. They say I should at least make $10-12hr...if I am driving to the home and providing individualized care since my own kids do not come along. What do you all think?? I would love your input. I will seriously consider ALL opinions and responses.
53 comments:
I charge 10 and people yell at me for not charging 12. Trust me,charge more. If you are good, you will still get jobs. If you need an excuse to raise your price with your current clients, blame the gas prices... thats how I justified a raise with my nanny job.
if you are not happy with $8 then try to advertise a higher hourly rate. If you find jobs, great. If not return to your $8 jobs if you need them. If you want to make more you need to ask for it!
I would tell them that you really underestimated the cost of living with all this driving on such high gas prices and see what they have to offer. If they are a great family to work for, they are worth taking a little bit less pay.
By the way, I am looking for a job in Manhattan for next year, does anyone know what I should ask for, for a live-out salary, full time? I have two years of live-in nanny experience in CT. I don't know what the going rate is around here either, really.
I think you should definitely be charging at least $15/hr. for one kid. I live in San Francisco and that is the going rate, so I'm sure it's similar in San Diego. I work part-time as a nanny while going to school and I charge $16/hr. When I got this job (from Craigslist) I basically had no nanny experience and had only babysat a few times for friends. So, with your experience, you should definitely be making a lot more money. It can't hurt to try asking for more. Unfortunately, you are kind of locked into the lower rate with the families you are currently working for, but talk to some other families. If you have more confidence in yourself and in what you're worth, I think that would help to. Make sure to talk up all your experience when you meet with the new families and firmly state that you charge $15/hr.! If you believe you are worth that then they will too.
I don't think people are taking advantage of you, that is what you are saying you charge. I do think you should charge more and tell your current families that you are increasing your rates due to the cost of living rising. I would hope the families would be okay with that.
You could definitely charge more, but not, the families are not taking advantage of you for giving you what you asked for.
Sarah, if you have 2 years prior experience, good references, decent education, etc. you should be able to make about $600 at a minimum for a 40 hour week. You will easily find jobs going up from there to about $1000/week, but with more money frequently there's a bit more of a crazy factor--although there are many happy exceptions
Do you feel taken advantage of? If so then you need to raise your rate. If you are happy charging what you charge then stop talking about it to people who make you feel bad. If you are not making enough to live on though then perhaps you need to look into charging more instead of just hoping that a parent will decide to throw you some extra dollars here or there. If you are as good as others in your area then you can if you wish charge the same. (And on the CPR note, if you are asked at an interview for CPR qualifications, tell them you would be happy to take a course if they would like to pay for it. You haven't done it before because you haven't been able to afford it. Most employers will be happy to do this.)
OP
What I think you should do is tell the families that you currently work for that you would like to raise your rate to $10/hr because of the cost of gas, living, etc.
(any more than that and you may lose them)
Then get your CPR certification and whatever else you need to actually qualify as a professional nanny and then start charging what the going rate is for qualified nannies in your area.
Good luck!
I am also a nanny in San Diego and I do think you are being taken advantage of. You can not live on $8/hr is San Diego. It sounds like you are well educated, experienced nanny. I know plenty of families that would gladly pay more if they know their kids are in good hands. Start posting on Craigslist for more money and see what happens. You deserve it!
OP, the poeple who accept your offer on Craig's List are not taking advantage at all. They are buying what you are selling for the price you offered to sell it for. That's all. But you could probably raise your current fa,ilies to $9.00, maybe $10.00, without them batting an eyelash if they are truly fond of you and value good care for their children. One of my babysitters once went from charging above market rates to even further above market rates...and I happily paid her what she asked because I wanted to have the best babysitter. And I did not begrudge her wanting to earn all she was worth one tiny bit.
Your marketing strategy is to charge a little less to get a volume of business....like WalMart. It probably works too. Otherwise, you will just be one among many on Craig's List that people are sifting through and choosing at random. I see what you are doing...but at the same time you are having to work extra hard to make the same as other nannies who work less hours.
Now that you are established, you can probably rely on word of mouth advertising and raise your rates to where they should be. In my old neighborhood there were a couple of very good babysitters who charged top dollar...and they were always busy, and whoever had snagged them for a Saturday night felt very lucky to have them.
With gas prices, and the miles that you are driving, I would charge a BASE rate of at least the cost of gas to get you there and back, then probably around $10/hour on top of that. I can understand why you don't want to charge more because then you wouldn't get as many jobs. You deserve more, but it is up to you whether or not you ask for it.
As for charging that base rate, some people will say that their employers do not pay them for the gas costs of driving to and from work. Well, they are not making $8/hour. Say you drive 30 miles round trip and your car gets 20 mpg and you are there for six hours, and gas costs $5/gallon. With gas costs, you end up taking home only around $40 of the $48 you were supposed to be making. If you charge, say, a $10 base rate, you are not only keeping that 8 bucks, you're earning two more. Charge a $15 base rate for six hours of work and you've essentially bumped your pay rate (after gas costs) up from $8 to $9/hour.
Good luck!
Oh, I meant, HERE in TN, I would charge $10/hour for occasional babysitting, but I have no idea what the costs of childcare are like in CA.
From another angle, you may actually be scaring people off w/the lower price. Some people think "If it's too good to be true..." They may be wondering why your fee is so low. I personally have found that the more I charge the more I'm wanted. It may sound crazy, but when I'm really busy, I'll raise my rates trying to weed out the really interested, committed families, and they never bat an eye about.
Well, you make it hard on the other nannies posting so low. So of course most families will skip ads from nannies looking to make $13 and up. When they can get some one to work for minimum wage.
That was the problem I ran into when I tried getting a nanny job in LA. Even with all the experience I had the agency said honestly most parents will just hire someone over the border. Pretty sad. I guess if they can save $200 a week they don't care who is in their home.
nnj,
While thats sadly true in a lot of cases...it's not everybody who will do that. And who wants to work for people like that anyway?
Find a good family who cares about their kids, and they will be more likely to care about people in general...which will include you. YOu only need a handful of great contacts who pay really well to make a decent living.
Just to clarify...When I'm that busy, I'm not advertising. I raise my rates to word-of-mouth phone calls and/or emails when I have more than enough work.
yeah I am not looking for a job now. That was in the past. When I was thinking to move back out to LA
OP, you deserve more. Even at the 'going' rate I'm sure you'll get lots of calls. Or, price yourself just under it if you feel you must. But I think the posters who have mentioned getting work by word of mouth are right. You sound like a lovely person, so word will get around I'm sure. Don't sell yourself short! I don't say this in any way to diminish the work housekeepers do, but where I live, you cannot find a housekeeper who works for less than 12-14/hour but it is usually more. It doesn't make any sense to me that the going rate for a nanny would be less.
On a side note, nnj, you talk as though a nanny from over the border is a liability just BECAUSE she is from over the border. Whattup with that??
You need to just look for a new job. It's a huge city. Surely you can find a nanny job with years of experience. No one pays $8/h for daycare- that's crazy. You should be earning double that. Just try posting for a few months and see what you can get. You should be able to get plenty of jobs. People don't take anyone who asks that little serious.
This is not rocket science to figure it- sorry but this posting annoyed me very much. I'm sure you are a wonferful person though. So no offense.
I live and work in San Jose. I direct a small preschool program here and with my experience and college I charge $20.00 for one child and $2.00 more per hour for additional children.
You should be able to get away with at LEAST ten. The drop in rate for care in my program is $12.00 an hour, and that's group care not individual like you're doing.
Omigosh...thank you all for your responses...you all brought out the best points and I will definitely take all the advice to heart and utilize it.
You all are very smart. Thank you for taking the time to respond.
6:33 PM
RE-POST
OP
I agree with those who said to tell your families that your rate is now $10 an hour. If they like you, they will continue to have you sit for them.
As a mom who sometimes uses Craigslist to hire sitters, I have to say that I would never contact someone for an interview who charges $8 an hour to watch my kids. I'd think they were advertising such a low fee because they weren't very good and couldn't get a sitter job because they had no experience and fake references. I think you should advertise at at LEAST the going rate in your area, which sounds like $10-15 an hour.
Well Paperbag
Someone that comes over illegal with no papers has nothing to lose if they do something criminal. If you can't track them by social security or local address that would worry me. And what about references? How am I supposed to know that they are really interested in being my childs nanny. Am I going to call references in Mexico? What if they harmed my child, and took off. How would I find them?
I feel its safer to have a citizen of this country watch my child. Its just a safer bet. Now I am not saying all illegals are up to no good. More likely most are trying to find work. But first we should help the legal people in this country with finding jobs. And to keep the wages at a decent wage. If all illegals take the jobs our wages get affected as I mentioned.
I live in San Diego as well and I do think that rate is too low considering our cost of living out here.
I have charged $14 per hour for babysitting and people were happy to pay it.
Remember that the fewer hours you work per week, the higher your hourly rate can be.
Also remember that the wealthier families that live in Ranch Santa Fe, Del Mar, Carmel Valley and all of North County Coastal may skip Craigslist altogether and go through an agency. I would lookup Seaside Nannies and talk to Dara. She doesn't provide babysitting work, but she can recommend a good agency that does.
Also, you can get trustlined in Mission Valley for I think around $80-$100 and it's permanent. You can ask Dara about that too. She's awesome and will give you the best advice!
Another San Diego Nanny here, Actually north san diego. I charged 15 a hour for 1 kid. I too think you are getting taken advantage of. You should be at least charging 12-15 a hour. more if you are driving over 30 minutes to these peoples houses. If you are going to school at night, why not look into being a daycare assistant? the pay is semi good, and you are done with work by at the latest 5pm.
Oh, darling, I would think even $12 isn't enough, much less the $8 you charge. Here's a synopsis of when I FIRST started working, and maybe it will show you how underpaid you are.
I started as a live in nanny with NO experience whatsoever. I had 3 children to take care of, all elementary school aged, and I got paid $15 an hour, plus many many benefits. Typically live out (which you are) make even more than live in. I'd highly suggest asking for more money.
Don't be concerned about losing a job over the money. If people aren't willing to pay you at least $15 an hour for your services, then they need to stay home with their children
nnj,
Don't let anybody bully you into feeling bad or defensive for not wanting to hire a criminal to babysit for your children. Good grief! All the reasons you cited are just basic common sense safety issues...not to mention the harm it does to our country to have droves of people working off the books and not paying their taxes.
OP and decent nannies like her could probably earn a lot more across the board if they weren't constantly undercut by illegal workers willing to work so far under a decent wage.
And shame on anybody who hires anybody to care for their children who doesn't have a long documentable history and great references (that you have checked to the last dotted i and crossed t)! If you do that you ought to skip ISYN altogether and go straight to Childcare gone wrong to look for posts about your children.
Thanks Mom.
I didn't want to be rude to Paperbag. So thats why I wrote back a nice comment. Even though I think she must be a complete moron!
opps as you see I am NNJ too : )
ericmom
mom, no one would ever suggest that you should let a 'criminal' watch your child. If you choose to view all illegal immigrants as criminals then that is a fundamental philosophical difference of opinion that we have.
btw nnj, name calling is lame.
No problem Paper
To cross the border illegally is a crime. To stay ilegally is a crime. To work without paying taxes is a crime. So...illegal aliens from ANY country ARE in fact CRMINALS. (Criminals are people who have commited, are currently commiting, or make a habit of commiting crimes, btw. In case anyone here isn't clear on the definition.)
Paperbagprincess -
Hi. I happen to agree with you on this one and have lots more sympathy than disdain for illegal immigrants. I have known more than one they remain some of the kindest, hardest working, most honest, and loving people in my life. But this issue has come up before on ISYN and you will get very little support on here. Apparently people on ISYN have never broken a law in their lives (because, of course, then they too would be "criminals"). Best to just let it go when this comes up here. But I did want you to know you are not alone in your thoughts.
It looks like we have two Illegals on here that are supporting each other.
Dude, I charge 15/16 an hour, and both of my jobs are for one child (each). You definitely deserve more.
When I see people advertise that they're 8-10 an hour I assume they're crappy nannies, to be honest. Like, what respectable woman would charge THAT?
Wow..the comments keep coming in. You guys are right, a respectable nanny would not work for such a low rate. I plan on using your advice this weekend and speaking to my families about this. For some reason, all your comments have given me more confidence to do what I have to do.
3:10 AM
RE-POST for OP
Paperbagprincess,
" If you choose to view all illegal immigrants as criminals then that is a fundamental philosophical difference of opinion that we have."
HHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
No, dear, I don't think that's what it is. But thanks for the laugh anyway.
I also think the sky is blue and that the sun is warm....right along with knowing that people who commit crimes are criminals. Any "fundamental philosophical differences" with me there?
Oh brother! And if somebody hires an "undocumented worker," and their kid comes up missing....exactly how are they supposed to trace them? How do they check the references? And what, for gosh sakes, is the IRS going to say when the employer sends in a tax payment for an illegal immigrant's social security and withholding? Or are you suggesting that we become criminals ourselves by hiring illegal workers and cheating the IRS?
And the "everybody speeds or runs a stop sign sometime, so we're all criminals" excuse is just plain lame.
I live in MD (so I know that the going rate is different where you live), and I charge $13/hr. for babysitting. I am "negotiable", though. An idea you may want to try is to charge $13-$14/hr, but let the parents know that you're "negotiable", so that way you may be able to get more than $8/hr. if the parents are willing to put that money out for "good child care" (if they can afford it). If they can't afford $13-$14/hr, then at least maybe they can give you $10/hr. instead of $8.
If they can't afford $14-15 per hour. They need to keep their butts home on the weekends. Order a pizza and rent a movie from Blockbuster
Some would argue that it is a 'criminal' form of foreign policy that has allowed the developed countries of the west to get rich through colonialist and exploitative economic and social practices, and that these practices remain in effect to this day - effectively mariginalizing the undeveloped economies of the world from full participation in the global market EXCEPT as customers for western goods.
When illegal immigrants cross borders to escape poor economic conditions not of their own making to seek work in countries that have MORE than enough wealth to go around, I do not see this is a criminal act. I see sealing borders and hoarding the wealth in the midst of plenty to be the unethical and immoral, and 'criminal' act. So no philosophical difference eh mom? I beg to differ. I'm glad that things are so clear and black and white in your world. Because the rest of the world doesn't have that luxury. Do you think your views might be an example of why the world dislikes America?
You can poo poo my posts all you want. You just keep proving that you have a very narrow perspective.
btw, agrees w/ pbp, thanks for your support. It is nice to know someone out there agrees. Us 'illegals' (as give me a break points out) gotta stick together. [snicker]
paperbagprincess,
No need to be so defensive. Just a different point of view, remember.
And illegal means not leagal, as in breaking a law. Now, if you are talking about "moral crimes," of course that has it's place in valid discussion too, and would certainly be appropriate for philosophical debate. But whether or not breaking a law is a criminal offense is not a subject for philosophical debate...it's just a fact...black and white, as you say.
Personally, I think that allowing illegal workers to come into the country and work the way they do is almost as much a disservice to them as it is to our country. I think it is allowed so freely by our governemnt because of the strong lobbying power of the industries that benefit directly from the cheap labor. That savings allows them to put money into the pockets of the politicains who are willing to look the other way as they run in droves across our borders. And the illegal workers are then at the mercy of the employers. (Ever read Grapes of Wrath? Might want to. Very similar in circumstance actually.) Meanwhile, the illegal workers, afraid of being caught and deported are forced to work for a pay rate that does not even begin to cover their living ewxpenses in this country. Or have medical care. No problem...those same poiticians help set up programs that allow the taxpayers to, in effect, make up the difference in the wages those illegal alien exploitive companies should be paying their employees and what they actually do pay. Win. Win. (For the politicians and the labor exploitive companies anyway.) Who loses? The illegal workers and the taxpayers who have to work extra hard and give up more and more of thier own hard earned paychecks to support them...while being denied themselves of so many of the priveleges that are offered freely and without question to illegal aliens....but, again, priveleges paid for by taxpayers who are denied use of them themselves. Not fair.
Now, I have no problem with people who feel as you do getting together and donating most or all of their expendable income to support illegal aliens. Barbra Streissand has several lavish homes, I hear. She alone could probably take in dozens. I'm sure if you were all willing to live a bare bones existence and put your money where your mouth is...as much as it takes, up to all of it, then there would be less resentment from those who have different charities they choose to support and don't enjoy being forced to support this one. I understand this is a very important issue for many...and that's great...it takes all kinds of hearts to tackle all kinds of issues...but my choice of where I want to spend my charity dollars is much different. And I am not alone.
Or, how about this? Let them in legally. Force their employers to pay a living wage. Have them pay taxes. That would be truly fair..for everybody. I'm tired of supplementing the wages paid exploitive fat cats who buy politicians. My passion is really more for helping out sick kids whose parents can't afford thier surgeries...you know...citizen's children...because we already give that freely to everybody who doesn't pay taxes here, but not to people who might be a little on the broke side after the IRS takes part of their paychecks to pay for the medical care of people who don't contribute to the pot. There was a child who died here a while back because her parents couldn't afford the surgery bill, which had to be paid in advance. meanwhile people are crossing the border, having free surgery at the hospital 10 miles from my house(because the hospital can't ask if they suspect a person may be illegal), and then going home to Mexico wihtout paying, or being asked to pay, one red cent. That stinks.
You said it Mom. And if you wanna talk about moral inadequecies, making the law abiding workers pay for ALL the benefits enjoyed by the ILLEGAL workers, but denied to THEM, that hits the nail on the head.
Well I do apologize if I came across as defensive but you did, after all, convey to me the virtual equivalent of laughing in my face.
I think we agree on a fair bit on this issue - it are the employers that win here, no one one else - but when people use words like 'criminal' they paint their views in overly broad strokes. I agree with you - make it legal. But I think where we part company is that I also think the issue is part of bigger concern for global equity and well-being, and not one you can necessarily 'choose' to support or not support. I do not think the western world can go on pretending that even our middle class lifestyles aren't at least partially supported by the poverty of others. I won't say any more about it because we clearly have different opinions, but I don't see this as just another 'charity' to support - it is a fundamental truth that colours every aspect of modern life...from illegal nannies to global terrorism.
Hey paperbagprincess,
We agree more than you think. On the moral issues. And I typically enjoy your posts BTW.
And I do very much apologize for laughing in your face. That wasn't nice. I get a little intense on certain issues.
The incident I mentioned about the little girl dying here waiting for surgery made a lasting impact on my life and greatly increases my frustration about the way our government chooses to dole out its "mercy." I'll explain. My daughter had a serious birth defect, which we thought might require surgery, as a newborn. One day at her doctor's office I saw a flier for a family trying to collect money for their daughter to have surgery, for a surgery on the same organ. Only they didn't qualify for free surgery and they had no money after paying for the health crises leading up to the point of surgery. They had even sold their house, if I recall correctly. They needed $200,000.00, cash, before the hospital would help their child. I thought about giving money, but my own daughter was potentially going to put us over the edge financially with a $5000.00 deductible and us having to pay 20% with our insurace...so I didn't contribute. But I couldn't stop thinking about the child...especially knowing exactly the desperation her parents were feeling, so I decided I was going to do what I could for them and trust that we would find a way to make it through as well. But when I went back a couple of days later, I didn't see the flier with the information about how to contribute, so I asked. The nurse said, "Oh, she died, so we took it down." Just like that. What a waste.
And I personally know of several instances of illegal aliens walking in for free surgery and going back home to Mexico scott free. These are relatives of people living here...I don't know if these family members are even legal or not. From open heart surgery to having pesky moles removed, to having babies. It stinks.
As far as the world...the injustice everywhere is too much to try to comprehend. Thousands of children across the world under age 5 die every day from hunger and water borne illnesses (another of my favorite causes.) If I start to think of those numbers it is almost too discouraging to keep on...but by doing a little we can help at least one at a time. If I wasn't giving over half of my income away to taxes (which are then wasted so freely by our government), I could do a whole heck of a lot more..
Some people like to save the whales. Some people like to help orphans. It takes all kinds to get all of the different issues included. I do not agree with supplementing the salaries paid by exploitive businiess owners who can't be bothered to cut into their immense proftis enough to pay their workers even minimum wage. Or to support tax evaders. As a rule follower myself (not claiming by any means to be perfect...but I do try my best to be honest), I do not condone breaking our country's laws.
The world is not fair...but if we don't get some sort of rationaliuty going in this process, our country will sink and become unable to help anybody at all.
And, while I agree with human compassion... why does our country seem to have it more for law breakers than for its own citizens?
And Mexico has money. They just prefer to keep it in the hands of the corrupt few, while sending their hukanitarian burden to us. Why does our government allow it? Do you think its for a humanitarian reason? Its not.
Ugh! So frustrating.
And, not to bring up the potential for a discussion on racism, I happen to live in a place where hundreds, if not thousands, of illegal aliens (people spending my tax doallrs to live here) participate in an annual march where they carry Mexican flags and chant hateful slogans about how mush America sucks and how much they hate America and Americans. Huh? That only adds insult to injury and does little to spark my human comapssion on their behalf, or make me glad my dollars support them instead of dying children who would actually be thankful for our assistance.
I understand yourr point of view.
I hope you can at least understand a bit of mine too.
That's why the world needs all kinds. If we all felt the same, a lot of issues would go unresolved as we all worked to solve the same one.
My husband works 5/6 days a week. With no benefits. We can't even go to the doctor. We can't afford to buy our own. Yes, our son has coverage thru the state. We pay $20.00 a month. And $5.00 copays. Which is great.
I get angry when I see all these single women (mainly illegal) with 4-5 kids attached to their hips. Letting the government take care of them 100%. Food stamps, help with housing,etc. Hard working Americans get screwed when we need any help. We are now pushed behind them.
mom, I enjoy your posts too - I learn a lot from them. You are very passionate and articulate and I do understand your point of view. I get that your main complaint is not with illegal immigrants themselves but with a system that exploits both them and American taxpayers. I wish more people would frame their criticism of 'illegals' in this way.
Also, you are right to point out that we've all got to 'hoe our row'. Global issues are mine I guess, and I probably should not be so militant that they should be everyone else's.
Peace out!
[I bet in writing I come across as a bit of a hippie but in reality I come across as the FURTHEST thing.]
paperbagprincess,
Thank you. And hippie would not be how I described you. But you do seem to be well spoken and also firm in your opinions. That's good. You take a stand. Good for you. And we can learn form each other to see another perspective.
It's one of the things I love best about this blog. You would not believe how mnay times my "firm convictions" have been softened or even completely modified based on having an open mind when reading the perspective of other posters here. Sometimes we can think we are completely right about something, or have it all figured out in our minds...and along comes somebody with an angle we have never even considered before. That's pretty cool.
I'm also a San Diego nanny. I too find some of my jobs on CL. My current part time position pays me $17 an hour. I am looking for another part time job now to supplement and it's very hard to find a good job when so many other nannies will work for $5 or $8 an hour. I have only been looking for a week, but I will not accept another job unless they pay me at least $15 an hour.
With years of experience, amazing local referneces, and the job/housing market as it is in Southern California, how is it possible to live on $10 an hour less? I mean if you are a student, or living with parents and just a "babysitter" then it's fine but an actual nanny that does more than just sit with the kids while they watch tv? Give me a break!
You get what you pay for (in most cases) and the answer OP, to your question, is YES, YOU ARE BEING TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF! But not in every sense, because if you would hold out for a higher paying job, you'd probably get it. And if you offer yourself for a measly wage, there will always be someone willing to pay it.
I just laugh and delete when Mothers email me and say they need full time care and would like to pay $200 a week. Go put your little ones in daycare if you want to be a cheapskate!
Moms.. could YOU live on $10 an hour?? Get real!
5:08 PM
RE-POST for Anonymous
(Please pick a moniker Everyone!)
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