One of your posters (not sure its okay to mention their name?) but they suggested in one of their comments it would be interesting to have a "worst reasons for getting fired" thread so we can compare war stories. I think thats an excellent idea and was hoping you could do that? - Curious
Oooh. This could be interesting. I've never been fired, so unfortunately I have nothing to contribute.
ReplyDeleteSexual harassment and retaliation for not going to bed and firing several of his colleagues who were found by licensing to be abusing children. Then posting a YouTube video for all to see with my face juxtaposed against scenes from Vendetta. I got google to take it down but not without some serious trauma. True story. There are some seriously fucked people caring for kids in this society.
ReplyDeleteWhy do almost all your posts have to do with sex and or abuse? Also usually when someone says true story it's because they know someone will find it hard to believe.
DeleteI'm sorry if this is mean and I might get attacked but you seriously creep me out and I wouldn't let you near my dead goldfish let a lone a child
Wtf... EBN wtf? Can you not be fucked up for 12 hours. Please? Every time I see your posts I just roll my eyes. I skip rightb over it but I just have to say, get over yourself!
DeleteThat first sentence confuses me. I dont get what you mean about the firing colleagues part.
DeleteNot trying to be mean. Im just having trouble understanding what you're trying to say.
I got married
ReplyDelete"We think you should devote your time to being a wife. Dont you want kids soon? We would like to bring in another nanny to take most of your hours. You can still work but we feel your focus should be your husband and having kids"
I don't want kids
They call me every couple months and ask if I'm pregnant yet.
THEY think your focus should be on your husband?!
DeleteUm...maybe they should mind their own business and let you make your own decisions.
How long ago was this?
A year or so ago
ReplyDeleteI don't consider it a firing just an annoyance
I'm 24 and the other nanny they ended up bringing in was in her 60's
Because of the culture...MB AND DB always had a set of parents staying with them and the new nanny not only nannied the kids but also the parents which I think.they enjoy
And I.think their statement about me being a wife and mom comes from their.culture
Also they were shocked to hear I was looking for a new job...did they think I would just sit home?
Not folding the baby clothes the way mom does.
ReplyDeleteWorst job of my life.
oh gosh did I say sex again on this blog? *shrug* it's life. it's my story. i have many more.
ReplyDeleteoh right! i used it in a sentence: "sexual harassment".
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry my life stories are so upsetting to you. They're not all filled with horror- far from it. To attack me personally is bullshit. It's abusive. You suck.
Now, now, lets be fair. It's not her "favorite" word. That would be a time between that word and abuse.
ReplyDelete"I wouldn't let you near my dead goldfish let a lone a child"?? Absolutely NOT acceptable.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone here ever read the Scarlet Letter?
ReplyDeleteEastBay shared a story. I really don't want to start a massive argument, but I think some people aren't being fair here. Someone made it about the fact that she was the one posting it - if anyone else had posted it, no one would have a problem. We shouldn't be nasty every time we see her name, just because we have disagreed with her in the past. Cast your personal feelings aside and show some respect for EBN and the OP... Otherwise we will end up having the same argument ten times over.
ReplyDeleteI am NOT the OP here. And have no wish to compete for horror stories- we all have plenty.
ReplyDeleteI could easily choose to change my name like many of you do every hour, right? I feel so sorry for this blog...
ReplyDeleteYou're totally right Aria. OP, MPP, I'm sorry for my comment. I apologize.
ReplyDeleteI cut my hair.
ReplyDeleteBethany, how did they approach firing you over a haircut? How does anyone justify that in their own minds, let alone say it out loud to an employee as if it's a valid reason? Mind boggling.
ReplyDeleteEastBay, sorry for the confusion... I wasn't saying you were the OP. I was saying that we should all have respect for the OP by refraining to attack anyone without cause.
ReplyDeleteMust have been some haircut Bethany! ;) Were they Jewish or Pentecostal by chance? I know some women of thos religions do not believe in cutting their hair ever.
ReplyDeleteI'm not certain of their religioud background they went to church on some Sundays that's all I know.
ReplyDeleteI went from having shoulder length to pretty close to bald. I got tired of having to deal with my hair in the mornings and keeping kids from pulling it.
The irony is they thought that short hair meant I was less nurturing and interested in caring for kids.
Ugly situation it was. She seriously lost it after the haircut.
That's weird. I always want to cut my hair, but when I do, I can't wait til it's long again. It's this weird impulse thing I have.
DeleteThat is so weird Bethany! People are crazy!
ReplyDeleteI wish I had a story to share but I've never (thank God!) Been fired.
yogurt- I was the supervisor. I was fired "at will- no fault of my own" for purely political reasons. The details are even more insane. But I'm done with my story here.
ReplyDeleteShe just made weird comments about my hair like less maternal etc, she aslso started finding things wrong with the way i did my job at the same time.
ReplyDeleteMind you ,literally, just before I cut my hair she gave me a stellar review and was making plans for the future with me.
Lucky for me I had that letter and a friend that needed help with her in home daycare at the time.
People are strange what can you do?
I have a funny one though not nanny related...I briefly worked as a Dental office receptionist, between jobs and after graduating from college...he was a big time Scientology believer and because his phone wasn't ringing enough with new clients he decided that was because my energy wasn't good enough to make the phone ring. I kid you not. Office manager said I was like the 7th receptionist that year and that if he didn't like me he wouldn't like anyone...I've seen the position posted on CL again at least 2-3 times since. Only time I was ever fired for anything. I look back and laugh...
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the line of thought that says that a haircut can instantly change someone's personality. XD
ReplyDeleteWow haha I showed up to wrk after a week of vacatiOn with my septum pierced and my boss didn't say a thing. Ive never been fired for stupid things but if it ever happens I'll be sure to share lmao.
ReplyDeleteHaha, Nay. Thats funny. Not that you were fired, of course. Just the fact that he went through all those receptionists.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't technically "fired" from a job, they just never called me again. I babysat for this family with a 2 year old boy...after my 4th time babysitting they never called me again and the only reason I can think of is because I said something along the lines of "your son is so adorable, what a little flirt!". I meant it in the most innocent way possible...I guess they took it the wrong way?
ReplyDeleteBethany I was fired for something with my hair too! I decided to get blue highlights in my hair, and goodbye job!
ReplyDeleteJewish women cut their hair, so not sure what Lyn is referring to. Orthodox women usually cover their hair with wigs, but all Jewish women cut their hair. And if they don't, it's not a religious reason.
ReplyDeleteSorry if I offended you, that was not at all my intention and I apologize if I did. My sister married a jewish man who comes from a very traditional orthadox family. And I know they do not and have never cute their hair (the women) for religious convictions. I also know that it is a very common thing in their temple to believe. I can always ask my sis for more information on the subject if you'd like so I can share their reasonings.
ReplyDeleteOh wow...lots of interesting stories here. Bethany, if they fired you over something so petty as a haircut I'm positive you were better off without that job anyway!
ReplyDeleteI've never been fired so I can't contribute any crazy stories..knock on wood!
Well I have not been fired from a nanny position however, years ago when I was very young about 20 years old I used to babysit on occasions like nights or weekends for 3 different families that all lived in the same building & all the moms were good friends. Only ONE of the moms worked the other two were SAHM. I got along wonderfully with them all and their kids were amazing! At one point these 3 moms (I called them mom squad,) had said I was like their "little sister," & they felt I was a dream sitter. Not once in all the time I knew them had I ever once had an issue with them, in fact we all seemed to respect each other and get along famously.
ReplyDeleteWell at that time I was in the market for a new full time nanny job, I had quit working for this insane family that literally scared the shit out of me daily & worked me like a dog so anyways after 6 months of horrid working conditions and little pay I quit. So to make ends meet I began waiting tables at 2 different restaurants & picked up random babysitting jobs from "The Mom Squad" and other families I knew. The "Mom Squad," understood why I left my nanny position and seemed to feel bad for me and even concerned so when I asked them if I could use them all for my nanny resume they all agreed they would give me a glowing reference. So after months of searching I finally found a good family that I was very interested interviewing with, well it so happens this family wanted to interview me and were due to go on vacation that weekend so my potential employers could only meet me on a certain day/time that week. Well it so happens this interview landed on the same day that I had to baby sit for one of the "Mom Squad." I desperately needed to land this job so I said yes to the interview day figuring the "Mom Squad" mom who by the way was one of the SAHM in the group, would understand given she was so empathetic to my situation. Well I left a message for her explaining why I had to cancel & she never returned my call. I called a few more times just to make sure she got my message & nothing! So one Friday night I was due to babysit for one of the other "Mom Squad" moms who worked full time & I asked her if she heard from her friend she explained that she heard we had a "spat." I stood there shocked because I never had an issue or argument with this mom so I then explained what happened so then she tells me the other moms are scared that I will get a full time job and leave them in the dust & I owed them. I explained that I was truly grateful that they all had given me work when I was down on my luck but I didn't think it was fair they "own" me or prevent me from finding full time work. She didn't really agree or disagree just listened. Later that week I landed the nanny job I was aiming for! Well that day I got a call from one of the other "Mom Squad" moms who was the other SAHM asking if I could babysit. I kindly told her that I couldn't babysit that day because that was my first week at my new job. That's when the furry blew me down. This "Mom Squad" mom went off on me like Ditka on a ref! She carried on calling me all kinds of names & she defended me when her friend said nasty things and now how is she going to get her hair done, and I don't know her pain. I explained to her that it is not fair to act as if they own me or can prevent me from seeking full time work, and I can still babysit on weekend & nights. She called me a bitch and hung up. Just like that all that work, trust and care I had put into their kids and building a relationship with these families down the toilet because I needed & found a full time job. I never heard from them again & I actually found out one of the moms ended up in rehab sadly, the other divorced, and the last mom her hubby landed in prison for tax fraud. So I chalk it up to a blessing in disguise. Funny at the time the seemed to have it all I guess it was all a lie.
I will leave out the obviously legitimate reasons, but these are potentially debatable reasons I have terminated or not called back a nanny or sitter in work trial/work/interview. Some of these were the same person.
ReplyDelete-received phone call from prior employer that she had left her dd at daycare and just sent an "I Quit" text to mom at pickup time. She had not done anything wrong with me.
-poor personality fit for my kids: too strict, too lax.
-lacking initiative as in never doing anything with the kids outside the home, and while home allowing constant TV/video games (I'm fine with some).
-constant cell phone use, usually texting.
-showing up for work consistently exhausted to the point I have had to wake them up.
-clearly not really interested in childcare and not engaged at all with the kids.
-completely messy: not even cleaning up messes made by herself or the kids during the workday repeatedly.
-repeatedly cancelling a work shift shortly beforehand with vague complains of headache, "sick." Has to happen 3 times for me to be done.
-just plain oddly related and difficult to connect to on a human level. We don't need to be bffs, but we should be able to have a basic conversation with you maintaining eye contact, answering clearly, and showing generally accepted appropriate emotional expression.
On the flip side, I have hired caregivers who had red flags, but I just plain liked and took a risk. Each of these turned out to be amazing and am glad I hired them:
-One woman had a DUI as a teen (below legal limit, but teen=no alcohol legally).
-Minimal childcare experience, but seemed genuine, kind, and motivated.
-Mild initial concerns over reporting events inaccurately. Not really lying, just exaggerating or minimizing. She was, but I believed and believe she was just eager to please and did not feel the details really mattered.
-Needed to bring her child, who was much younger than mine, and during verbal interview talked about her child much more than mine or the job. I figured if she was that in love with her dd as a mom, she would be a great sitter too : )
-Communication difficulties since I prefer Spanish speaking nannies for full-time nanny care. It actually works better this way for teaching dc Spanish and I have learned many ways to adjust.
Canada Nanny,
ReplyDeleteI was not called back after twice sitting for a new mom with a new baby. I am quite sure it was because she had a Diaper Genie and I had NO IDEA what it was or how to use it. I had grown up dirt poor and simply never seen one before. She seemed totally taken aback that I could possibly not know what a Diaper Genie was, visibly flabbergasted. Sometimes, people (I am sure myself included!) follow their gut instinct based on things we cannot fathom. No hard feelings though; your gut instinct is not to be ignored often!
once on a sat i had been a referee/game director and the pa broke and i had to YELL the instructions over the 100 kids all day
ReplyDeletethe next day i had an appointment set up by a temp-nanny agency, a new client and NO VOICE - i sounded like frankenstein
i met the mb at her door smiled and waved and " ahh..erp..ugh..gurgle..cough" was all that came out
my work ethic is that to not keep a committment you have to be 6 feet under
i would have shown up on a gurney with the iv in my arm if nevessary
but - the mother slammed the door in my face and furiously attacked the nanny agency boss for sending in someone "sick"
i mean - i get it - but still kind of harsh
Aria - the black and white referee shirt i was wearing - i will send you one gratis if you want - just let me know LOL
I've often thought of getting light pink streaks in my hair but I never did because of my job. I once got a bad spray tan and the little girl told me "Orange girls can't be my nanny! I took a video of her rant it was hilarious
ReplyDeleteWow, I was considering going for a haircut tomorrow, but if it might get me fired I better not! (I kid)
ReplyDeleteNycmom, it wasn't just you. After changing diapers for almost 20 years (counting teenage babysitting experience), I STILL don't know how to use a Diaper Genie. My current family has one and I drop the lid on that damn thing all the time! I can never get it to fit on properly.
I was the one who suggested this thread, but I was not the OP. Don't worry about outing me, Curious, I'm totally open! It was fun reading all your horror stories.
I've mentioned some of mine before, but I'll tell one I don't think I've said on this blog yet. Also, I didn't get fired from this job, but I quit maybe 6 weeks in because they were driving me so crazy! The family had a 5 year old girl and 3 year old boy. It specified in my work agreement than I needed to potty train him because he was started preschool in the fall and couldn't be in diapers. So I jumped head first into potty training and this kid was the worst I;ve ever seen. I'm telling you, he peed on the walls and pooped on the floor. His mother told me to back off on training because I was "traumatizing" him. I guess not being able to start preschool on time didn't matter much. The parents were also slobs, dishes all over the kitchen, some with last night's dinner still stuck on. The final straw came when I got sick at work, actually throwing up and I called the dad to come home early. He said "Are you really sick or are you just wanting a long weekend?" Then when he came home he got pissed that I hadn't done anything with the kids all day, just let them play together or watch movies. I was still sick that Monday but was so afraid to call out that I instead just called and said I wasn't coming back! They withheld my final paycheck and I threatened legal action to get them to pay me.
Oh, another thing I forgot about that family. The girl napped for about 30 minutes everyday, just a short one to get her refreshed for the afternoon. But apparently she was telling her mom that I was forcing her to sleep. The mom told me she doesn't have to nap if she doesn't want to but I was like "She does want to!"
ReplyDeleteI got fired from a job as mother's helper when I was 17.
ReplyDeleteBecause I did not put the baby clothes away correctly.
Correctly I had to sort them by color according to ROY G BIV and from lightest to darkest within. I got a few shades off a few times.
Oddly enough she gave me a good reference a few months down the road.
Another time I quit/was fired because I wasn't vleaning the house like I was supposed to, and they wanted me to go round the yard and scoop up the dog mess before letting the kids outside. They refused to teach the dogs to go in one spot. They were going to to give me a hard time about pay, so I had my daddy go with me to pick it up. Sometimes having a dad in the military comes in handy, all he did was get out of the car and stand there didn't say a word.
Oh yeah!
ReplyDeleteThis was from when I was an au pair for a few months. I wasn't fired, but the lady told me my eyes made her dog uncomfortable.
I'm so glad none of my employers have had trouble with the color or length of my hair. I like to change it up frequently.
I have friend with bosses that strictly monitor appearances. I mean it's in their contracts about colors they can wear make up colors and amounts hair length and color. Crazy stuff but they're paid pretty well.
Parents divorce can affect also a nanny job.
ReplyDeleteI've never been fired from a nanny job. But I was fired from working @ The Nature Company for giving the boss "bad vibes." The truth was, it was a temporary job. When the boss called to hire me, he let it slip. So when December was over, I expected it anyway.
ReplyDeleteFired after TWO days with no complaints (and no reasons for complaint), while on vacation in a different timezone, and refused severance pay. Why? Well, DB just didn't know, and that was a "question for [his wife] and [the other outgoing nanny]". Then rewarded with a review defaming my character and business by making up accusations that I was an unsafe caregiver. Ridiculous. I have never been fired - before or since the incident, and my current family LOVES me.
ReplyDeleteI spent more than ten years working as a nanny in Canada. The last family I worked for, and who I'd been with for more than two years, were returning home from a skiing trip to the US when their van was hit by a drunk driver; my MB was in a coma for weeks and suffered permanent brain damage, the 2 year old had facial injuries and a broken arm and the 5 year old had a ruptured spleen. I was live/out, but moved into their house when the youngest one came home and DB was dividing his time between two hospitals...learned to change the older daughter's dressings when she came home...got my MB to eat in the hospital when she wouldn't eat and the hospital were threatening to tube feed her. She eventually came home, personality completely changed by her brain injury, and started taking an immediate dislike to everything I was doing; I got to work two weeks after she came home, and her husband told me I was being let go that day. No explanation, no apology, and no reference. Other parents in the area, for whom I had babysat casually for years, were appalled at the way I'd been treated and offered to act as references - but because I would go on interviews and have to admit that I had worked for a family for two and a half years who wouldn't give me a reference, it was impossible for me to get a new job. I ended up moving back to my native country, fudging my CV and telling potential employers that I had returned home because one of my parents had been seriously ill. I found work very quickly, including a family that I stayed with for ten years, and I've been steadily employed ever since I returned home; but there are still moments when I think about the friends I had to leave behind - and while I don't in any way blame my former MB, because I know that her attitude was caused by her injury, I do blame her spineless husband for refusing that reference.
ReplyDeleteI wore a tank top on my first day. MB let me work all day then told me my clothes were too revealing for what they were looking for.
ReplyDeleteExcuse me?!! It was middle of the summer and over 100 degrees outside. It was a plain jane top that was not low cut at all. I still scratch my head over that one.
I arrived to find my employers being led down the stairs in handcuffs. The yard and house were crawling with cops. I waited for the children to arrive home from school, and then turned them over to the state. It was an extremely traumatic day. The couple was convicted of embezzlement of the local Chamber of Commerce.
ReplyDeleteIt was a learning experience. And the jewelry they had given me over the years, which I had assumed was paste, wasn't. So I had a box of real jewelry, bought with embezzled money. That was really weird, but I liked the jewelry.
It was stolen in a break-in while I was out of town many years later. I was relieved.
I would expect a nanny to know not to wear short shorts or tank tops. Unless she is taking the kids to the beach. That is not professional dress for a nanny. Even if it is 100 degrees outside.
ReplyDeleteA cryptic post by East Bay Nanny. No further explaination. Rather a lash out. Predictable.
ReplyDeleteI've worn shorts to work. Shorts come in lengths other than "barely-booty-covering", haha. I don't think a Nanny is wrong to wear them to work. Especially with this past summer.
ReplyDeleteIn college I took a "Mother's Helper" position through Sittercity. Things were going swimmingly- the hours and pay were good, the kids were fun, MB let me cook whatever I wanted for their dinner (I love to cook) and was excited when I tried new recipes with them, etc. We had a couple of minor issues (they were Jewish and kept a Kosher kitchen). Once I washed the counter with the wrong sponge (not terrible, I felt bad enough that I replaced both sponges with new ones). Another time I mentioned that a lego tree looked like a "Christmas tree" and then MB informed me that they "didn't talk about other religions in their house". That bothered me a little, but not enough for me to quit.
ReplyDeleteFast forward six months and I called her on Sunday to get my schedule for the week and she told me that she had hired a friend's daughter who needed a summer job. She didn't necessarily "fire" me, but she wanted me to not work for her all summer and then come back in the fall. I never heard from her again, but by September I had completely moved on.
And that was my only regular babysitting gig.
just my two cents,
ReplyDeleteshort shorts are one thing but a tank top? how is that unprofessional nanny attire? if its not low cut but just a regular tank top? I am a little confused? what are we supposed to sweat in 100 degree weather bc people are uptight over nothing at all? ridiculous
2 cents, are you kidding me? No shorts or tank tops? Maybe you live in Alaska, but around here it gets HOT! It got up to 112 for a week straight in July this year!
ReplyDeleteHow is a tank top not okay? As long as the boobs arent popping out I think showing arms are fine.
ReplyDelete