To read Part II of 2011's Holiday Bonus Feature,
click here.
PART I
Bonus this year (2011): $1500
Weekly salary: $804 gross
Supplementary gifts: Received a new BlackBerry Bold from my two oldest charges, a pair of SpongeBob house shoes from the baby, a $50 Amazon gift card from the children’s uncle, and $100 cash from the grandparents.
Length of time I have worked for family: 5 months as a full time live-in.
Location: Dallas, Texas
Comments: I also received $450 in miscellaneous gift cards from two previous employers and five neighborhood families whose children I babysit occasionally throughout the year. Additionally, I received a free breakfast at a nice restaurant and $200 cash from a third previous employer.
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Bonus this year (2011): 2 extra weeks of paid vacation.
Weekly salary: $700/wk - 40 hours, plus overtime. 1 preschooler, 1 school aged child.
Supplementary gifts: ipad, gifts when they go on vacation, a christmas tree, house warming gift when I moved into my new apartment, they leave me money to go out to breakfast/lunch/dinner and get treats with my charges, magazine subscription to my favorite magazine, Roku, some extra cash when I go on vacation so I can spoil myself a bit, and help with healthcare coverage.
Length of time I have worked for family: 4 years.
Comments: I am so grateful for the amazing family I work for. The respect, thoughtfulness and kindness they show me is extraordinary and the sweet and thoughtful gifts they have given me are the icing on the cake. I try to show my gratitude by taking awesome care of their children. I feel so lucky to always love going to work!
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Bonus this year (2011): $500.00
Weekly salary: $330.00 after taxes.
Supplementary gifts: Likely, but not until closer to Christmas, bonus was given Dec. 1st.
Length of time I have worked for family: 1+ year.
Location: Columbus, Ohio
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Bonus this year (2011): $0
Weekly salary: $150.00
Supplementary gifts: Probably not.
Length of time I have worked for family: Since July 2011.
Location: San Diego, California
Comments: I work for my sister, I watch my nephew full time. 40-50 hours a week. She cant afford much. I really do it as a favor to her and I get to spend time with the best baby ever! I also watch a former charge when he is off school. Not sure if I will get anything this year from them.
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Bonus last year (2010): $1000.00 & 15 paid days off during the holiday season... I am expecting around the same this year, days off have already been alotted.
Weekly salary: $700.00 approx/week for one child.
Supplementary gifts: paid days off.
Length of time I have worked for family: 2 years (+)
Location: ONT, Canada
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Bonus this year (2011): It's usually 1 weeks pay, around $1,600 - $1,800.
Weekly salary: $1,600 - $1,800.
Supplementary gifts: This year I will be getting a gas card since MB doesn't want us using the T too often, the kids both make me something, plus buy me a box of Lorna Doones!
Length of time I have worked for family: 7 years.
Location: I live in Natick MA, US. I work in Needham MA
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Bonus this year (2011): $575
Weekly salary: $575 for 42-55 hrs week (so I got a bonus check basically)
Supplementary gifts: No other gifts/bonus.
Length of time I have worked for family: I've worked for them 5 months caring for a 2 yo and a 7 yo.
Comments: Been in the childcare biz for 3 yrs (including 1 yr as a PreK teacher).
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Bonus this year (2011): $1,000
Weekly salary: I work 9-5 M-Thu for 2 girls (3 & 1). My take home pay is
$500 not including the taxes & gas stipend of $40 dollars a week.
Supplementary gifts: A gold Coach purse, a $100 Starbucks card, a 20 lb Jennie-O Premium turkey for my family Christmas dinner & the family ornament. (A very prominent family in my city and they make ornaments to give out to all their workers).
Length of time I have worked for family: 3 years & 3 months.
Location: San Antonio, Tx USA
Comments: This is my 4th Christmas with the family and every year I never expect anything cause I'm very well taken care of during the year. A week before the 1 year olds birthday my MB broke her ankle and my hours and responsibilities changed considerably. Its been about 4 months of early mornings, late evenings & happily driving MB and the 2 girls to activities and work. I am not complaining and was happy to help as needed and will really miss my new routine in the new year when my old routine comes back. I'm very privileged and loved by this family and I love them too.
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Bonus this year (2011): $550
Weekly salary: $13/hr comes to about $525/week.
Supplementary gifts: a tin of homemade fudge!
Length of time I have worked for family: about 2 years.
Location: Texas
Comments: This is my second Christmas with them, and my bonus is $50 more than last year. I don't get a lot of benefits or flashy gifts, but they have been very supportive - and they also gave me $250 for my birthday a few months ago! I spent about $150 on the whole family, and will have the first week of January off.
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Bonus this year (2011): $500 cash.
Supplementary gifts: coco chanel purse.
Location: Maryland
Comments: nanny for three year old and eighteen month old twins.
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Bonus this year (2011): $500
Our Nanny's weekly salary: Our nanny's weekly salary is $300 net after room and board.
Supplementary gifts: $130 hair salon gift certificate (enough for a cut and colour), Crabtree & Evelyn travel toiletries set.
Length of time our Nanny has worked for family: four months.
Location: Toronto, Canada
Comments: Our nanny has not been with us long but she quickly became one of the family and was particularly helpful when my husband was ill recently. We are so grateful to have such a wonderful person looking after our children and sharing our home!
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Bonus this year (2011): $0
Weekly salary: $560 before taxes, $480 after.
Supplementary gifts: 5 bags of Teavana tea, my favorite store and my favorite kind! A really sweet gesture, shows mom was really listening to me :). Also got some homemade Christmas cookies and a family photo card.
Length of time I have worked for family: 2 1/2 weeks.
Location: Boulder, Colorado
Comments: The family I work for is so so sweet and they really go above and beyond for me. I definitely was not expecting a bonus after 2.5 weeks and the tea was such a nice present!
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Bonus this year (2011): nothing.
Weekly salary: $910.00 full time nanny share.
Supplementary gifts: $100 gift card to amazon from family #1, $100 cash and photo of baby from family #2.
Length of time I have worked for family: Family #1: 2.7 years, Family #2: 1 year.
Location: Boston, MA
Comments: Never expected a bonus from either family especially family #1 since they have never offered me one in the past.
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Bonus this year (2011): Family A (work around 20hrs/week) - $200 Family B (work 4-8hrs/week) - $100
Weekly salary: Family A - $13/hr. Family B - $13/hr.
Supplementary gifts: Family A - I got a cocktail shaker off my wedding registry. Family B - A box of Sees chocolates.
Length of time I have worked for family: Family A - 2 years. Family B - 1 year.
Location: Orange County, CA
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Bonus this year (2011): $250
Weekly salary: $250 (part time, live-out)
Supplementary gifts: a $100 gift card to a Salon and Spa and some lotion.
Length of time I have worked for family: 4.5 months.
Location: Seattle, WA
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Bonus this year (2011): $150
Weekly salary: $10.00 an hour, 35-40 hours a week.
Supplementary gifts: I received a hand-written heart-felt card telling me how wonderful they thought I was and how much I was appreciated. I got a nice card from my charges - ages: 2yrs and 6mths.
Length of time I have worked for family: Exactly 2 months.
Location: Commerce, Michigan
Comments: I have only been with this family for a short time. But they are wonderful, caring people. We get along great and my charges couldn't been any sweeter. I am very lucky to FINALLY find a loving family. I know I will be there for years to come.
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Bonus this year (2011): $150
Weekly salary: $490 after taxes, 32 hours/wk.
Supplementary gifts: A Kindle Fire, Christmas Ornament from the kids.
Length of time I have worked for family: 6 months.
Location: Birmingham, Michigan, US
Comments: Loved the present! They were very thoughtful and i'm so happy to be working with them!
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Bonus this year (2011): $100
Weekly salary: $500
Supplementary gifts: candle set, macy's gift card.
Length of time I have worked for family: 10mo.
Location: N.C.
Comments: 2 kids, I work so hard and had kind of expected more of a bonus but they're a nice family.
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Bonus this year (2011): $1700
Our Nanny's weekly salary: $850
Supplementary gifts: small $10-20 gifts from all 3 kids and about $50 gift from us.
Length of time our Nanny has worked for family: Our nanny has been with us for four years.
Location: Manhattan
Comments: As an aside, we are moving so our nanny is also ending her employment with us during this holiday season. We are giving 4 weeks salary (one week per year of employment) as severance. We also gave our nanny 4-6 weeks notice which is as much as we had. I also posted for her in several places, including the $75 for babybitesnyc and have helped her find a new job.
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Bonus this year (2011): $2000
Weekly salary: $700 (FT)
Supplementary gifts: 2 tops from my favorite store, giftcard for the movies (not sure of the amount)
Length of time I have worked for family: almost 2 years.
Location: Los Angeles
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Bonus this year (2011): No cash bonus
Weekly salary: $250 - 15 hour work week.
Length of time I have worked for family: 4 years and 4 months.
Location: Houston, TX USA
Comments: My employers took me out for lunch (never did that before), and gave me a card with basketball tickets! I am a sports fan but have never gone to a professional game so it was a super sweet surprise! I also received 2 weeks off paid holiday as I have the past four years. I work for an absolutely wonderful family. I have never been given bonuses, but they have been generous in so many ways that make me appreciate how fortunate I am. For example, I never ever have to worry that I will not be paid 52 weeks a year, and have received time off paid between 6-12 weeks each year. I also received 3 gift cards and makeup from a couple of other families who I sit for as needed. Overall, I am truly just appreciative and feel very blessed to work with very wonderful people :)
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Bonus this year (2011): $0
Weekly salary: $375
Supplementary gifts: A $50 gift card to a local movie theater. Oh, and you know those bath sets everyone gets for Christmas and no one actually likes? MB got one from a neighbor, left it on the kitchen counter for a week, and then gave me one of the lotions with my gift card. . . . Yay.
Length of time I have worked for family: Only since mid-July.
Location: Winston Salem, NC
Comments: I don't want to sound bratty. I know I've only been with this particular family since the middle of the summer. I wasn't expecting anywhere near my normal bonus (which has always been a full weeks pay in the past 5.5 years I've been a professional Nanny). I definitely thought I'd get about a hundred bucks though. Especially when MB kept emailing me links to $300 doll houses when she was trying to decide on what to get her 3 year old. I hate that I sound so bratty, but I work long hours, I'm underpaid,** never** paid on time, and even though I'm told weekly how much they appreciate me it's moments like this when I feel completely unappreciated.
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Bonus this year (2011): $0
Weekly salary: $25-40 a week.
Supplementary gifts: none.
Length of time I have worked for family: 3 months.
Location: Sun Prairie, WI
Comments: Technically I am not a nanny, but a babysitter, although I consider myself a nanny, not a babysitter. I did expect a little something, but I am OK with not getting anything. If I worked FT or more hours as a nanny, and didn't get anything, I may have a different view. I also work in a childcare center and received very nice gifts from some of the children in my after school program: Victoria' Secret gift set, a keepsake ornament, Target gift card, a homemade bird feeder, Bath and Body works lotion, vodka, and Peanuts collectible figurine. (I am obsessed with Snoopy.) Although I didn't get the gifts other nannies received (thinking back to past holiday surveys where nannies got cars, gas cards, a wallet full of gift cards, furniture for a new apartment and generous cash bonuses) I am grateful for A and her family. Mom is great and we get along very well. Other teachers at my childcare center may have received more gifts, but I am OK with that. I feel blessed to have my job because my boss is amazing and has gone out of her way for me numerous times in the three years I have been there. The children in the center, along with those in the after-school program are amazing, as are their families. They mean the world to me and the best gift I could get is what I receive year round: the love of the children and the appreciation expressed throughout the year.
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Bonus this year (2011): $350, which I truly did not expect and am incredibly grateful for.
Weekly salary: $675 for less than 40 hours a week.
Supplementary gifts: substantial gift cards to Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, and Bloomingdale's. I also got socks and slippers from the cats and a beautiful photo of my little baby girls.
Length of time I have worked for family: a little over a month.
Comments: As an educated, experienced, "top notch" career nanny I was very much used to getting the best of everything including crazy gifts (laptops, vacations) and insane bonuses (up to $5,000) but last year I left my job and it took until last month to filter out the psychos (surviving on temp. and short time nanny gigs) and finally find a family that worked for me. As I just started the job and the economy is in the toilet I expected very little. I used to make $2000 per week but I am SO grateful for the job, the stability, and the money. I needed to suffer in order to be humble, and I did, and I am a different person. Kinder, wiser. Not so entitled. I would have been appalled at the "lack" of money from this bonus a few years ago, but now I think it is SO GENEROUS and I am SO GRATEFUL to have such generous, caring bosses who share so much. I am blessed.
