When you finally hire the perfect nanny, you breathe a sigh of relief. The application process can be demanding, and you’re happy to begin getting comfortable with the person who will be caring for your little ones. However, have you ever had a nanny quit just when things seem to be on a roll? Dealing with the resignation of a caregiver can be even harder when they’re not honest about why they quit.
Find out the real reason your nanny might desert you so that you can prevent it from happening.
1. Salary
Although many nannies love their charges as much as you do, they need to support themselves. If they can’t make enough money to pay their bills, they may look for a higher income elsewhere.
If your nanny finds out that she can make more money with another family, she might have to leave you no matter how great the job is.
Families that can’t afford to pay their nannies top dollar might consider throwing in other benefits. Paying for health insurance can save your caregiver hundreds of dollars a month. You might also want to offer her one or more of these benefits like the use of your car, health membership, cell phone bills, travel points, or letting her live with you. These actions might not cost you much, but they’re valuable to your employee.
2. Not Enough Work and less pay
Time and money go hand in hand.Worst of this combo is if there is not enough compensation for the fewer hours. If you don’t give your nanny enough hours to make the job worth his while, he might not be able to make ends meet.
Have an honest conversation with your caregiver about your schedule. You might find that he’s happy with the hours but needs a small raise in salary, which might not significantly impact your wallet, and if does, don’t forget to throw in some benefits as we discussed above. The best way to find a happy medium is with open communication.
3. Nickel-And-Diming
Even if you’re paying your nanny adequately, you can create a tense relationship by restricting her pay for trivial matters. It’s one thing if your caregiver is consistently late. However, if she gets stuck in traffic one day, don’t deduct $5 from her paycheck.
If you trust your nanny, you should be able to provide her with cash for dinner or errands without demanding that she show you the receipts. Nickel-and-diming indicates that you don’t trust your caregiver. If that’s the case, maybe you need to reconsider the candidate.
4. Inconsistency
A good employee strives to please the boss. Therefore, it’s up to the parents to set clear guidelines for how this can happen.
Don’t tell your nanny that the kids can eat all the junk food that they want and then reprimand him when he takes them out for ice cream. You should also be consistent with your own parenting. If you tell the nanny that the kids can’t watch TV, but all they do when they’re with you is stare at a screen, you’re going to make the caregiver’s job more difficult.
5. No Appreciation
Money isn’t everything. Even if you offer a stellar salary, you can’t expect your nanny to stick around if she doesn’t feel appreciated and valued. Sometimes showing gratitude can even make up for deficiencies in pay.
What’s more, some parents completely take advantage of their nannies. Your caregiver is a professional employee who is there to do a specific job. Tacking on additional tasks or expecting more than you included in the job description requires some kind of compensation. Just because your nanny loves your children and your family doesn’t mean that she will do whatever you want without some sort of reward. Remember, working for you is her way of making ends meet.
When you work with an agency, you’ll be guided through the process of negotiating a salary and creating an agreement. We can even mediate communication issues to make sure that a slight misunderstanding doesn’t lead to a bad breakup. Paving the way for honesty is essential in any relationship, and it’s one of the keys to keeping your energetic, reliable, compassionate nanny for as long as you need.