Should my family pay me while they are on vacation?

[lilylover]

I am a nanny to a wonderful family. I have been working for them for over 3 years. At first it was just once or twice a week for a few hours at a time, now it's three days a week and around 20-24 hours a week. It has been like this for over a year.

I am really close with the parents, we talk like friends and they attended my wedding last month. They are going on vacation next week, so I will not be getting paid for those 20 hours that I usually would be getting income for. Now, at this point in my life it's not a huge deal... I am not depending on that money. However, they don't know my financial situation and if their vacation fell in the month of August it could very well make things slightly tight money-wise. Do you think that I should ask them to pay me while they are on vacation from now on? I don't really know how to bring it up, the fact that we are so close/casual with one another almost makes it more awkward for me to bring something like this up.

Opinions? Ideas on how to bring it up?

Thank you!

 

[Mara]

i would say that if you have not addressed it previous to this, ii wouldn't ask them with one week notice to pay them for the time you won't be with their kids.

but if you would like to address it for the future, bring it up after they return so that it's in place and agreed to for their next vacation.

personally since it's a PT gig... i don't know that i would ask for payment, but maybe you can negotiate it with them and if they don't want to pay full, maybe settle on something like 1/2 with 1-2 months of pre-notice so that you can budget accordingly.

 

[TravelingGal]

I have a nanny who works 12 hours a week. I absolutely pay her if I am going on vacation. I assume she relies on that income and I don't think it's fair that she doesn't get paid because I want to take a vacation.

So I pay her regardless of whether I need her or not. She gets the normal holidays plus 2 weeks paid vacation after she has worked for me for 6 months, plus sick days.

Honestly, I think it's kind of rude not to pay a nanny her income if it's not her choice to miss work. But I love my nanny and want to give her incentive to stay with our family.

 

[Jennifer W]

I would pay my nanny (if I had one) for vacation time - daycare / nurseries charge when you're away, why would a nanny be different?

The only way I wouldn't would be if I was paying her/ him an hourly rate that included a portion for vacation pay and sick pay etc. I've done that in the past (not with a nanny but I would think the same applies) and been upfront that this is what the extra is for.

Jen

 

[NovemberBride]

I agree that it is probably too late to ask for payment for this vacation if you do not already have an arrangement in place regarding vacation pay. However, I think it is something you should work out for the future. I do not have a nanny, but I considered hiring one when I was looking for childcare and from my research it seemed like most full-time nannies are paid when the family is going on vacation (and in fact may be required to go on the vacation to watch the children) and are also given paid vacation time of their own.

 

[iheartscience]

My former boss had a nanny and they paid her when they went on vacation. She also received 2 weeks paid vacation. Their nanny was full time if I recall correctly, but I don't think that should make a difference for when they go on vacation. 24 hours a week is a significant amount of time and money-you're not just a casual babysitter at that point.

I would email them and tell them you'd like to set up a time to speak to them about your employment terms. That way you're not bringing it up when they're rushing to work or just got in the door, etc. You can even say in the email or the meeting that it feels a little awkward since you're so friendly, etc. Then in the meeting I would let them know that since the job has grown into a steady nanny position, you'd like to talk about benefits. You rely on the income and not getting paid when they are out of town is not feasible for you. And if you'd like paid time off as well, I would bring that up, too. In my opinion paid time off is a bit of stretch when you're part time, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

I think you should also think about how you'll feel if they say no and what you'll do. Will you have to find another family to nanny for? I wouldn't threaten them with that but I think it's good to lay out all the options for yourself ahead of time. When I was negotiating my raise and benefits at a former position I knew in the back of my head that if they didn't give me what I wanted, I had to find another job, and when the negotiations didn't go my way, that's what I did. I think it's better to be prepared for all outcomes and have a plan than to just feel stuck.

Good luck!

 

[steph72276]

I had a nanny when I worked as a teacher. I paid mine on holidays/winter breaks/spring breaks, etc. but only because she was a Mon-Fri. full time nanny that I paid a specific amount every week, so I paid her that regardless of if she worked 1 day or 5 days that week. I then worked myself as a nanny part time/hourly and didn't expect to be paid if they didn't need me, aka went on vacation or if the parents had the week off. I think it's tricky with working part time, but I would discuss it later so next time you know what to expect.

 

[steph72276]

I have a nanny who works 12 hours a week. I absolutely pay her if I am going on vacation. I assume she relies on that income and I don't think it's fair that she doesn't get paid because I want to take a vacation.

So I pay her regardless of whether I need her or not. She gets the normal holidays plus 2 weeks paid vacation after she has worked for me for 6 months, plus sick days.

Honestly, I think it's kind of rude not to pay a nanny her income if it's not her choice to miss work. But I love my nanny and want to give her incentive to stay with our family.

Same with mine when I had a nanny. I wanted to give her as much incentive to stay as possible, so I gave her perks like paid holidays, bought her favorite foods every week, gave them $ to go out to lunches, etc.

 

[Miscka]

A friend of mine pays hers a flat amount a week, even if they are gone or use less hours. The reason is that she reasons that it is critical to her to depend on the nanny to be there the hours she needs her, and the nanny should be able to depend on that income in turn.

 

[dreamer_dachsie]

I think you should talk to them more generally about your payment. In my opinion, if it is 20- hours a week, then you should be like a salaried employee and get paid a monthly wage regardless of whether they choose to use you or not, and you should get vacatin pay too.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I am going against the grain...if you have never requested it in three years I think they might be caught off guard to bring it up now. I am not saying you don't deserve it or that it is not a common practice but is this really their first vacation during your employment? If you bring it up I would be prepared for them to say no. Decide BEFORE you approach them how important it is to you.

 

[movie zombie]

A friend of mine pays hers a flat amount a week, even if they are gone or use less hours. The reason is that she reasons that it is critical to her to depend on the nanny to be there the hours she needs her, and the nanny should be able to depend on that income in turn.

good reasoning.

perhaps it is time to be less casual re the relationship and look at it for what it is: a job for which you are paid and have bills to pay with that $. i'd talk with them when they get back as it appears this is not the first time? be prepared to leave, though, if they are unwilling to pay you. i'd use the language in the quote for the basis of my talk: 'i know its critical and that you rely on me to be here for x hours; it is also critical that i have a stable income.....

mz

 

[Blenheim]

Our contract with our in-home daycare specifies that we pay her regardless of whether or not we use her for a particular day (G is scheduled to be there 5 days per week) and that she gets two weeks paid vacation per year. She lets all of the parents know which two weeks she's taking off at the beginning of the year, so that we can plan vacation or line up backup care accordingly. It makes a lot of sense to me, as there's an opportunity cost associated with keeping G's space for him even if we're out of town for a few days, he's sick, whatever, and she deserves her vacation to stay refreshed and ready to take care of a bunch of kids all day! However, we agreed on this expectation up front... I agree with Tacori that it might catch them by surprise if you were to bring it up now. What could make the most sense is to address it whenever you address tuition for the year. Both daycares that I've used address tuition increases on a yearly basis, so that could be a logical time to go over related pay issues.

 

[janinegirly]

I have no real experience with this--I had no ideas nannies got paid vacation,etc.Now I scan ee how it can get expensive!

In any case I agree with the reasoning that a nanny's role should be treated like any other salaried employee (benefits, paid vacation time, sick days) however it should have been agreed to before things got started. Ideally with some form of contract,etc.

In your case I think the family looked at it as more of an occassional thing or "as needed" that grew into something more. And since you are so friendly with them, they never considered it any other way (and maybe they are aware that you do not depend solely on that income).

I think it's fine to approach them about formalizing things more. As in define your job more formally and define the terms, including vacations. I would make it more about that than the $. I only say this because you seem to have a close almost familial relationship with them and suddenly making it about money can sour a relationship fast. Not saying you don't deserve it, just seeing how another party might take it.