There are a variety of reasons why a nanny would choose to quit her job with her current employers. If you are familiar with these reasons, you are better prepared to avoid them. You would also be able to strengthen your relationship with your child-caregiver. Keeping a childcare provider for a longer duration is essential for your children’s growth and development, as they can get fond of their caregiver and develop a connection with her.
1. Change in responsibilities
While hiring a nanny, the parents and the employee need to agree on certain duties and responsibilities. But after a few months, if you, as an employer, start giving your nanny more tasks than agreed, she may be happy to do them. But after a certain time, she may get fed up with these extra responsibilities. Moreover, if she is properly communicated and compensated for these tasks, she may just decide to quit the job. As a parent, you should always discuss with her before giving any new obligations.
2. Overtime work
Usually, nannies wouldn’t mind doing overtime for you, especially if it is properly paid. Nonetheless, they can still get frustrated if families ask them to work extra hours every week. If you feel that you would need more care for your children in the coming weeks or months, communicate with your employee in advance. This will help avoid any dissatisfaction and bitterness between both parties.
3. Unreal expectations
Sometimes, families ask their nannies to do peculiar tasks that are not performed by a nanny. These could include gardening, cleaning the pool, washing the car, etc. In many cases, even discussing these duties with your employee can spoil your relationship with her. Parents need to remember that the primary duty of a child-caretaker is to look after kids, with light housekeeping duties if already agreed with her.
4. Controlling her behaviour
In some rare circumstances, families go out of their way to control the behaviour of the caregiver, even outside her working hours. As a nanny agency, we have encountered these cases. In one such instance, an employer did not allow their live-in employee to leave their house, even on weekends. She was forced to stay inside the house and any of her needs were fulfilled by the family. The director of our agency had to confront the family and make them understand that they are not allowed to do that. Parents need to keep in mind that even if they hire a live-in nanny, the employee is only their employee during working hours.
5. Wages and compensation
Caregivers, just like any other worker, are working to earn money and make a living for their families. They need to be properly reimbursed by their employers, which includes paying a competitive salary and an overtime allowance when necessary. If the caretaker feels that she is not paid fairly, she will look for another job sooner or later. Also, remember that paying a nanny “off the books” will only make her more uncomfortable working for you.
6. No appreciation for the hard work
Running after kids, cleaning their mess, making sure they are fed on time, and many other duties can make a nanny exhausted at the end of the day. Most of the nannies go over and beyond to make sure that all the needs of the children are attained. Hence, they deserve to be appreciated by the family and feel that their hard work is not going unnoticed.
7. Poor communication
Just like any work environment, good communication between the parents and the caregiver is essential for her success at work. The employee would not be comfortable if all the expectations were not laid out by the family in advance. She would always be in a dilemma if she is performing her duties up to the expectations of her employers. Hence, parents should lay down the duties that the nanny should perform in advance and always give constructive feedback for her work.
8. Nannying is not their primary career
This situation happens a lot of times when the parents try to hire a nanny from the job sites. After successful hiring, the caregiver leaves his/her position within 4-5 months. This is because nannying is not their primary focus or their primary career. Nannying is just a side hustle for most of these candidates, as they could be students or wait for a better job opportunity elsewhere. The best solution to avoid this circumstance is to hire a nanny from an agency as they have years of experience in this industry.
Conclusion
Nannies are a crucial part of many families — but are often taken for granted. These caregivers help parents juggle work and family life in the best way possible, freeing up valuable time that could otherwise be spent on things like commuting or meeting the kids’ needs. However, like any profession, it can be stressful and demanding. So what does all this mean for employers? Well, a distressing number of people are quitting because of their disappointments in the role. If you want to keep your nanny, it’s imperative that you make sure she feels heard and respected. In the end, better communication can help solve problems before they become full-blown crises (or as a consequence thereof).
