Consider a scenario where your child’s nanny has quit and you have to hire a new nanny.
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Steps in Hiring a Nanny
To hire a certified nanny, I would prefer to use the services of websites such as nannies4hire.com and set up interviews. Before hiring a nanny, I will take the following steps:
Define the characteristics, personality, qualifications, and experience we want in a nanny.
Describe the children’s personality, schedules, and any special needs or medications. Â
Define the job, including the number of hours and other details.
Define the specific responsibilities of the caregiver.
Decide on the compensation.
Apply for an employer identification number because I will be employing an individual as a nanny.
Verify whether the person selected for the position of nanny is eligible to work in the United States using the Employment Eligibility Verification form from the Department of Homeland Security.
During the interview, I will ask for references from previous employers to check up on the nanny’s credentials.
Contact a background verification agency to do a background check on the prospective nanny.
Inform the state employment office about the hiring or rehiring of the nanny.
Set up a payroll system for the nanny according to federal norms and labor laws.
Calculate the wages, tax deduction, Medicare, and Social Security, and provide the nanny with a copy of the W-2 form including details of the wages and deductions.
In addition to the steps above, I will also consult a friend’s mother because she has hired nannies in the past.
Traits to Look for in the Nanny
Punctual and reliable: She must be punctual and stick to the work schedule. She must be reliable in informing us early about any holidays she might want to take.
Good listener: The nanny must be a good listener and follow all directions given to her regarding study time, naptime, playtime, and dietary restrictions. She must be receptive to the needs of the children, but also ensure they follow the rules set down for them.
Good organizer: The nanny must possess good organizational skills, and be able to allocate time to the various activities throughout the day.
Trustworthy, dependable, and responsible: The nanny must understand her responsibilities well. Along with taking care of the children, she must also create developmental activities for the kids. The nanny must be trustworthy because she will have total control over the children when the parents are away.
Good communication skills: She must have good communication skills to interact with the children and also with the parents.
Well-mannered and morally sound: Children learn from their caregivers and their surroundings. They will be spending a substantial amount of time with the nanny. So, it is extremely important that the nanny provide an example of good morals and behavior.
Alternative to Hiring a Nanny
I need to have full-time assistance with child care for the next few months. Financially, I can afford to hire a nanny for about 3 months. However, soon thereafter I may need to seek help from some relative or friend to look after my baby. Hiring a nanny for all of this time will be expensive for me.
My mom retires from work in four months. I can call her over to look after the baby after her retirement. In the meanwhile, if I need assistance with child care, I can call Cindy, a distant cousin, who lives in the neighborhood. Cindy is in high school and is usually good with kids. I will train her to look after the baby until I am confident she can handle the baby on her own. I can also use the services of some other girls in the neighborhood who I know offer their services as babysitters.
I will look for similar traits in a babysitter as listed above in case of the nanny. A babysitter needs to be dependable, trustworthy, and responsible. She should also be caring, sensitive (to children’s needs), and have good moral and ethical values. It is also important that the babysitter does not use drugs or consume alcohol. Because I plan to hire a girl from my neighborhood, I can run a quick background check from the common acquaintances before hiring the babysitter.
Use of New Technology
Next, we need to ensure the safety of children with the new nanny. I could use some of these following devices to track the children’s and the nanny’s activities:
a CCTV system around the house, including the play area outside house and the main entrance to the house, which will help me track not only the kids but also visitors and potential intruders
an automobile safety system for the car that the nanny will be using to drive the kids to school and back, which will ensure that speed limits are strictly observed, and the drive to school and back is safe
the Net Nanny Internet filtering software for the home computer so that the kids do not access inappropriate content on the Internet
a GPS device implanted in the child’s clothing to help me track my kids’ location
