I have an ad online because I am looking for another family to take on for casual childcare in the evenings/weekends. I’m a mature female, late 20’s, own my own vehicle, have previous nanny experience and CPR/first aid for adults/infants/children. I have at least 5 references from current families I work for not to mention the many I have previously worked with. I can’t believe the amount of people who message me looking for childcare who expect to pay $25/day and not get a high school student. I understand that you maybe work minimum wage, and might be a single parent on a low budget. I actually have a single parent cap of $50 or $10/hr whichever is less for those families.
Here’s how private caregivers in HRM figure out their rates:
– I have paid almost $200 to maintain my first aid/CPR status for over 15 years now, plus books and research materials about children.
– I have been babysitting since I was 13, and nannying/caring for infants for 10 years. There is almost nothing that I haven’t seen or dealt with at this point.
– If you bring your child to my home, I have to make sure that my home is clean/safe for your child and clean up after.
– I don’t live with my parents, and I don’t have a spouse, it’s just me trying to make ends meet.
– I pay insurance and gas for my vehicle so that I can take your child on outings or in a worst case scenario to an emergency room if needed.
It is an INSULT to offer me $25 or less to watch your child for 8 hours at a time. That means you are paying me just over $3/hour. A high school student would not work for that – why would you expect me to? And as for the whole “well daycares charge $25/day” excuse – I’m not a daycare. I don’t have 4 other kids staying with me at the same time – I only have your kid and I’m giving him/her my undivided attention for the entire day. Think about it: you wouldn’t expect to pay your personal trainer the same amount that you would pay to take a fitness class with 10 other people right? Do your research and don’t expect private services to be on par with group daycare. —Too Much or Not Enough
This article appears in Mar 8-14, 2012.
Do you give tax receipts?
Valid bitch, I’d be pissed too. I don’t like being taken for a joke. Try more actrively marketing yourself online. There are probably people looking for the service you provide that are unable to find you.
My company actually makes a business of doing that for people, for cheap. Let me know if you’re interested if you’re reading this OP
So, you are claiming that you have spent money towards earning money. Funny thing, most of us have to do that. It’s called SCHOOL.
I don’t see anywhere that you actually have a certification in any form of childcare beyond “first aid/CPR plus books and research materials about children”.
Big effin’ deal.
Go anywhere and try to get hired with your credentials.
Oh wait. You can’t. Most childcare places require some kind of childcare course.
Same as my personal trainer at the gym requires the proper credentials.
As for your expenses?
Big effin’ deal.
$200 on first-aid over the course of 15 years?
15 years = 180 months.
$200 / 180 months works out to about $1.11/MONTH.
Even giving you another $300 spent on “books and research materials about children” works out to $2.77/MONTH.
So, what you’re telling us is that you’ve basically spent approximately $4/MONTH for the past 15 years looking after kids.
Big effin’ deal.
What I want to know is the following:
Are you offering a tax receipt?
Are you even insured to be looking after children in your home? Your basic homeowner’s policy likely doesn’t cover it.
Does the insurance on your own personal vehicle cover transportation of children in your care in your vehicle? You might want to check that out. It likely doesn’t.
Good luck to you though.
Tax receipts? Let up you blood hounds. What are you, the IRS? Let the girl make her living. Yes, OP way too low. She wanted the kids now pay for child care. And that’s a myth – pretty sure most daycare centers charge more than 25 bucks/day. I think its more like 300 bucks a week.
No fool: This time you were fooled. The most expensive daycare I’ve seen is $40/day, most are hovering around $30-35/day. At that price, tax receipts are included, insurance is provided, and so are meals approved by NS community services.
Let this girl make her living? Why should she not pay taxes while the rest of the population has to (which pay for services she uses mind you)?? No tax receipts sort of implies under-the-table deals…
Uh, IRS? What country do you live in, no_fool? It is called the Canada Revenue Agency. Watch American TV much?
I am the OP, and actually I DO provide tax receipts for regular clients who ask for them (and pay me more than 100$/month for services) I also report all childcare income on my taxes whether I provided a tax receipt or not…
HOWEVER keep in mind that I end up paying the taxes out of the wages you pay me. If you pay me $25 for the day, I still have to pay taxes out of that plus my expenses. I also have to pay for fuel to go to your home and back, and if I take your kids out somewhere. I pay for insurance on my vehicle (which does cover kids in my care who are in my vehicle, it’s an added amount but I do it for safety). The families are the ones who get the tax credit back- not me. At $25/day I probably won’t break even unless you are my next door neighbour so it’s not worth it to me.
I’m not a daycare. I never claimed to be a daycare. I don’t take on multiple families at a time and I don’t care for kids in my own home (unless they belong to a friend). I have a regular, full time job in the field that I have a university degree for – I do this on my off hours so that I can pay back the student loans for that degree.
I don’t rely on the income from casual childcare to pay my bills – thank god – it’s added income that makes me budget a little less strained each month.
Be fair, and realize that private services are going to cost more than daycares. These are your KIDS… if you want to make sure that they are well cared for and not playing in the streets all day, pay me a fair rate for my experience.
That’s right girl. Um 25 bucks for watching their screaming kid 8 hrs? What’s that 3 something an hour. I’d be sayin HAIL no too!
Well put scrubsgirl! Shut up your detracters.