Nanny Employer Blog

Did you know the level of childcare a kid receives as a young child will directly affect their teenage behavior?  A new study conducted by the University of California concludes that teens who had high-quality care at a young age performed better on both academic and cognitive tests.  While some would expect the correlation to fade away, this was quite the opposite.

Over 1,300 teenagers from different social and economic backgrounds were tested across 10 states. While the hours of weekly childcare fluctuated, those children who had high-quality care, on average scored 5.3 points higher than those without quality care.

At Mom’s Best Friend we are known for providing the high standard of care.  Our rigorous screening and application process assures that you receive top notch care. Only 10% of our applicants get through the entire rigorous process.  Once accepted as an MBF nanny, all of our nannies must complete a customized training course.  Don’t hesitate to call MBF today at 512-346-2229 to inquire about hiring one of our wonderful nannies!

Q: Should I offer health insurance benefits to my nanny or other household staff?  Is this common practice?

A: Yes!  At Mom’s Best Friend, we seek to provide you with the best advice and most current trends to enable you to make the best hiring decisions! We always advocate that our clients offer health insurance because of the tax advantage to both parties, as well as the peace of mind you receive from caring for your employee and from knowing your employee can get access to the medical coverage they need when they need it. 

A 2010 International Nanny Association Survey and Benefits Recap reported that 16.38% of nannies receive insurance paid at 100% and 13.75% receive insurance paid at 50%.  While 30% of professional nannies is not a majority, Breedlove & Associates (www.breedlove-online.com), a national tax and payroll firm exclusively for household staff, reports seeing an upward trend in the offering of medical benefits.  Perhaps the reason for this trend is greater education of parent employers about the advantages. 

Even if you are not in a financial position to cover any of the cost of your employees’ insurance, both parties are still better off reducing the salary by the amount of the insurance premium and then paying the full insurance amount because neither party will pay taxes on that deduction.  The type of plan chosen and thus the amount of the premium may determine what contribution, if any, is comfortable for your family’s budget.  Just keep in mind that this stipend is tax free dollars allocated to this expense.    

You can go about setting this up in a variety of ways.  If you are able, you can make your position very attractive by offering this benefit above and beyond the salary negotiated to ’sweeten the deal” and secure a top caliber candidate.  Otherwise, offer to contribute a stipend of a flat dollar amount, to contribute half of the monthly rate, or to provide a separate check for the whole amount in exchange for a reduction in salary of that same amount.  Find out from your nanny or household staff if they are currently carrying their own personal policy.  If so, ask for a copy of the invoice/receipt from this policy for your files and to get the exact amount.  If not, ask him/her to research a desirable policy and provide you with the information so the two if you can discuss together.  Most employers do not cover the cost of the spouse and/or child(ren) but make sure the policy allows for these additions, so they are able to cover them at their own expense if desired.  Do NOT add these employees to your business payroll or benefit plans, as it is a violation of the law. 

Helping out your employees in this way will make them feel valued, viewed as a professional, and secure in knowing they have medical coverage.  You can feel secure in knowing that they will be able to get care as needed and thus be more healthy and able to give the most to their position with you.  If you have additional questions in this regard, please ask your MBF placement counselor or call Breedlove and Associates at 1-888-BREEDLOVE.

A few weeks ago you may have heard that another political appointee has failed to follow correct procedures for hiring household employees.  President Obama’s appointee, Alan Bersin, ironically was nominated to be Commisioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.  The CBP has a priority mission to keep terrorists and their weapons out of the US, but also responsible for facilitating trade and travel.  In addition, they enforce hundreds of U.S regulations, including immigration and drug laws.  Alan Bersin broke the law when he failed to complete an I-9 form for at least one of his many household employees.

At Mom’s Best Friend, we are here to help find a great match for your family and avoid similar situations to this.  Whether it be a nanny, child educator, or housekeeper, all of our candidates have gone through a rigorous screening process.  This includes background, identity, motor vehicle, and reference checks.  All our candidates are legal to work in the U.S.  This is just one of the many benefits of using an agency to help you in the process.

To learn more about the story, you can read online at  http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dcnow/2010/05/border-chief-scolded-for-not-following-hiring-law.html.

I am excited to announce Mom’s Best Friend has introduced senior care to the Austin market. After over 15 years placing nannies, sitters and household staff, Mom’s Best Friend is now licensed to offer the same luxury care to local seniors. A few years ago my grandmother moved in with our family I realized how hard it was to find premium, loving, quality, in-home care.  We are now licensed by the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services to provide both short and long-term personal assistance services (PAS) to seniors.

Our services include:

·        Companionship / visit

·        Transportation and errands

·         Dressing and undressing

·         Bathing and restroom assistance

·         Mobility and/or exercising

·         Light housework and pet care

·         Communication device use (e.g., phone, email)

·         Health management and maintenance

·         Meal preparation, feeding and cleanup

·         Safety procedures and emergency responses

·         Assistance with medication (reminders)

MBF will exceed the minimum screening standards set by the Texas Department of Aging and Disability by providing ongoing monthly criminal background checks to give peace of mind to seniors and their families.  For more information out our new site mbfseniorcare.com or call the Senior Care direct line at 512.797.1505.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of hosting the APNA board members here in Central Texas.  I look forward to meeting each year with these women to discuss industry topics and plan for the future.  We enjoyed laughing over dinner, exchanged stories by the pool, and were even able to squeeze in some meetings amongst all the fun.

APNA , The Association of Premier Nanny Agencies, was established in 1993.  The association promotes best business practices and works closely with agencies, nannies, and families. Mom’s Best Friend has been a member since 2003 and we are proud to carry the APNA quality seal. I look forward to seeing these women in October at our next conference.

Wherever we go in today’s society, we are constantly bombarded by media.  TVs are in almost every room of your house; most of us have an iPhone or Blackberry which allows us to always be connected, and the radio is usually on while we are sitting in rush hour traffic.  Unfortunately, most of the news we hear is often negative.  This certainly holds true to nanny-related events.   However, nannies around the world have been caught in some pretty heroic acts lately.  These nannies have been inadvertently been placed in tragic situations, risked their lives, and never thought twice about risking their own lives for their charges. 

A few weeks ago, a house right outside Louisville caught on fire in the early morning hours.  The family’s live-in nanny was home alone with their five-year-old child. She woke up to find the house engulfed in flames and knew she had to get the little boy out quickly.  Alyson walked barefoot through the fire and pulled the boy to safety.  Fire fighters believe that, within minutes, his room would have been engulfed in flames.  When Alyson was interviewed in the hospital, covered with severe burns, she said she never thought twice about walking through flames to rescue this little boy.  She is now recovering, and the little boy is very vocal about how much he misses her!

Many miles away, nannies are continuing to put their charges well-being before their own.  In Israel, a shooting broke out in a temple.  Over 180 people were killed, including the parents of a two-year-old little boy.   His brave nanny stepped in front of the gunman, was shot herself, and survived.  Due to her actions, the little boy made it out unharmed.  No matter how far from home, this act deserves recognition.

Sadly, we are faced with stress and worries each day. Hopefully knowing that your children are in the hands of a great nanny will allow you the peace of mind to sleep a little better each night.

If you are considering hiring an estate or household manager, you may have some questions. Among those questions could be: How much do I pay my household manager? What duties do they normally perform? How many hours a week will they work? How does my job description and compensation compare to other positions? A survey recently conducted by ‘The Caretaker Gazette’ can help provide illumination to some of these questions.

‘The Caretaker Gazette’ surveyed 151 individuals that consisted of “property caretakers, major domos, estate managers, household managers, personal assistants, and butlers.” and asked “salary, benefits, responsibilities, and regional data correlation.” Below are the answers to these questions.

The employees’ salaries ranged from under $20,000, which is listed at 1% of those surveyed, to over $100,000, which is listed at 3% of those surveyed. The salary range claimed by the most employees is $61,000-$70,000, which is 24% of those surveyed.

In terms of scheduling, employees were asked how many hours a week they work. The lowest amount listed was less than 40 hours per week, which is listed at 4% of those surveyed. The highest is over 100 hours a week, which was listed at 1%. The amount of hours claimed by the most employees is 51-60 hours, claimed by 33% of employees.

Another area covered by the survey is responsibilities. More than 90% of employees listed in-house system management, security, contractor and concierge-guest care as duties they perform. More than half listed butler duties, vendor and contract management, accounting, event planning, travel arrangements, entertaining, and grocery shopping as responsibilities. Some other less-mentioned duties include antique care, horse care, indoor plant care, gardens, and automobile care, to name a few.

Lastly, another interesting group of questions presented to employees revolved around benefits. More than 90% of employees receive a housing allowance, overtime, a medical plan, retirement plan, either an automobile or automobile reimbursement, vacation (1-4 weeks annually), sick pay, annual bonus, and internet access.

To view this survey and for more specifics on all of these topics, please visit: http://caretakergazette.blogspot.com/2009/11/caretaker-gazette-estate-and-household.html.

Mom’s Best Friend has many wonderful household managers and other estate staff available for immediate placement. Contact an MBF placement counselor if you are interested in meeting any of these wonderful candidates.

One of the questions that I am frequently asked is how to handle taxes with household employees. Like any profession, it is crucial that you comply with the IRS and file taxes for any and all household employees you employ, including nannies, chefs, housekeepers, estate managers, and sitters just to name a few.

Unfortunately, it’s estimated that up to 80% of all household taxes are not paid. Opting to not pay taxes has multiple drawbacks. Should you decide to not pay taxes and are ultimately caught you will not only pay back taxes, but potentially fines and interest. This burden to comply legally does not fall on the nanny, but instead is the solely the responsibility of the family as the employer.

The economic downturn has also brought a new issue to light when it comes to taxes. With many nannies being laid off across the country, unemployment offices ask nannies to fill out an application for assistance including the names and addresses of her past employers. This sets in motion an investigation of why those employers have not been paying into unemployment during those years. Families across the U.S. are having to “catch up” with all of their tax obligations at once.

Like many premier agencies in the United States, we at Mom’s Best Friend walk our clients through the entire hiring process. One of the critical steps in this process is setting clients up with a household tax and payroll company that can assist those who have not previously employed someone in their home with all the right steps to ensure appropriate legal compliance from A to Z, as well as to help advise on how to best take advantage of any applicable tax breaks.

Breedlove & Associates specializes in household employee taxes and payroll, are experts in this niche field, and have been helping Mom’s Best Friend client families for more than 15 years. They charge families a nominal fee of between $150-200/quarter to handle everything from payroll, to direct deposit, to end-of-year tax forms. This is such a small price to pay to sleep better at night knowing you are doing everything legally. Further, most accountants recommend you use this type of service because they are typically not well versed in accounting or legal issues associated with employing household staff. Breedlove and Associates, on the other hand, may even save you money by educating you on the tax advantages associated with paying your nanny legally.

As an employer of household staff, I know firsthand the importance of following the IRS guidelines and utilize Breedlove to help make sure I am complying with all applicable laws and procedures. We want to be a resource for you, so please let us know if we can help you obtain answers to any questions you might have in this area.

One of the main reasons anyone looking to hire a nanny should go through an agency are the steps we take to protect you and your family. The main avenue in which we do this is a extensive, thorough background check. Now you may be asking yourself, “can’t I just perform a background check myself online for a few dollars?” The scary truth is that those background checks rarely perform an extensive search that covers all states in which an applicant has lived.

An article published by APNA, the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies, states:

“Top notch nanny agencies will require that applicants’ social security numbers are traced to identify every state in which they have lived. That information is used to check records in those states – a process that costs more than $10.”

Furthermore, many less thorough online agencies will offer a nanny placement for a fraction of the price of traditional agencies. Beware of this tempting alternative because these online services never meet their nanny candidates in person and even have disclaimers on their websites stating that they do not perform background checks in all states a candidate has resided. This issue is elaborated on by Lynn Peterson:

“I’ve found that most nanny candidates with criminal records have committed misdemeanors which rarely show up on the various nationwide computer searches that are offered. Felonies are more likely to be listed. So, the nationwide computer check sounds good, but it probably won’t find a person’s minor run-ins with the law which can tell you a good deal about their past and their character…There is simply no substitute for a county, criminal-court search and a statewide check in every location where an individual has lived,” says Peterson. “It takes time and knowledge to do it right. And most importantly, it should be a human being conducting that search, not a computer.”

Mom’s Best Friend employs CSIdentity for all of our background checks. They provide the most comprehensive background checks made available today. CSIdentity will authenticate that the caregiver is who they say they are. They will also run a driving record check to make sure their license is valid and that they have a clear driving history. Additionally, CSIdentity checks the caregiver’s criminal record. It checks every county that he or she has lived in. Most background check companies limit themselves to counties that have information digitally stored, but CSIdentity does not. If a county has yet to make the conversion to digital data, they will send a ‘runner’ to collect the physical file of the caregiver to verify that their background is clear in that county as well. For an additional cost, MBF can also provide a credit check and/or drug test.

At Mom’s Best Friend, we continually strive to make sure we are always offering the most extensive checks and screening available, for the peace of mind of our client families who have placed their trust in us! After more than 15 years, families continue to come to us based on our reputation for weeding out 92% of all applicants with this comprehensive sifting process! Your children deserve the best, and you come to us for peace of mind!

I am asked this question on a fairly regular basis: Why should I hire a nanny versus using a daycare? Ultimately the choice is yours but I can share with you many of the things I have learned over the years while being in the childcare industry.

One-on-one attention:
The quality of care your child will receive from a qualified, screened, seasoned caregiver is almost incomparable to the care your child will receive in a daycare setting. While many daycares strive to provide all the children under their care with individual attention, it is nearly impossible when many teachers are assigned 12 plus children. In an 8 hour day, this translates into your child receiving the equivalent of 40 minutes of focused attention. When a nanny comes to your home to be with your child, she is able to devote her entire day to your child.

Illness:
One of the biggest complaints I hear about daycares is the rapid spread of illness from child to child. I know families that spend a large portion of their income on doctor’s visits, prescriptions, and time away from their own work when their little ones come down with something that was being passed around at daycare. Illnesses your child contracts at daycare can adversely affect your career. When a child is sick, according to daycare rules, they cannot be taken to daycare that day, and sometimes even require an additional few days to ensure the sickness has passed. This means that either you or your significant other must stay home from work. I have spoken with parents who were on the brink of losing their jobs solely from absences due to their children’s contracted illnesses. As a two parents working family, hiring a nanny will not only reduce the number of illnesses your child contracts, but can also minimize the number of sick days you will need to use.

Behavioral Issues:
It is not unusual for a child to pick up one, or many, bad habits from other children at daycare. Recent studies have shown that habits learned at daycare can stick with children well into middle school. A recent article published by APNA (the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies) states:

“Children who spend large amounts of time in child-care centers exhibit more minor behavior problems, such as aggression and disobedience, than other children, at least through sixth grade, according to a long-term study that followed 1,364 children from birth through age 12…Children who spent large amounts of time in other setups, such as nanny care or family child-care homes, weren’t affected.”

This is also something to heavily consider when making your childcare choice.

Better overall experience:
When you hire a nanny, you truly gain a better overall experience. Your child’s schedule is customized to his or her needs and wants. You can plan extracurricular activities for your child that your nanny can execute such as play dates, trips to the museum, and athletic outings. Furthermore, if you decide to hire a nanny manager, who is compensated an additional amount to assist with helping to manage the household, he or she can take some extra responsibilities off your shoulders such as laundry, grocery shopping, and additional errand running. These are all tasks that, for you, can come at the end of a long work day and take away from your time with your children. Value of outsourcing these jobs: priceless!