How would you feel?

BabyKK32

I am a nanny and I bring my almost 1 year old dd with me to work. She just got over being sick this weekend and when I got to work one of the kids was up all night with a stomach bug and the other has a cold. We never discussed what would happen if they were sick but I always assumed she would stay home with them. If it was just me I wouldn't care so much but the last thing I want is my dd to get a stomach bug. She didn't even warn me. Would that upset you?

MrsStanger

It sounds irritating! It is definatly something that should be discussed! What happens if your daughter is sick and it is the middle of the week? do you take her with you or do you call in sick for her?

BabyKK32

It is frustrating! I call in if she is sick. She's rarely sick but when she is she is super clingy and I can't get other stuff done so we just rest at home. When my boss has to stay home or there is bad weather like ice she still pays me for missing but when I call in I lose money so if dd gets sick I lose a whole day when it could have been prevented. I'm praying she doesn't catch it.

LisaLisa1980

Pissed off, I'd be pissed off

ebp913

As a nanny, I would assume that it's your job to be with the kids when they are sick.  Isn't that part of the point?  So that the mom or dad doesn't have to miss work?  I have a nanny but she doesn't have kids that she brings with her so this is kind of different.  

You guys should talk about this and decide.  As the parent employing a nanny, I would most definitely expect my nanny to be with the kids when they are sick.  This is one of the main reasons that we chose to have a nanny over daycare in the first place.  You should be informed about her kids being sick but I would honestly expect you to make other arrangements for your child and still come to work if you didn't want your child around the kids you nanny for.  

veetveet

You're the nanny- there's a reason these kids don't go to daycare.

Jags8

I used to be a nanny, and was asked by my employers during my interview if I would still work if the kiddos were sick (to which I said yes). This definitely should have been discussed during your interview. However, because it wasn't, it was probably assumed that you would be working even if the kids were sick, because, well, that's kind of the point of having a nanny vs daycare.

=Lee=B

I spent years as a nanny...the reason families get nannies versus out of home care is to prevent having to take sick days.  It is a nanny's job to be there to care for the children when sick.

Unless you had clearly made it known you would not do this before getting hired then the parents had no reason to assume you would not care for their sick child.

Keep in mind that most illnesses are contagious before the symptoms are present so your child was exposed last week before being there today.

Bets you can do is extra hand washing and cleaning to prevent it from spreading.  If you are really concerned you can have back-up care for your child for the days the other children are sick so you can work but your child can stay away...but again she would have likely been exposed in the previous days.

MrsWindyCity

Like others said, I would expect you to be there, since that's one of the draws of a nanny over daycare. 

sschwege

A warning would have been nice, but honestly that's part of what nannies do is care for the kids whether they are sick or not.  I used to be a nanny and was always there, granted I did not have children at the time but still.  That's probably a big plus for parents when they hire a nanny is knowing that even if their child is sick they can still go to work.  I think you have to look at it like this, what if the parent had to stay home not only every time their child was sick, but yours as well?  That would be a lot of missed days of work for the parent.  They might be trying to save those days for when you can't come.

BabyKK32

Y'all are right, I should have discussed it with her but every other family I was a nanny for they would just stay home. I shouldn't have assumed. I do wish she would have told me though because I would have left my daughter with someone else. She may have been exposed before but I had a hard time watching all 3 of them when one was throwing up and it was just not fun. Thanks for all the input!

ASmallWonder

I'm in the same boat as the others that you guys had differing expectations and I absolutely see why she assumed you'd still watch her kids.  That said, I think it was pretty shitty of her not to give you a heads up, like you said, so you could decide if you wanted to bring your daughter or not.