By Sue Downey
For weeks we have been working to support each other and survive this storm. We are not thru it yet- nor are we likely to be on the other side for months to come.
However, I am a nanny and it is instinctual for me to see the lessons in what is happening. The good things we have learned, the kindness we have shown for each other. We have come together in new ways, whether that be raising money for those who have been financially challenged. Or maybe it was banding together with others to help drive businesses and offer families some help. Maybe it was the way that we offered free trainings, resources, and opportunities to prepare for the future. Even the way that we offered up suggestions for activities, reading stories, listing websites, and resources so that we could do our jobs better when the jobs have gotten harder and harder. Most of all, I noticed it in the way that we have offered support to each other, nanny, agency, business, families, people. We ask first, “How are you doing? It’s hard isn’t it.”
We have learned the lesson, been smacked in the face with it actually, why being paid legally is important. It has been demonstrated, in graphic relief, that all nannies are not treated equally. The importance of a clear contract and good communication has been highlighted. Nanny families have a whole new appreciation of the work we do.
So we finally are coming to the doorway of what’s next. We are about to enter into a whole new level of crisis. On our horizon, we are now going to face a crisis of child care. With schools closed and daycares and preschools probably unsafe, until a vaccine is widely available, our country is going to try to reopen when many families have no viable and totally safe option for taking care of our kids.
A recent article from CNN says, “Covid-19 has taught us a lot of things, but one critical thing it’s showed us is how important child care is to a functioning economy,” said Frances Donald, chief economist and head of macro strategy at Manulife Investment Management.”
However, it puts nannies in a precarious position. A recent survey from NAEYC states that only 11% of childcare providers are confident that they can survive closure of an indeterminate length of time without support. It is likely that we will lose a large percentage of these programs due to the economy and COVID. Due to health concerns and the lack of viable family daycares or centers, there will be a flood of families who seek out nanny care, the cost of which may be just beyond the financial reach of a family dealing with an economy in recession. So many nannies are now unemployed, it may seem this is a good thing. However, before the current crisis, care.com cited the national average hourly pay of nannies was $14.90. Families seeking care who are used to paying center pricing will surely offer less. $15 is not really enough to secure affordable housing in most U.S. cities.
The crisis is plain to see- families who need help to keep kids safe at home and go back to work. Nannies who want to work, but need to be paid a competitive and living wage. Children who need care from a steady and enriching caregiver to survive the stress of this situation.
We must as a community take the lessons of this crisis and support each other like never before. We must know that while surely wages will go down for us as it will for nearly all workers in the U.S. — we must be paid a living wage. We must be paid legally. No longer can we accept under the table jobs or place nannies with families who refuse to employ nannies legally. It is not just a moral imperative or desired bonus of the job. It is the law. We must stand firm as an industry and demand that ALL nannies are treated within the confines of the law.
We must become advocates for our fellow workers within the childcare world. Not all families, no matter how much we would like it to be true, will be able to afford the nanny. So we must raise our voices to support child care programs and shine the light on the need for federal, state, and local actions to protect all options for families.
We must work as an entire industry to provide families, nannies and agencies, with resources on contracts, payroll issues, setting up good communication, and effective working relationships. We need to be creative and develop guidelines and information on nanny shares or new innovative ways that families can secure safe, consistent, and enriching care.
Surely big changes are coming. And as we have been saying for weeks now, no one quite knows what tomorrow will look like. One thing is true and has been proven throughout history, when we stand together, we are stronger. When we are united, we surely can face any storm.
Sue Downey is a nanny for two wonderful kids in Philadelphia Pa. She is also the organizer of Nannypalooza and iNNTD and is a partner at Our Nanny Diary.
* THE VIEWS AND OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS ARTICLE ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE OFFICIAL POLICY OR POSITION OF THE INTERNATIONAL NANNY ASSOCIATION. THE CONTENTS OF THIS BLOG POST ARE INTENDED TO CONVEY GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY AND NOT TO PROVIDE LEGAL ADVICE OR OPINIONS. THE CONTENTS OF THIS POST SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS, AND SHOULD NOT BE RELIED UPON FOR, LEGAL OR TAX ADVICE IN ANY PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCE OR FACT SITUATION. THE INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THIS POST MAY NOT REFLECT THE MOST CURRENT LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS. NO ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN IN RELIANCE ON THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS POST THE INA DISCLAIM ALL LIABILITY IN RESPECT TO ACTIONS TAKEN OR NOT TAKEN BASED ON ANY OR ALL OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS POST TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. THE INTERNATIONAL NANNY ASSOCIATION RECOMMENDS THAT AN ATTORNEY SHOULD BE CONTACTED FOR ADVICE ON SPECIFIC LEGAL ISSUES.