By GTM Payroll and HR Services
In June 2022, GTM Payroll Services conducted its sixth annual nanny employer survey of U.S. families employing nannies in their homes. Results of this survey have implications for nanny agencies and nannies looking for work across the United States.
Hiring a Nanny
Like in past years, families value responsibility and trustworthiness, personality fit, and a passion for childcare when hiring a nanny. These qualities should be sought by agencies when recruiting candidates and highlighted by the nannies in interviews with families. Least valued characteristics were education level, religious beliefs, and pay requested.
Vaccination status for COVID-19 was also very important to families, with 82% of families requiring their nanny to be vaccinated compared to 36% in 2021. And 84% said they would not hire a new nanny that wasn’t vaccinated. Nannies that have been vaccinated have a clear edge in the hiring process.
Using a Nanny Agency
Half of families found their nanny through an agency, which was up from 35% in 2021. A quarter of families hired on their own using online websites and another quarter found their nanny from a referral from friends and family, social media, and community message boards.
Agencies have been experiencing a boom in business as families are grappling with shortages of childcare options, returning to work in the office, and avoiding group settings due to health concerns. A quarter of families would have used a day care center if COVID-19 wasn’t a factor and 11% would have if an opening was available. Agencies should be aware that some of the increased business is coming from families whose first preference may have been group day care centers. This group may need more education on the agency process, fees, and value.
Half of families who used an agency to find a nanny considered more than one agency in the process. Of families that used a nanny agency, 52% found their agency from a referral from friends and family and 41% found their agency by searching online. There are two important takeaways for agencies from this. First, agencies should cultivate positive experiences and reviews from current clients who become important sources of referrals. Second, an agency needs to maintain their website local listing with Google to be found when families are searching online.
Hiring On Their Own
More than half (55%) of families tried first to hire a nanny on their own before turning to an agency for help. The top reason families turned to an agency was inability to find suitable candidates on their own. Thirty-one percent found the process of hiring on their own was too time consuming. And a quarter of respondents hired someone on their own that didn’t work out and turned to an agency for help. Agencies should emphasize the ease and time savings of working with an agency to attract this segment.
For the quarter of families that hired through an online website, 71% used Care.com. Families didn’t like the number of unqualified candidates Care.com provided. Agencies that focus on their value proposition of delivering pre-screened, qualified prospects vs. Care.com can attract these families.
Benefits of Hiring Through an Agency
Families find security/screening of candidates, time savings, and quality of candidates the top three benefits of using an agency. During the hiring process, 71% of families interviewed three or more candidates before selecting their nanny, and 48% spent twenty hours or more on the hiring process. Agencies can highlight the pre-screening of qualified candidates to shorten the time and number of candidates families will have to meet with as a top benefit of working with an agency.
Pay Rates and Employee Benefits
Rate of pay for nannies has increased in the last three years with 30% of families increasing hourly rate of pay by $4.00 or more. Another 38% increased pay between $1.00 – $3.00 per hour. Demand for nannies and shortage of candidates has fueled the rise in wages. Agencies need to inform families of current competitive rates to secure and retain top childcare. Use of other benefits can assist with securing top talent. Majority of nannies receive paid holidays (93%), paid sick days (82%), and paid vacation (79%). Less common benefits to offer as enticement are annual bonuses (48%) and health insurance (20%).
Paying Legally
The top three reasons families use a payroll and tax service are:
- importance of legal compliance (95%)
- hassle-free (74%)
- time savings (65%)
The two most important factors in paying legally were “it’s the law” and avoidance of fines and penalties. Agencies can provide resources on the topic of legal pay and introduce the topic of taxes prior to a nanny’s wages being set so that there is no confusion over take-home pay. Providing recommendations on payroll and tax service companies to families will be valued information for agencies to share.
Takeaways
Here are the key takeaways for agencies from our survey results:
- Responsibility and trustworthiness, personality fit, and a passion for childcare are the most valued traits for families hiring a nanny
- Nannies that have been vaccinated have a clear edge in the hiring process
- Cultivate positive experiences and reviews from current clients to generate referrals
- Emphasize the ease and time savings of working with an agency to attract families hiring on their own
- Provide resources on the topic of legal pay
Since 1991, GTM Payroll Services has been working with nanny agencies and their families to give them the best value when it comes to payroll and taxes. Our process improvements and efficiencies have kept costs down, and we’re committed to keeping our clients ecstatic. In addition, GTM is the only household payroll provider that offers in-house workers’ compensation. This saves families time and effort in securing coverage and handling audits and claims.
If you’re a nanny that knows a family that could use GTM’s nanny tax and payroll service, send them our way. If they sign up with us, you’ll get a $75 Amazon gift card! Just fill out this form.
Visit us at GTM.com/household, or call (800) 929-9213 to learn more about our nanny payroll and tax services.