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Raising a baby for working couples who live alone can be a very stressful and challenging task. Hence the best thing is to start looking for a caretaker even before the baby is born to avoid rushes. A nanny or child care provider should be hired to look after the child in the parent’s absence and give the child basic knowledge before preschool.
Since raising a child is a solemn task, parents should not rush the hiring process but screen all the available candidates and chose the best among them. One helpful source is sosgarde, which offers a localized directory of professional babysitters, nannys, professional caregivers, special needs caregivers, pet sitters and house cleaners.
Here in this guide, you will find the steps to get the best nanny without wasting much time.
Make a list of What you Need.
Once you have decided to hire a nanny/babysitter for your child, make a list of things that you will be looking for in the caregiver and write it in the description. The description may include requirements like:
*Live-in or live-out nanny.
*The minimum education of the caregiver.
*Previous experience as a babysitter.
*Someone who has no criminal record.
*The number of days you want their service.
*Willing to help in household works.
*Can work extra hours if needed.
*Basic Medical Knowledge.
A proper job description screens the candidate who doesn’t match the description lands you the candidates you are looking for, saving a lot of time finding the perfect nanny candidate.
Calculate your Budget
According to a report in 2018, the average national hourly rate for a professional nanny is $19.14, making it very costly for ordinary families. So before hiring a nanny for the family, one should keep in mind how much they are willing to spend monthly, including the extra hours, bonuses, and paid leaves.
Once you have figured out the budget, you can start looking to find nanny by asking people for recommendations or running ads. You can also find entirely Professional Nanny through Nanny Agencies, which will cost you more but save you a lot of time and find you trustworthy nannies.
Call for In-Person Interviews
Once you get some nanny applicants fit for the job, call them for an in-person interview. Look at their application form, their qualification, experience certificates, etc. Keep in mind that babysitting is a job of responsibility; hence ask them questions in a neutral tone and wait for their answer. If not satisfied with the interview, look for the next applicant.
In the interview, you can even introduce the nanny to family and child and check how she interacts with the child. Most nannies even get ready for a trial check before the job.
In-person interviews help to get to know if the candidate is fit for the job or not.
Run a Background Check
Before giving the employment contract to a candidate, a background check on them is critical to check if they are not lying about anything to you.
To run a background check on someone, you need written permission from them. Then you can go to federal officials to check about their records. You can also use people search engines for all free people search and get details like criminal history, email lookup, phone number lookup, sexual offender record, property record, etc.
If you are hiring a nanny through a nanny agency, they run a background check on the nanny you are hiring and provide you a detailed report.
Check for References
When you are satisfied with everything listed above, now is the time to call the people who previously employed the nanny you have chosen.
Call at least 2-3 people apart from the relatives of nanny and check their experience with the concerned person. You can respectfully ask them about nanny’s professional behavior among the family and if all the desired duties were fulfilled by. If most of the references are affirmative, you can start preparing the employment contract.
Sign the Contract
A detailed nanny contract should be drafted when hiring a nanny. The contract should include everything like the things you want them to do, salary, some working hours, restrictions if any, etc. The more detailed a contract is, the better it is for everyone.
Ask the candidate to sign the contract if he or she agrees to everything; they will become your house’s nanny.
