Nannies still being made to work

[stlu]

Please please do not insist that your Nanny has to come to work. It is not ok. Nannies are taking public transport to get to and from work. They are the ones congregating in groups in the parks (with all the kids together), in some cases (of Nanny shares) they are going into multiple households. This is not social distancing. Please be responsible and think of your nannies,your nannies families and your own families health and well being. If there is someone at home to look after your children please do it. This of course does not apply to key workers that are risking everything to try to keep us all safe. Please look at http://chng.it/2Q9pTcdn

[sand12]

This is happening throughout our area. Many people justifying it by saying they can?t work at home unless they have a nanny or in one case I saw in the family section of a teacher becoming a tutor/nanny for several families. There are genuine cases for key workers perhaps, but tbh there is a lot of entitlement to be cavalier about social distancing if it doesn?t directly impact you.

The family discussion section has been very quiet about all this. I wonder if this is all over WhatsApp? Govt guidance is clear. Households need to be self contained, so no bf/gf visits, cleaners/staff that don?t live with you. Live in nannies/housekeeper is fine or au pair, nannies who live out or babysitters and live tutors are not.

[stlu]

Yes please just think about this. These families feel that they are so desperate that they will get anybody into look after their children. These people are not being checked and really could be anyone. Many of these people are saying that they have had the virus already. They have not been tested, therefore how do they know. Please everybody look at the wider picture. To put it into perspective now I have just heard of my first person that I knew that has just died of Covid19. Please please everyone really believe that you will all probably in time also get that call... Think. Is it worth it.

[EastDulwichLove]

Hello, I?m so glad that there is a post about this. I am a Nanny and having been self isolating for a week due to illness I am expected back at work as I can not work from home. I can also walk to work (a long walk at that) but I have expressed my concerns about mixing households and that I can be furloughed but this has been ignored. I?m not sure where I stand legally with this as there is a lot of different information out there. it is a lot of pressure when I want to do the right thing and stay home - I?m worried that my job could be on the line. If anyone has any advice that would be extremely appreciated.

Thank you, Rebecca x

[AylwardS]

Rebecca, hope you feel better.

The government is supposed to be issuing additional guidance and maybe that will say what?s already been said above but until / if that comes out its up to all of us to explain to those who are not seeing how what they see as necessary is meaning others are still at risk of transmitting or catching Covid19 and passing it on even if they don?t have symptoms.

Maybe your employer hasn?t thought that by asking you to work they are causing you to travel - which I?ve had emails from TfL about. This is on the TfL website now.

?Please don't travel. Help us save lives. Help us protect the NHS.

Mike Brown MVO, London's Transport Commissioner?

If you look at the points made above / the government guidance what specifically is you going to work affecting. Maybe if you relate it to your situation and explain how it affects you / them those wanting you to work will understand its better, for now, for you not to work.

The government hasn?t ruled out more restrictions if the current ones or how people apply them don?t slow the spread enough. The additional clarity that exercise is to be from your front door not driven to and vehicle checkpoints in some areas to make sure car journeys are for essential purposes show what the expectation was. I think this backs up your concerns?

Is there a forum nannies use? I?m sure you won?t be the only one to ask this question.

[Penguin68]

I think the situation needs to be taken on a case-by-case basis. A nanny working for a banker is very different in terms of what they can contribute to a nanny working for a couple of doctors or nurses, for instance. Obviously nannies have to consider their own risks, and what 'going to work' could do for a wider society - and employers should also be considerate and thoughtful; and clearly a nanny/ child carer who is visiting multiple homes is placing him/herself at greater risk, as they are the homes they are visiting. When I employed (live-in) nannies (a quarter of a century ago) providing a car for the nanny's use was part of the deal. Which would allow public transport to be avoided.

But clearly a non-essential worker family insisting their nanny travel on public transport to relieve them of child care responsibility is not very defensible, unless there are other issues e.g. of disability.

[stlu]

These nannies should not me made to work. They should not be made to put themselves, their families and the families of the people they are working for at risk. This is obviously not social distancing, this putting more people at risk and more importantly more of a burden on the extremely busy overstretched NHS.

Nannies have rent/mortgage, bills to pay and their own families to feed! Why are nannies being made to work or face the sack with no means of getting employment for the foreseeable future.

This is criminal!!

[KidKruger]

If anything, one of the outcomes of this pandemic will likely be the stark exposure of the huge chasm between privileged people and subsistence workers in this country, the lack of safety harness for the latter, the brutality of zero-hours contract employment, and the unreasonable way the latter are regarded as just resources to burn with no appreciation of their humanity or welfare.

[mimmi]

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[Grace nanny]

I would advise any nanny who is being asked to work for a family that are not key workers to explain to their employer they have an obligation to follow all the rules on social distancing otherwise they are in breach of their health and safety obligations to employees. So unless your employing family keep themselves and their children 2 metres away from you at all times then it is not a safe workplace and they cannot and should not ask you to be there. Nannies are employees with all the same rights as other employees. If they can't make it safe they should still pay you and apply for furlough money if needed. Ring ACAS or join a trade union for more advice. We do a valuable job and we all deserve to be treated with dignity.

[KidKruger]

It?s not just the distancing though, it?s the potential for transmission via surfaces.

How can (presumably) professional couples ignore the basic precepts for safety ?!

[offspinner]

Cartoon in the current Private Eye.

[mimmi]

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[womanofdulwich]

its very tricky though. Can nannies be furloughed?

[MelissaVF]

According to Nannytax Nannies who are paid by PAYE can be furloughed.

[stlu]

Yes. There are a lot of nannies that I know that have made the decision to work. I am not one of these!

I have no money coming in; a huge montage,bills to pay but was given the decision to carry on coming in to work, or get the sack. I choose my integrity over their complete disrespect of what was happening in the world!!

I would implore nannies NOT to go out (many working in multiple houses and spreading this intolerable virous). Government policy says "do NOT go out to work unless it is absolutely necessary" . Please please think about this! If you're parents are at home (or even one person is at home) do please stay at home yourselves.

Parents that employ nannies: Do you think about the added burden that you are putting on the NHS by making your Nanny travel to and from work. Do you really not see what is going on in the world; or just NOT care!

Finally just a shout out for all key worker staff doing their utmost to encourage us all to 'stay in and not go to work'! So sorry to say that I am aware of people still NOT taking that advice and happily going to and from other people's households and not caring about the consequence. This is criminal! These people are exploiting others and certainly benefiting from it. You need to ask yourself whether these people are hero's for helping you with your childcare needs, or, exploiting the situation for there own financial benifits!! I know of people that are taking children into their own homes (not insured for in Ofsted rules as childcarers) I also know that these people have partners (within there homes) that DO NOT have DBS certificates still working in construction industry and spreading This virus around.

This place that we live in now is so shambolic and really needs to be addressed.

Even Today's daily breifing (when asked if it was ok for people to go to parks for a picnic) could not say NO DONT!!

Please all listen and look at the scientific facts:

We are going to be worse hit then Lombardy! Do you really NOT get it yet!

For the sake of all of us. The over stretched NHS, yourselves, your family, friends and neighbours.(of course your own and your nannies health and wellbeing) why would you even think that you should insist (in these times) that your Nanny should come in!!!???

[rachel9985]

We employ a nanny in ED and she has been at home now for 2 weeks as we figured under social distancing she wouldn?t be able to work. We have 2 children under 3 and my husband is now working from home (I am still on maternity leave thankfully). We still have our jobs and so will continue to pay her, although under the government scheme as a PAYE employer I understand we are entitled to furlough her and claim back some wages if we deem this necessary.

Speaking to her I have been very surprised at the number of her friends who are nannies who are still continuing to work for either 1 or 2 families under these circumstances!

In the same vein I know a lot of neighbours / friends who are continuing to pay e.g. cleaners etc who aren?t able to work for them right now, if they can afford it, as they will be under a lot more pressure financially.

[nina_maniana]

It never ceases to surprise me how judgemental people can be... bit of a factcheck here.

Not everyone is able to work from home. Some people who are not key workers are required in their roles to go into work each day. Some of those employ nannies. Yes, it?s not great, and those people need to work extra hard to observe distancing, but it is what it is.

The government letter specifically says the order to stay home does not apply to certain groups and specifically calls out people working in childcare as a group who would be expected to continue to travel to work. So i would think that anyone who employs a nanny would be right to have not thought they would need to look at furlough options.

Working from home whilst caring for kids is possible if the kids are a bit older, but for pre schoolers is, for most, not an option.

Clearly nannies need to not be gathering for play dates and so on. That?s just irresponsible.

The private eye cartoons and so on are so unnecessary and unkind. Everyone is struggling, everyone has bills to pay, and the idea that people in dulwich are outsourcing their childcare to put-upon servants because they can?t be bothered to do it themselves is, I expect, far from the truth.

[monniemae]

nina, I have preschoolers. Friends have babies, preschoolers and young kids. Of course it isn't ideal but "not an option" - seriously? It is the ONLY option currently for the vast majority of people in this situation. I am very grateful that I am not on my own, my partner and I are splitting our time so we can each get work down away from the kids. It is a lot harder if you are on your own, like some colleagues and friends. But the idea that it is simply not an option is only something you would argue if, in fact, you have another option.

Furlough your nannies if you can, and if you can't work from home, leave the children at home with their other parent or get yourself furloughed.

[fishbiscuits]

monniemae Wrote:

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> get yourself furloughed.

But that's not necessarily the employee's choice, is it?

Don't get me wrong, we furloughed our Nanny, and really using outside childcare should be an absolute last resort. But if you're unable to come up with any other option that would work for you, and you have a demanding/unsympathetic employer and you're worried for your job security, then I can understand the dilemma.

But if I was in that position, I'd be looking for a new job as soon as possible..

[stlu]

Having spoken to the Department for Education the government's official stance is that nannies should NOT go into others houses to look after children unless both parents are key workers or vulnerable. They should be furloughed. Nannypaye are (and have from the start) giving out wrong information on this. Also encouraging parents to make their nannies redundant (as they say circumstances have changed) is completely wrong. I have spoken to Nannypaye about this and also expressed my concerns about their wrongful advice to the Department for Education.

[MelissaVF]

The advice sounds like it has really varied. I pay via Nannytax and they have been really helpful - underlined the fact that they are non essential workers as per government advice (unless you are both key workers/ vulnerable) and helped with the furlough process. At no point did they recommend or encourage making nannies redundant. Live-in employees is the only situation they have suggested may be treated differently.

Most people I know have paid for some hours for their cleaners but are not having them due to unnecessary travel and mixing households.

[stlu]

I hopefully think and hope that we have come to an agreement !! Why should it have taken so much stress for me to do This!! Anyone that is in these problems, or knows anyone that is Please please do PM me. Now I have all the facts, paperwork and relevant written information honestly I will do my utmost to help.

It is so important to NOT go into others houses.Employers of nannies HAVE been told that they should furlough their nannies (unless again it is stressed that both parents are key workers or the kids are vulnerable).

Please all be aware that the nanny coming in to look after your children, taking them to there own or others houses is deemed (and is) a huge public safety concern! (This is official government health information not mine).

Think of others safety, the complete lack of concern from you or the nanny that you have are doing to spreed this horrible virus to others, and killing people!

Above all stay AT HOME and remember that these people going in and out of others houses are NOzT the HEROES working here now. They are the exploitaters of a society looking at their own greed. The people insisting that nannies come into their homes are the murderers now!

Try and get it PLEASE. Do not get anybody to come into your home! DO NOT LET anybody take your children into their home. Surely you should question your own minds whether this is a responsible action to do???

Any nannies being made to do This?? Any parents that still think this is ok for your nannies coming in to your homes? Please think and look at these people dieing the overstetch NHS staff working they socks off and risking their own life's to try to help these people!

Please PM me if you or anybody (nanny) that you know has been (or is being still) being made to work against their will. Please feel free to pass this on.