What to do if your nanny is sick
October 3, 2011
Picture this : It's Monday morning, you're getting ready for your early morning meeting. The phone rings and you get the worst news - your nanny has called in SICK!
Any parent that has had a regular nanny can tell you, this is inconvenient and very stressful, but that is the reality in having an employee working in your home. So you're not left scrambling when this happens, do a few things to help yourself:
- Don't make you nanny feel bad that she can't come in. You don't want her to bring her sickness into your home, potentially getting the entire family sick.
- Have open communication with your nanny. Request that once she starts feeling that she may be coming down with something, she gives you the heads up. This will give you more time to plan for when she is too ill to come in.
- Always have back-up emergency care lined up. Your options could be a stay-at-home-mom, an emergency babysitter, other nannies in the neighbourhood, and of course any family members near-by. Be sure to heavily reward your back-up care when they do help you out!
- If the nanny is feeling under the weather, but well enough to work, decide if you really want this; if you are greatly needed at work you may have no choice. In this situation, you should expect the nanny will be doing less than usual.
- Keep track of the number of sick days. If there seems to be a pattern of a large number of sick days, you may need to discuss with your caregiver.
If you are a working parent, your employer expects a few situations like this to come up during the year. Being prepared can prevent stress for you and your nanny.
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