Is $75 a good price for watching a 15 month old 3 to 4 days a week?

you did not clarify how many hours per day. multiply hours by days and that gives the weekly total. divide 75 by weekly total. if it’s less than about 6 or 7 that’s a good price for the mom (not nec for you).

8 hours 3 days and 4½ the other day.

girl you’re not getting paid shit.

that’s about 25 hours @ $3 per hour.

Definitely seems low to me. I charge $30 for the first 2 hrs (2 hr minimum) then $10 per hour every hour after that. So, if I watch him for 5 hours, I make $60.

How old are you? How much experience do you have? Are you sitting for a family member or friend? How long are you watching the kid?

i assume you meant 8 hours x 3 not 8 hours in 3 (which would be 8 + 4= 12= not that bad.

28½ hours a week or more some weeks for $75.  A watch for friends’ friend.. 32…plenty of experience.

You are underpaid.

@Mygirl1202 : I’d ask for more, darlin’.

~Can I hire you?

Seriously you should be paid at the very least minimum wage. You are being taken advantage of.

if i’m not mistaken you said in another question that it’s your husband’s friend or something like that. don’t get taken advantage of because of that, or because people think that just because you stay home (don’t work a regular job) you are of a lower value than someone else. your free time is worth money and your service is worth money.

yes that was me. i am just up in arms over the whole situation. i am just questioning everything now.

@Mygirl1202 Don’t be up in arms if you agreed to it. You let them take advantage of you. Now that you know better, professionally negotiate a raise. If they won’t give you a reasonable one, move on.

if you ask them for a raise, give them a date it starts, so if they don’t like it they can go elsewhere without being stuck. give them like Nov. 1 so they have time to consider and/or move on. if they want to find something else, or they need to budget the new price they will have a little time.

i was getting $50 til Oct. 1st. 2 weeks before that day we told them about going to $75 on the 1st. and she balked over that.

@Mygirl1202 With your experience you should have known to never have agreed to this situation. But you probably don’t need to hear that. :(
Sounds like it’s time to find a new job…

she balked at it – too bad. she should look elsewhere and see what people charge. i pay $60 per day for like a 10 hour day and that is cheap – mine watches other kids but it’s still cheap. that is for one day…...almost what you get in 4 days.

While you are underpaid, I suppose there are larger questions than money involved. Can these people afford to pay more? Is it worth it to you to do them a favor? Do they recognize what a huge value they are getting from you and that you really are doing them a favor? Sure, you are underpaid, but is it worth it to you? What about taxes and such? Are you paying taxes on this money? Are they writing off the care? If they are there is also a line on their taxes (assuming this is in the U.S.) where they are supposed to report who is providing the care, basically so the IRS can go after under the table child care providers.

Obviously you have a lot to consider here.

thats like a step up from slavery

@patg7590 That’s a bit harsh… She agreed to it (despite claiming she has a lot of experience), got a raise when she asked, and has the ability to walk away and find something else whenever she pleases.

@gussnarp : to do that work week after week continuously at a very low rate, because they cannot afford to pay more would be a huge huge favor to ask of someone, and a huge huge favor for someone to do. almost self sacrificing to do that. once in a while, to watch a friend’s kid for a low rate or free is a favor. to do this endlessly for $75 a week is too kind.

@Likeradar fair enough, that was pretty off the cuff on my part

yes it is. yes the do turn it in. and yes i was being nice cause she just had the baby and her husband just got a new job. they are both pretty well paid and were buying this and that and taking trip so you figure they have money to do that. o well i guess

You agreed to it. I would see if they could increase the amount. I know that things are hard but if you are doing a good job then you deserve better

Taking care of an infant you should be bringing in about $10 per hour. Now, I have taken care of infants for about $7–8 per hour if I was hired to a regular schedule and knew ahead I’d make about $1200 per month.

What kind of liberties do you have while you’re “On the job”?

Are you allowed to eat from their fridge, or would you have to bring your own food/order food with your own money?
How much time out of those 8 hour shifts do you have to spend actually with the baby?

I’ve never babysat anyone, but I’ve had babysitters. What would typically happen is I’d go off and play with legos, or play video games, or watch TV on my own, while s/he would do homework, chat on the phone with a boyfriend [and this is the age before cellphones], watch TV, etc. Checking up on me once an hour or so.
I know that babies need more attention than 5–8 year olds (periods that I recall having babysitters), but it’s not like you’re sitting there watching the kid every second of those 8 hours without having anything fun to do for yourself, is it?

I’d expect at least minimum wage if you did have to spend all/most of the time with the baby. But if you just had to check up on the kid for a few minutes every half-hour, I’d say you folks are crazy to expect minimum wage.

@Sarcasm Actually, there is probably one nap, the rest of the time is pretty constant. Infants don’t really play by themselves, they need a pretty high attention input, and it is pretty exhausting. It is nothing like babysitting 5–8 year olds.

I paid around $220 a week for roughly a 40 hour week of child care, and that was in a day care with four infants per caregiver. Those caregivers got paid well above minimum wage. I paid my own niece $10 per hour to babysit, have dropped her to minimum wage now that he is older.

@Sarcasm : You’re not sitting watching the kid every second, you’re right. The times you’re not “watching” them, you’re changing diapers, cleaning up spit up, making food for you and the baby, entertaining the baby (which can actually take hours if he’s fussy and you’re trying to work out what’s wrong), and by the time you figure it all out, it’s time to start all over again. Change diaper, feed, burp, clean spit up, feed yourself, entertain, repeat, NAP. Baby’s nap time is like getting your lunch break and 15 minute breaks at the same time, which is much needed. And she’s got an 15 month old who, if anything like mine was, is crawling around making messes faster than she can physically keep up with. And if he’s teething… that’s a whole separate nightmare.

@Sarcasm : i realize you may not have experience with little babies, so before i am critical of your answer i suggest you babysit a baby and see how much attention it takes. some babies don’t like to be put down, either, so unless you want to have a hysterical crying baby you would have to hold it constantly. some 15 month olds are walking or toddling, falling constantly, hitting their heads on things (even if you stand right next to them) so it’s no piece of cake. plus you can’t just go out with a baby, the baby needs to be bundled up, you need to take all the baby’s stuff, and you need to put the baby in car seat (and if seat is not already in car, first you need to put seat in car). so it’s not like do what you want and just keep an eye on baby, it’s like do baby and maybe have a minute to take a piss or grab a bite to eat out of refrig and eat standing up.

she is getting paid way to little and if i were her i would start negotiating and ask for $60 a day, which is what mine gets, and mine watches others, and it’s still considered a bargain, and i’m grateful to have her.

Part of the problem is that you said that your husbands are friends. I suspect that if you want your husbands to be able to remain friends you will find a way to gracefully get out of this arrangement and go get a job that pays at least minimum wage.

Working at a place like McDonald’s isn’t very exciting but they are always looking for part-timers who can fill the slots when the students aren’t available.

oh gee just realized i wrote 15 month old. i meant 15 week old. gee i am flustered.

& he is not a sleeper & is teething already.

@Mygirl1202 Then I must be psychic, I just read that answer and realized I’ve been thinking of a 15 week old all along.

@Mygirl1202 Are you saying at 15 weeks he doesn’t nap? Sheesh.

nope he’s an only child…he like to be held..he take maybe 2½ naps a day

omg they woould fall over if i asked for $60 a day

no matter what he is 15 weeks, 15 months, 15 years you need a decent salary. it does not matter if they can’t afford it – what you want is the going rate, as long as it’s not unreasonable.

Ask for a raise…..

that was suppose to be ½ hour naps

@Mygirl1202 What were the circumstances surrounding you taking this job? Was everything discussed up front? Why did you accept the position?

@Mygirl1202 – Have you considered finding a job while they are on vacation and then be all apologetic about not being able to babysit any longer because you really need more money? Then they could either offer a raise or would have to go find another way to have their child taken care of.

Clearly you are not happy about the situation now, and there is no doubt that you are underpaid. The only real questions are how you can tactfully ask for $60 a day or $7.25 an hour or tactfully get out of the situation and how tactful you feel the need to be.

I think you owe them some time to find new child care arrangements, given that you agreed to this one. Just how long is a tough question, with a normal job one might say two weeks notice, but it could take six months to a year to get the child into a new child care situation that they are happy with. It’s tough to say you really owe them that much time, but I would say you can’t just spring it on them when they are on vacation.

@gussnarp If they don’t owe her vacation pay, she does not owe them time. She’s an hourly earner, not a salary employee.

@Mygirl1202 I’d follow what @Darwin is suggesting. Get a job or take in another child while they’re on their vacation.

it was a last moment decision. they didnt have anyone & she had to go back to work. i was trying 2 help. i love having him though.

@Mygirl1202 Yes, attachment is probably the cause of you making this decision, that and the fact that your husbands are friends.

The parents need to face reality also. If they can’t afford infant care, then either one of them needs to stay home, or they need another job to help their finances.

It sounds like there are many lessons to be learned from the current pickle you placed yourself in.

Show them this thread. Seriously. They need to know that caring for someone else’s child is a big responsibility and a lot of work. It’s a job deserving of far more than minimum wage, especially if you’re doing it week after week. It is a job and you should be making near what they’d pay someone else. They need to understand that you are more lenient with their schedule than any professional would be. You are giving a lot in this situation to help them out, and they need to pay you accordingly. I understand that you’re friends and want to cut them a break on the price, but you need to make it worth your while.

15 weeks old!?!? Ack!

I’d ask for $50 a day. When my daughter was under a year old I paid $425 a month for three days a week 6 hours a day.

$50 a day is more than fair for them.

You may want to reconsider sitting for them if it’s going to jeopardize your friendship.

You could work retail part time and make more money and that saves you the drama of potentially fighting with your friends over money.

I tried retail last christmas, it wasnt worth it. i didnt get enough $ for being away from my kids 4 nights a week. i have 3 kids. so the brainy idea of babysitting arose. i appreciate all the input you guys have sent.

please keep us posted and let us know what you decide and how it turns out if you want to.

Then try baby-sitting other kids.

@Darwin : it was not clear if you meant babysitting other kids to compensate for the low wages paid by this one, but she still should be compensated properly from each kid.

@jca – She says she doesn’t like doing retail and likes kids so babysitting is a natural for her. However, she is having problems with this one arrangement. If she takes on new clients, she will be able to set the right ground rules from the beginning with them.

In addition, if she babysits more than one child she will be less likely to get no income during a particular time period. And if she can figure a smooth way to get out of the current arrangement, perhaps her husband and the child’s father can still be friends.

heck no!! I would ask for more. 6 month year old babies need a lot of care then at 12 year old…ask for more!!

sorry i mean 15 month