A girl on TikTok is sharing a number of the “worst” texts she’s acquired over the course of her eight years as a nanny.
Among the many messages are texts from mother and father arguing {that a} $20 per hour price is simply too excessive — even to care for as many as 4 youngsters (all beneath the age of 5) at one time.
Nanny Sophia Pagliuca has beforehand spoken to PEOPLE concerning the significance of advocating for your self in terms of childcare providers. In a more recent TikTok put up, she shares the particular messages she’s acquired that show simply how simple it’s to be topic to, as she says, “gross underpayment” as a nanny.
The number of texts shared to TikTok have been despatched to Pagliuca between 2017 and 2019, from mother and father trying to get childcare.
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Amongst them is one textual content from a girl in search of a nanny to observe her youngsters from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. After studying that Pagliuca’s price is $22 per hour, the girl responds: “Oh I believed u had a typo and meant $12/hr. It is okay, we’ll simply use the older woman who lives on our road.”
Sophia Pagliuca/TikTok
One other message affords an identical tone, with a girl writing, “Hello Sophia, I’ve 4 youngsters beneath 5 and needing AM assist, I noticed your charges in your put up however that is a bit of excessive for us, we sometimes pay $15/hr. The children are very easy, it would not take a lot effort in any respect!”
When Pagliuca responds that her price could be $20 per hour to observe the 4 youngsters beneath 5, the girl digs in, arguing that the job would solely be “half time (12 or so hours)” and that the “problem stage is ridiculously simple (older two are principally independent and do every thing themselves, all it’s important to do is make them breakfast, pack lunches, get them dressed, brush their enamel, ensure their luggage are packed after which drive to highschool).”
Sophia Pagliuca/TikTok
The lady then tells Pagliuca that she will not pay greater than $15 per hour for childcare, which she says “is properly above minimal wage which is what you would be paid at a daily job so I believe that is fairly beneficiant!”
When Pagliuca replies that she costs her jobs primarily based off the “worth of her time and variety of youngsters” she’ll be watching, the girl responds, “Yea I am unsure it will work out.”
Sophia Pagliuca/TikTok
The lady ends the dialog with a protracted message lecturing Pagliuca that she would not have to be making $20 per hour “to do a job I might very properly do.”
The lady provides: “When you’re not prepared to take a pay lower due to some type of superiority … that will likely be a fast and onerous fall all the way down to actuality… Good luck however all the women I do know will not be accommodating this sort of habits.”
Different messages inquire about hiring Pagliuca to work 60 hours per week, for simply $300 per week, or to rent her for $14 per hour to nanny three youngsters and educate them piano classes.
One other message asks Pagliuca to spend a weekend watching a 9-month-old child, three canines (who will have to be walked and fed) and a cat, for a flat price of $300.
As Pagliuca tells PEOPLE, the problem of nannying is “advocating for your self” in a job with no human sources division.
“If I will help different nannies understand that this remedy is unacceptable, they’ll extra successfully advocate for themselves sooner or later,” she provides.
Sophia Pagliuca/TikTok
Pagliuca says that, since sharing the messages she’s acquired, she’s been overwhelmed with responses from different nannies: “Anybody who has been a nanny can relate. The mistreatment and underpayment is simply par for the course, sadly.”
She says she discovered to be extra assertive and stand agency in her charges when she stopped “making an attempt to please everybody.”
“As a result of childcare has traditionally been executed by ladies, many individuals see it as easy or simple work,” she notes. “Nevertheless, it is fairly the alternative. … I acknowledged my price and what I needed to provide within the trade — after that, I by no means let anybody inform me otherwise as a result of they did not wish to accommodate my pricing.”
