Sensible Sitters

In theory, this sounds like a great idea: you go to the nanny shop, pay a fee, and get a high-​class, educated, and fully screened nanny, delivered to your door step. Nannies get to go for jobs using their facebook-​like profile page to express interests in jobs. However, any respectable, experienced nanny would NEVER, ever work with this company.
1.) The agency not only charges parents a membership fee, they ALSO take a very, very large percentage PER HOUR from the nannies to be a middle man.
2.) The nannies are paid via payroll check and receive a 1040 tax form at the end of the year. Sorry, tax dodgers! Everything gets reported, so as a responsible nanny, conservatively put away 30% of every dime you get so that WHEN you get hit with a HUGE tax bill at the end of the year, you will have the money to pay the thousands that an independent contractor is expected to.
3.) Parents pay for a nanny with a degree; in other words, the same price is paid for someone with an MS in Biology and two years babysitting experience as they do for someone with a BA in Elementary Education with a decade of experience as a sitter and full charge nanny. There is absolutely no distinction. The nannies are vastly different but paid the same.
Let’s break down the prices (parent prices are on the site; big surprise, nanny prices aren’t broadcast until you go to a meeting, job, and then receive your first paycheck).
ONE CHILD
Parent Pays — $ 22/​hr
Agency Takes — 30−44%!!! PER HOUR
Nanny Receives — $ 13/​hr Bachelors; $ 15/​hr Masters
Nanny Net’s (after taxes set aside) — $ 9.10-B/$ 9.50-M … Are you kidding me? For a babysitter with a degree, and experience, that’s the take home?
TWO CHILDREN
Parent Pays — $ 24/​hr
Agency Takes — 35−42% PER HOUR
Nanny Receives — $ 14/​hr B; $ 16/​hr M
Nanny Net’s — $ 9.80 B/​$ 11.20/hr M
THREE CHILDREN
Parent — $ 26/​hr
Agency takes — 27−35% PER HOUR
Nanny Receives — $ 17/​hr B; $ 19/​hr M
Nanny Net’s — $ 12/​hr B; $ 12.50/hr M
MORE THAN THREE
Parent — $ 26 for three; $ 2/​hr per child (ex: 5 children — $ 30/​hr)
NANNY IS PAID THE SAME FOR ALL ABOVE THREE.
Agency still pays $ 17 – 19 and hour, even when they could feasibly receive $ 30/​hr
HOLIDAYS
Parent Pays — $ 30/​hr for up to 3 children; $ 2/​hr per each additional child
Agency takes — 27−48%!!!
Nanny Receives — No extra amount; Same as above. No holiday pay specified.
Think very, very carefully before you seek this agency for employment or your staffing needs. It is very, very easy for a well connected nanny to find jobs. Look to web-​based services like UrbanSitter (where parents can hire background-​checked nannies also),
(background checks also), or Adventure Nannies for ad hoc work, as nannies are also paid directly and the company only charges a membership fee.
=For parents, you are paying a VERY high price for nannies who have VAST levels of experience (say, an accounting major with occasional babysitting, verses someone with a developmental degree and full-​charge nanny experience).
=For nannies, you are completely selling yourself short. You are worth FAR more than minimum wage, ESPECIALLY with your degree and years of experience!