Automobile insurance provides coverage for family members who cause injury or property damage while driving an automobile. Unfortunately, there are many exclusions and exceptions. A nanny is PROBABLY covered while she is driving the family’s automobile, but to be safe, the family should add the nanny to the policy as an additional insured.

Since a nanny is not a family member, she is not covered by the family’s automobile insurance while she is driving her own car. This can be a significant problem if the nanny is in an accident while driving on family business. The law considers an employer to liable for an injury caused by an employee while doing their work. This is what is referred to as “vicarious liability”. The family’s automobile insurance will not cover vicarious liability and the family can be held personally responsible for paying any damages that are more than the nanny’s coverage limits. Therefore, either the family should not let the nanny use her own car while she is working or, if she will be using her own car, the family should make sure that the nanny has, or buy her, coverage limits at least equal to the coverage limits on the family’s automobile.

Another concern is whether the nanny is driving her own automobile as part of her job. If so, the nanny’s insurance may not provide coverage. Automobiles that are used in a job are assumed to be on the road more and therefore they are more likely to be in accidents, so an automobile insurance policy that provides coverage for business use has a higher premium. A nanny who regularly drives family members as part of her duties may find that this is considered business use and that she has no coverage for an accident that occurs while she is working, especially if providing transportation is part of her contract or she is paid extra for the use of her car or reimbursed for gas/mileage. To be safe, the nanny should check with her insurance agent about including business use in her automobile insurance policy as the premium difference (if there even is one) usually is not very much.

In summary, when it comes to nanny insurance, it is very important to know what is covered, who is covered and how much coverage you have. This can only be done by carefully reading the policy and the “coverage selection” page or “declaration sheet”. Furthermore, is it advised that you double check with your insurance agent to ensure you are covered in any given circumstance!

Have any advice regarding this issue?  Please comment below and share!

#1: On-Call Work!

While waiting for the prefect long term job to come up, taking temporary and On-Call positions will help you earn income and meet families.  It will also allow you to put something on your resume for the time period you are out of work.  Through networking and  meeting lots of families in temporary situations, you may also create a long term job for yourself and meet a family that decides they cannot live without you!  Annie’s Nannies offers On-Call work, summer positions, and short-term On-Going positions.  Let us know if you are interested!

#2: Volunteer!

Another thing to help keep you busy and add to your resume is to volunteer in your community!  There are so many organizations in the Seattle/East Side area that could use your child development expertise!  Volunteering your time not only benefits your community, it also looks good on your resume. Potential employers will see that, even though you didn’t have a job, you were spending your time using your skills and helping others.

Here are some online resources to find  local volunteer opportunities.

www.volunteermatch.org

www.uwkc.org

www.idealist.org

Comment below if you have other helpful ideas for nannies out of work!

Practical Strategies for Teachers/Caregivers: (book lists, teaching tools, and case studies)

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/resources/strategies.html

Infant/Toddler Training Modules: (training tools for addressing the needs of young children)

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/resources/training_infant.html

Guided Growth: (a resource for parents and caregivers of young children)

http://guided-growth.com/default.aspx

Social and Emotional Developmental Milestones: (article)

http://www.pbs.org/wholechild/abc/social.html

Getting Along Together: (article, book lists, do’s and don’ts)

http://www.pbs.org/wholechild/parents/getting.html

Please share with us any other developmental tools or training programs you know about!

There are several options in Washington state for achieiving education goals. The first is the STARS program. This program is designed to improve childcare through basic training and continuing education. It is mandatory for anyone working in a licensed facility, but it is also available to nannies as well. They offer several options for completing the basic 20 hour program, including online courses, site-based courses, and self-paced correspondence courses. The fees range from $95-$155, depending upon the course you choose.

The second option is to get an AA or BA in Early Childhood Development from a local community college or university. The Washington State Department of Early Learning offers scholarships, apprenticeship programs, and access to various continuing education opportunities.

There are also many organizations that support nannies and early childhood educators. The Washington Association for the Education of Young Children is dedicated to improving the quality and accessibility of early care and education programs for children birth-eight years old. They have regular classes, workshops, and publications all centered around increasing knowledge. The Northwest Nanny Association is a non-profit nanny support group in your own backyard! Their goal is to promote education in the field of childhood development, social networking, and advocacy for the nanny community. The International Nanny Association is another nanny support group whose goal is to serve the in-home childcare industry by providing education, information, and guidance.

Last, but not least, is networking with other nannies. By forming playgroups and your own nanny support groups you can share information-not only the educational kind, but stories good and bad. Being a nanny is a very rewarding career, but it can also be isolating at times. Getting out and meeting other nannies can help you feel more connected and satisfied in your career.

• Be prompt and be responsive! If a family is taking the time to call you for an interview, call them back right away. If you are going to an interview, arrive early. If you have to cancel, call and email the family. Do not assume they will get your email or your voicemail!
• Be realistic and negotiable! If there are 10 people with equal credientials vying for the same position, it’s not a good idea to be inflexible with regards to salary. We are not saying you should take less than you’re worth, but remember to be open to other types of compensation like paid time off and help with health insurance.
• Make your resume shine! Make sure all your paperwork represents you in the best way possible. Correct grammar and spelling mistakes. These are just not excusable when there is spell check! The old idea that your resume needs to be one page long is not really applicable anymore. Make sure you list ALL of your relevant experience, no matter how far back. It doesn’t matter if a job was 10 years ago and you no longer have a reference, it shows your work history and your professionalism. List your work experience in chronological order with the most recent job first. Make sure you detail out the ages of the children and give a brief summary of your responsibilities.

We recently had a family call us and tell us about a nanny they wanted to hire through another source. They were very excited about this nanny and were preparing an offer for her until they saw her Facebook account. It had posts and pictures about her drinking escapades. The family was immediately turned off and did not offer the nanny their job.

A New York Times article discussed the issue of setting your account to private. Most users assume that if they do this, only their “friends” will be able to see what they post. But, there are multiple ways around the privacy setting. Simply put, if you don’t want anyone else knowing about your private life do not post it online!

There are ways to capitalize your online presence to help you with your job search. In an article on MyCareer.com, they give lots of tips about how posting photos, videos and resume highlights online can actual help attract potential employers. As a nanny, posting pictures of you with children you care for, discussing your childcare experience and posting amusing stories can be beneficial.

We are often asked when is the best time to look for a job? Our answer is? that it? depends upon what type of job.?  For example, right now is a busy hiring time for part time after school nannies to begin in September. These types of jobs are perfect for students or for those who have other pursuits in the morning.? January is another? time of year that a lot of jobs come on the? market.? At that time of year they tend to be full time jobs and usually a lot of infant positions.? ? In general families start searching for nannies about one month prior to their desired start date. So, whether you are looking for a full time, or part time job to start in September….the time to start searching is now!