When you hire a nanny to work for your family, it is very important for you to create a contract. This gives you and your chosen nanny complete peace of mind, as your agreement will be clearly in writing. Creating nanny contracts is a step that many families might find complex, but in reality it can take a short time to produce one.
In essence, nanny contracts are work agreements, outlining the duties and contractual obligation they are entering into with you and your family. Read on to find out how to create a nanny work agreement.
Why Create Nanny Contracts?
For peace of mind! When you employ someone to take care of your children, they’re going to be working in a private setting. The lines can blur between work and friendship, but it is important for the nanny to have a contract.
A good nanny work agreement will demonstrate that you’re a serious employer and that you’ll be employing them in an official way. It gives the nanny and yourself long term job security: the nanny will know they have a secure position, and you’ll know you have a long-term hire.
Determine Where You’ll Get the Contract From
Many families have their own lawyer or personal solicitor who will easily be able to draw up an employment contract. This can be an efficient route if you already have a relationship with a legal expert.
You could write a nanny work agreement yourself, but we don’t advise this unless you’re a lawyer, as it’s important to write a contract that is legally accurate. Just because something is written in a contract and signed by both parties, that doesn’t make it enforceable in a court of law. For example, if you were to state that your nanny had to work all day with no break, this is against employment law in the UK and would void the contract. Please take care if you’re going to be writing your own contract.
Finally, you could download a pre-written contract. Be careful where you download sample nanny contracts from, as there’s no guarantee that it’s legally correct. We advise getting your solicitor to look over any nanny work agreement. A good sample nanny contract to download is one created by nannyjob.
What to Include in a Nanny Work Agreement
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- The date, and the parties that the contract is between
- Terms of employment – outline the duties and role of the nanny, including working days, hours and breaks
- Remuneration – the salary and any additional packages, such as accommodation, car, meals, pension or private healthcare
- Holidays – the amount of holiday given and notice required to take a holiday
- Confidentiality agreement – very important when working with children
- Termination and renewal – the probationary period, notice period the nanny must give and misconduct guidance
- Disciplinary and capability procedure – what steps are to be taken if there’s an issue?
- Grievance procedure – the steps to follow in this situation
- General – include anything not covered in the above sections, and outline that the contract is governed by the courts of the country that it’s being signed in
- Signatures – both parties should sign and date the contract
When to Present the Contract
If you’re self recruiting, it is very important that the formal offer and general outline of the contract is done before any trial or probationary period is started. You don’t want to be in a situation where the nanny work agreement is being negotiated retrospectively. This can be a difficult position for both parties to be in, and can lead to bad feelings.
There’s no need to present the contract before a trial, if it’s just for a few days, but before a probationary period is started, the contract must be presented and signed. Give the nanny a clear notice period in which to read and sign the contract. This will ensure you don’t find yourself months into a new hire and realise no contract has been completed.
If you need any more help to create nanny contracts, then why not get in touch with Polo & Tweed? We’d be happy to give you more information on negotiating nanny work agreements.