Are you considering having a permanent nanny come into your home to look after your children, but you are not sure of the employment process or your obligations?

Do you need to replace an existing nanny? Or are you contemplating going back to work permanently and are investigating your options?

Maybe you work from home, and are just finding it too hard to juggle your young children with your work committments.

Whatever your reason, Mary Poppins Nannies are here to assist you. We regularly place full time and part time nannies in homes throughout Canberra and the surrounding region.

Full Time Nannies are employed from 7.5 to 10 hours a day, 5 days a week - usually Monday to Friday, and the expectation is that they will be with your family for a minimum of 6 months, however they often stay for two or more years.

Part Time Nannies are usually employed up to three full days each week, but sometimes employment may be for 3-4 hours every morning or afternoon.

While nannies in Canberra usually live away from the place of employment (Live-Out Nannies), we also place nannies who Live-In with the family they care for. To ensure this situation works well for everyone concerned we assist you to set up guidelines prior to the nanny moving in.  

When you contact Mary Poppins Nannies to place a nanny with your children, the first thing we will do is arrange a suitable time for one of our friendly Childcare Consultants to meet with you to discuss your childcare requirements, the expectations you have of your prospective nanny, and complete an in-depth profile of your family covering your children's routines, activities, medical and emergency details. This meeting is also an opportunity for you to ask questions about our services and staff, and for us to build a rapport with you and to develop a clear understanding of your requirements.

Mary Poppins Nannies interviews every potential childcarer and contacts their referees prior to submitting them for an interview with you.  We ensure they have or are qualifying for the relevant First Aid certificates.  In the process of being registered with Mary Poppins Nannies, applicants must undergo an Australian Federal Police check and we ensure public liability and professional indemnity insurances are in place.

Nannies have the same entitlements as everyone else employed to do a job. Employers pay their PAYG tax and Worker's Compensation Insurance, and iwhen nannies are placed in permanent positions, they will receives the usual entitlements such as superannuation, annual leave, sick and personal leave, and paid public holidays.

At Mary Poppins Nannies, we offer our permanent clients the option of employing their nanny themselves, or of having her/him employed by us. 

Considerations for Permanent Placements

If Mary Poppins Nannies employs your nanny, you do not need to worry about payment of wages, taxes, superannuation or insurances – everything is taken care of by us.  Should you choose to employ the nanny yourself, we will help with paperwork and contacts for all your employer responsibilities, but you will be required to process all employer requirements.

Wages

Whether the carer is to be employed by Mary Poppins Nannies or directly by the family, the rate of pay will vary depending on her experience and qualifications, and on the position and your requirements.  Your Childcare Consultant will be able to offer guideline rates for your situation and will help with the negotiation.

The hourly charge for each placement is negotiated on an individual basis taking into account variables such as the number of hours worked, the number of children and families cared for, if housekeeping is involved; and the age, experience and qualifications of the applicant.

Minimum requirements to be employed by Mary Poppins Nannies

    The minimum age for placement by Mary Poppins Nannies is 18 years.
    All carers must have a current Senior (Level 2) First Aid Certificate.
    On commencement of employment carers must have undergone an AFP National Police Check within the last 3 months.
    At least 3 referees for each carer will be contacted by telephone by our Childcare Consultants.

OVERTIME

Part-time carers may work up to 38 hours per week, at their usual pay rate, without the payment being at overtime rates.

Full-time carers are usually engaged for an average of 38 hours per week over a one or two week cycle.  The commencement time of ordinary hours of work is not to be earlier than 7.00am and the ceasing time of ordinary hours of work is not to be later than 7.00pm.

It is important to be aware that very few nannies have the opportunity to take a break from work during the day, without the responsibility of the children they care for.  Although this does not affect the hourly rate charged, it does have an influence on the number of hours a nanny is required to work during the day / week, and it may have an affect on the overtime worked.

The rate paid for overtime work should be discussed and agreed upon prior to commencement of your position.

Flexi-Time

Some families & nannies agree on a flexi-time arrangement for extra hours worked.  Rather than being paid overtime, the nanny builds up extra days off, with full pay.  Again, this arrangement should be discussed & agreed upon prior to commencement of your position.

PROBATION

A standard probationary period of 3 months (12 weeks) is usual.  In this time any leave requested will be unpaid.  If either party terminates this agreement within the probation period, annual leave due to the employee will need to be calculated and paid.

PAYG TAX

Wages are negotiated as a gross wage (before tax).  The employer, (either Mary Poppins Nannies or yourselves), is required to deduct the appropriate PAYG tax amount from the employee’s wages each pay, which must be forwarded to the Australian Taxation Office quarterly.  You will be advised of the payment requirements when you receive your employer tax package from the ATO.

SUPERANNUATION GUARANTEE

If you employ your nanny to work more than 30 hours per week you are required to provide superannuation into a complying superannuation fund.  Your Childcare Consultant can discuss superannuation fund options with the nannies and yourselves.

If Mary Poppins Nannies or any business entity employs your nanny the Superannuation Guarantee Levy must be paid once the employee earns more than $450.00 gross in a calendar month.

The superannuation charge percentage is set at 9% of the employee’s gross (calendar) monthly wage and must be paid into a complying superannuation fund at the end of every quarter.

If the Superannuation Guarantee Levy for a quarter is not paid by the 28th of the following month you will be required to pay the Superannuation Guarantee Charge, which includes interest and an administration fee as well as the Superannuation Guarantee Levy.

LEAVE REQUIREMENTS

Paid Annual Leave for a permanent full time nanny is calculated at the rate of 20 days for each 12 months employment, or fours times the average number of hours worked per week.

or on a pro-rata basis if your nanny works part-time or for a shorter period; e.g. a nanny employed 3 days per week would be granted 12 days annual leave per 12 months employment. Annual Leave is cumulative, & any untaken leave must be paid out at the time of the nanny’s departure.

An easy way to calculate Annual Leave entitlements is one normal week every quarter (ie one week in thirteen).

Paid Sick Leave is calculated at the rate of 10 days per annum for a 5-day a week nanny or pro-rata for part-time nannies, and is cumulative.

In the event of your nanny being ill Mary Poppins Nannies will do our best to provide you with a replacement nanny should one be required.  However, you will be required to pay for your emergency nanny at the current Schedule of Rates for Casual Care, as well as paying your own nanny.

Employees are entitled to additional leave for Personal Leave and Infectious Diseases Leave.  This needs to be discussed in more detail with you Childcare Consultant.

Public Holidays are taken with full pay or worked by mutual agreement with a higher negotiated rate, or alternatively a day may be taken in lieu of the public holiday.

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION INSURANCE

All employers in the A.C.T. are required to have a full Workers’ Compensation Insurance policy.  This is calculated as a percentage of Gross Annual Wages and varies between insurance companies.

Mary Poppins Nannies has a Workers’ Compensation Insurance policy, which covers all of our employees working on either a permanent or casual basis. 

A claim against this policy may be negated if a client has asked a nanny to work for them directly and without the knowledge of Mary Poppins Nannies (ie if the nanny is paid directly by the client without the knowledge of the agency).

If you are considering employing your nanny it is important that you contact your own insurance company to ensure you have the right policy in place. We can also put you in contact with an Insurance broker.

PUBLIC LIABILITY AND PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE

Mary Poppins Nannies has a Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance policy.  This policy covers both the agency and our employees. 

A claim against this policy may be negated if a client has asked a nanny to work for them directly and without the knowledge of Mary Poppins Nannies (ie if the nanny is paid directly by the client without the knowledge of the agency).

If you employ your nanny directly, we will provide the nanny with the appropriate paperwork prior to commencement, to apply for a Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance policy.

VEHICLE EXPENSES

Should your nanny be required to use their own vehicle to drive members of the family to activities, a vehicle allowance is applicable. Please contact the agency directly for the current rate per km.

Vehicle expenses should be reimbursed to the nanny as an expense on a regular basis.  Mary Poppins Nannies are able to include vehicle expenses on our invoices, as long as the kms are included on the signed timesheet.

PERFORMANCE REVIEWS

Regular performance reviews, comprising of a meeting between the nanny and the family should be held eg at the end of the probation period and again every three months.

ACTIVITIES

Occasionally Mary Poppins Nannies becomes aware of upcoming concerts and attractions that may be suitable for your children, e.g. “Playschool” or “Dorothy”, for which we may try & organize a group booking.  Your nanny will be informed and notified of any charges or admission fees required should you wish your child(ren) to attend with the group.

Attendance of all activities organised by Mary Poppins Nannies is by choice and subject to parents’/guardians’ permission & approval.

TERMINATION

A termination period of at least two (2) weeks written notice or two (2) weeks pay in lieu of notice is required. Any untaken Annual Leave must also be paid out at this time.