As a nanny, you are required to wear several different hats: authoritarian, event planner, cook, playmate, and more. During your employment, you may also be asked to step in to be an overnight nanny occasionally. If you are okay with adding occasional overnight stays to your job duties, be sure to talk about this at the time you are first hired.
#1: Add it to your nanny work agreement.
Your nanny work agreement should cover all the details that pertain to your employment including wages, taxes, vacation time, and a termination clause. If you are expected to work occasional overnights, this should be outlined clearly in the agreement, too, as this should not be something discussed on the fly.
#2: Know how overnight pay works.
A shift that lasts 24 hours is long and needs to be calculated with accuracy. The FLSA will allow up to eight hours of sleep time to be uncompensated for overnight nannying. This is for overnight care that is both adjoining with a scheduled workday and gives the nanny this amount of time for uninterrupted sleep. You must pay for all hours if the nanny is getting up overnight for feedings or to deal with a sick child. It’s important to note that overtime rules apply if you are working more than the 40-hour work week, so this must be factored in as well. It is also very common for families to add an additional stipend of $75 - $200 into the pay for nannies that are working overnight.
If you’re not sure if working overnight is something you want to do, communicate that directly with the family at the very beginning so there are no surprises or frustrations later. Communication is always key when it comes to your hours and boundaries of work duties. Not sure what overnight compensation will look like? Our team at HomeWork Solutions will help calculate proper tax withholdings so you know exactly what you’re going to get paid.
Resources:
How to Calculate Nanny Overtime and Overnights (Knowledge Center Deep Dive)