Covid-19 and its long term effect on the nanny industry
Posted on 8th July 2020
A look at the long term effects of Covid-19 on the nanny industry
Covid-19 has had a devastating effect on the economy and at the time of writing (July 2020) it doesnt seem to be going anywhere fast. One good thing to come out of the Covid crisis, however, is highlighting the importance of a nanny's role.
When we went into lockdown, schools, nurseries and childminders all had to close their doors. Nannies were the only form of operational childcare and of course the safest, as a nanny (usually) only works with one family, keeping the circle of contact small. As time went by and lockdown eased, Rosebud Nanny Agency had a lot of calls from families who were now leaning towards a nanny over nursery for this reason.
The fact is, we dont know how long this will linger. How long will it be before a child with a cough, or a raised temperature, is allowed to continue at nursery instead of being sent home to isolate for 2 weeks? I have seen an increase in families choosing the nanny route for their childcare now, and a number have cited the security of continuous childcare as the deciding factor for them.
The other change we will continue to see going forward is parents working from home a lot more. Pre-lockdown, it was common for nanny employers to be mostly out of the house for work, with some parents working a day or so per week from home. With huge adjustments from businesses during CV-19 to allow their employees flexible working from home, it seems highly likely that this will continue going forward - a lot of my clients already know they'll likely work from home until the end of 2020, and it seems will then continue working from home a few days per week.
Nannies are used to taking sole charge of the children whilst parents work, so this will be an adjustment. With young children, it can be tough for them to understand that even though mum and dad are here, they're not to be disturbed - it is so important that the nanny and the employers discuss how best to approach this new working pattern.
On the other hand, parents having set work from home days could see a reduction in the nanny's working hours - nannies typically work 11-12 hour days, to cover the employers working hours + commute time. With parents home more, we could see a change to typical nanny hours with a couple of long days (7.30-6.30 / 7am-7pm) and the rest of the week working more 'office hours' of 8.30-5.30/ 8-6!
All we know for sure is that Covid-19 will leave lasting changes to the nanny industry (and the rest of the world)!
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