Should they be paying me more?

Question

I work as a full time nanny to two boys. One is 4 and the other is 2 
Lately the family has been house hunting and last week they got the house they’ve been wanting. On top of that, the mom has to get emergency surgery on Thursday this week. 
Because of all of this going on, I’ve been moving around my days and staying late and working weekends for them so that they have more convenience, pretty much the past month an a half 
I work 40 hours and get paid $300 a week (sadly that’s the highest anyone pays within an hour drive from me) 
I feel like I deserve to be getting paid for the extra time I spend working. They’ve been having me stay a couple hours late a few times a week such as today, and then on Thursday I have to work from 5am-6pm and I had to work on Saturday as well so I only got 1 day of not working which was Sunday
Instead of paying me more, they come up with stupid ways to not have to pay me... like my over night fee is $100 which they agreed to but instead of having me stay the whole night when they have to go somewhere, they’ll come home around 3am and then have me leave so they technically don’t have to pay me that extra $100 
Or they’ll have me come an hour later than normal like tomorrow because for some reason they thing that cancels out the fact that I have to work an extra 7 hours on Thursday for the moms surgery 
Oh and to add to it.. I was supposed to leave today about 20 minutes ago and they aren’t home yet and I know for a fact I’m not gonna get paid for that 20 minutes 
I don’t want to sound ungrateful but I feel like I do a lot for this family and they are just being cheap and it’s bullshit
Like it’s not even about to hours to me honestly... wouldn’t you want to give your nanny a bit of a “tip” for moving around so much and being flexible?? Like that’s just being a decent human being in my opinion. I have to switch up plans or cancel things I want to do at the very last minute to make things convenient for them since they’re going through so much right now between the new house and surgery. Like I understand it’s hard.. but they need to understand none of this would be getting done if I wasn’t there helping so much. 
And I crazy???

Answer

They are 100% taking advantage of you and not paying you nearly enough.

Answer

Yes, but you also need to stand up for yourself and not get taken advantage of. Make your overnight policy encompass any arrival home after 12am. Let them know you will be paid time and a half over 40 hours. And if they choose to not pay it, don’t work for them anymore.

Answer

You are not crazy, but I would say you need to address it with consistency. I am going to start taking on a few kids in my home, and I have time parameters listed on my pricing flyer. If they are 15 minutes late or more, they get charged my hourly fee, and they get charged for the whole hour starting at that 15 minutes late. Your time is valuable, and they being late etc is interfering with your personal life. I understand needing a little leeway with surgery, and I could totally understand that, but it’s absolutely unacceptable for them to send you home at 3 in the morning and not be charged the overnight fee. My weekend prices are much higher, and if they are later than 11:30 pm, they are charged for an overnight fee.

Answer

They are going to keep taking advantage of you as long as you keep letting them. You need to pull out your agreement and go back thru it with them. If it's in there that you have different rates or set ours and are working outside of them then they need to pay accordingly or else you'll find new employment.

Answer

Please join “the nanny collaborative” group on FB and post on there. They are fantastic. They help with contracts, the A-Z contract is one that could help you.

Answer

Dude....you need to lay out what it is your require. And that can either pay your or find something else. 
They WILL take advantage of you if you let them

Answer

I know it’s uncomfortable and you’re probably young but set boundaries and speak up now, say the agreement was $300 a week for 40 hours. I’m working more than 40 hours and I expect to be compensated extra.

Answer

Absolutely you should be getting more.

Answer

I would definitely look for a new job. Sounds like they are taking full advantage of you. Their extra hours take time away from you which should be compensated. And knowing you need to leave early and aren't making the effort is pretty crappy of them. They sound very ungrateful and cheap!

Answer

You need to set boundaries and set prices for everything! let them know in advance when they are telling you these changes how much an hour you charge. Anything going into the next day needs to be overnight and you should be charging hourly to make up for the extra time they are taking out of your day. Personally I wouldn’t work for less than $500/week  and that’s me working part time! So divide that by your 40hours and set a rate going forward. If they won’t adhere to your prices let them know you will be going elsewhere. Believe you can find better!

Should they be paying me more?

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