Do you pay family members to babysit your kids?
It’s a debate that always causes quite a lot of controversy. Many believe loved ones should be paid, but others feel like it’s not necessary.
One grandmother admitted she won’t babysit her 1-year-old grandson unless her daughter pays her.
She admitted that she would like to be paid $12 an hour.
Her daughter, who is 29-years-old, is returning to work soon and needs her mother to help out two or three days a week.
She explained, “She works 5 days a week, about 7-8 hours a day from 7:30 am-3 pm, and asked me if I would be willing to babysit her son either 2 or 3 days a week.”
“Of course, I am open to spending time with my grandson, but I explained to her that I would like payment of $12/hour.
Her daughter asked if she’d settle for $10 an hour, but the grandmother feels like this isn’t enough.
“She claims that she cannot afford it even with her $22/hour job,” she said.
The grandmother said she doesn’t think it is fair to expect her to mind him for free, because she has her own life.
“I’m not a daycare, I have my own life, I work for myself.
“I think she should understand that I’d be giving up my time when I work from home.”
She said she needs money to replace what she’d be missing out on in work.
She said it is not possible to work from home and watch her grandson at the same time.
“Her husband’s parents are babysitting on the other 2-3 remaining days while she works, and she’d be providing food.”
“I love my grandson, but as I stated above, I’m not a daycare,” she stressed.
Is the grandmother being unreasonable or does she have a point?
