The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
Denise and William of New York hired a 20-year-old Swiss au pair to care for Kristie, then a 2-month-old baby. Then, Kristie died in a house fire. The au pair faces charges of murder and arson for allegedly dousing the bedrooms with paint thinner and setting the fatal blaze. Working parents seeking Nannies are worried. Todd and Lisa of Wisconsin have had seven different nannies in the past three years. Two were fine, two left without notice, one ran up a huge phone bill, and another had a boyfriend who called collect at all hours, and another got a DUI with their daughter in the car. Sally and Sheldon even installed Nanny-cams so they could protect their new son. The Nanny simply left with their boy and wasn’t found for three days, five states away. Little Brianna did not seem right, and her parents were baffled. Every time they mentioned the Nanny’s name, she ran and hid. When the Nanny would arrive in the morning, Brianna screamed and clung to her parents. They were both told it was probably just separation anxiety. Brianna’s father became suspicious. He set up a video camera and later watched in terror. The Nanny repeatedly hit her in the head throughout the day. Many Nannies have no formal training. Parents are looking for emotional results from a business relationship. Remember, no matter what an agency tells you, you need to check for your self. Hiring a Nanny from a reputable firm is no guarantee. Over 75,000 nannies and au pairs are hired through over 800 US agencies every year. Most all are unregulated. Some companies claim to actually check references, but few do. What can you do? Get standard Employment Application forms at your local office supply store. Make sure you have every Nanny applicant complete your employment application form. Once you’ve completed your pre-employment screening, a background check will search the candidate’s criminal history and verify the social security number. Investigate your prospective Nanny. Run a nanny background check for criminal convictions, DUI’s, employee checks, and vital statistics. Don’t risk your child.
Written by Gary P. Thompson on November 1st, 2007 with
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