Local Nanny Agency Owner Cautions Parents About Hiring Practices
Dobbs Ferry, New York (June 6, 2011)- In light of a second local nanny being charged with a DWI while transporting the children in her care while driving under the influence, Dobb’s Ferry nanny agency owner and co-president of the International Nanny Association, Susan Tokayer reminds parents of best practices when it comes to finding, screening and hiring a nanny.
“While many parents are turning to online child care websites to find their nannies to avoid the costs of using a placement agency or to find a care giver quickly on their own, when doing so, it’s vital to proceed with extreme caution” says Tokayer, owner of Family Helpers. “Any family using an online service or hiring a nanny on their own needs to screen all candidates very thoroughly, just as a reputable agency would.”
Family Helpers takes screening nanny candidates seriously. After a basic phone interview which allows the agency to gather basic information about the nanny candidate, a job application is then presented. Each reference is carefully checked and all qualifying candidates visit the office for a personal interview, which consists of a written exam and a face-to-face interview. Before ever starting a position with a family, a pre-employment background screening is conducted, which consists of a criminal check, social security verification, driving record check and a sex offender registry check.
Tokayer also issues a word of warning to parents who opt to run background checks through a company that uses computer databases to conduct their search. “Often times checking for a criminal history through a database search yields inaccurate results. Our agency uses a company that sends an actual person to the courthouse to manually check for records. Information gathered this way is far more current and accurate.”
Family Helpers receives hundreds of applications from aspiring nannies, yet they only place about 3% of those candidates. “While it may seem like hiring a nanny is an easy task, for parents who do not have the time, energy or experience to check references and gather critical background information, hiring one can turn into a nightmare” says Tokayer. “It can be tempting to save time, money and energy by taking shortcuts, but when it comes to hiring a nanny, shortcuts are one thing that should be avoided at all costs.”
###