Mom Introduces Idea Of Refusing To Pay Babysitters By The Hour — Instead Of Sitting On Their Phones, They Get Paid By Activity
$10 per bedtime routine with a $5 bonus for helping them floss.
Pixel-Shot | Shutterstock A mother has raised a controversial proposition when it comes to parents paying their babysitters.
She thinks that instead of paying sitters by the hour, they should be paid by activity. Her reasoning: childcare providers will be more engaged with the kids if they're paid to play, so to speak.
A mom thinks that parents should start paying their children’s babysitters based on the activities they do with the kids.
Bri Weimar shared her “unconventional” idea in a TikTok video that has been viewed over 700,000 times.
She claimed (or rather satirized) that she doesn't pay her children’s babysitters "by the hour." Rather, they get paid “per the activity.”
Although Weimar's video was meant to be taken in jest, her unconventional idea sparked an interesting discussion. Could paying sitters by the activity encourage them to get off their phones and actually interact with the kids?
She shared her list of “babysitter rates” to offer a glimpse into how the payments could actually work.
For example, helping kids with their homework gets them $10. An hour of outdoor playtime earns them $12. Getting the kids ready for bed by bathing them, brushing their teeth, and reading them a bedtime story scores them $12 (with a $5 bonus if they help the kids floss).
The funny thing about her funny video ... it got people talking.
Most people argued that the mom would need to offer her babysitters a base rate for just looking after the kids with bonuses for extra activities
“On top of an hourly? Totally fun. As a baseline? Insane,” one TikTok user commented.
“This is actually insane, coming from a babysitter. Even if I did outdoor playtime, that’s $12 an hour, which is half of my hourly rate,” another user wrote.
OLHA TSIPLYAR | Canva Pro
“As a nanny, the expectations that you listed are more nanny responsibilities than a babysitter,” another user shared. “With that being said, they should be paid an hourly rate with additional rates.”
Hourly rates for babysitters can fluctuate drastically based on time and experience.
The average babysitting rate in the U.S. ranges between $10 to $30 an hour, although it depends on the area and the experience level of some sitters.
However, it is reasonable for babysitters to request a decent amount of money for payment. After all, looking after children is not for the faint of heart.
Instead of paying them based on just what and how much they choose to do with your children, they need to be paid for simply looking after them and keeping them safe.
A babysitter is providing childcare and deserves to be compensated ethically for their work.
If they choose to take your kids to a movie or to the park, you can give them a few extra bucks.
While babysitters certainly should not be on their cellphones the entire time they are supposed to be watching kids, they should not be expected to wash dishes and take care of other household work without additional payment.
That’s what housekeepers and nannies are for!
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.