If you are hiring part-time help....

[L'sMommy]

If you are hiring part-time help to help with a baby, would you make the person fill out some sort of application? DH mentioned this the other day and thinks we should have some information on the nanny if there is ever a problem. We live in a community and a couple of mothers have recommended their nannies to me (their kids are about to go to school so the nanny will lose some work hours). I'm looking for someone to help me out 10 hrs/week. She would help with the baby and take care of him while I ran some weekly errands. DH things at the very least we need a copy of her licence. Thoughts?

[IDcam]

Yes, I would get as much information as possible. This person will be taking care of your precious little one so I wouldn't rely on anyone else (your neighbors that used this nanny) to have information you'll need in case anything happens. I agree with your DH.

[lorinick]

If you are hiring part-time help to help with a baby, would you make the person fill out some sort of application? DH mentioned this the other day and thinks we should have some information on the nanny if there is ever a problem. We live in a community and a couple of mothers have recommended their nannies to me (their kids are about to go to school so the nanny will lose some work hours). I'm looking for someone to help me out 10 hrs/week. She would help with the baby and take care of him while I ran some weekly errands. DH things at the very least we need a copy of her licence. Thoughts?

I don't a license is needed you can get her to fill out a paper with info on it a SS number is more important than a DL#. I'm kind of shocked you need a nanny to run errands. Boy that must be real nice.

[KBecks]

I interviewed pp doulas, who have businesses with business cards and email addresses and all that. We also use a housecleaner that also has real business forms, etc.

For a teen babysitter, I would want to know her home phone, address, and name of a parent. I don't think it's unreasonable to have the name, phone, and address of a nanny, as well as references. I think that you should do an interview to see who you are comfortable with and ask questions about how they would do their job and how they would handle various situations and have handled some of the details of prior jobs.

You can also look into paid background checks. I don't know if it is appropriate to get a social security number unless you are withholding taxes. That may depend on the number of hours worked, but you should check the law.

Good luck!

[momtojack]

I think you are legally required to verify identity and work authorization - you would need to fill out an I-9, which would include looking at a DL and SS card. Obviously this is less of an issue if you are certain the nanny is a US citizen (and thus legal to work) but my understanding is that technically, if you are an employer, you must complete and keep on file an I-9 for every employee. Maybe there is an exception if they don't work many hours, but I am not aware of one.