Guides to Checking Nanny References

One of the most important tasks in hiring the right nanny is to thoroughly check all references of an applicant. Many webpages provide guidance on how best to methodically check references. Leave no stone unturned. Some helpful webpages and key points:

How and Why

A candidate reluctant to provide references is a red flag. A nanny may reasonably request that you not contact their current employer if they have not yet provided notice of their intent to leave the job. The candidate, however, should still have the requisite child care and previous employment references available. You need to stand firm and simply tell the candidate that you cannot extend a job offer without checking references. Invite the nanny to think about how to solve this and get back to you with a solution. If the nanny follows up with a reasonable solution, this is a positive. If they do not, you have most likely saved yourself from a hiring mistake.

Did the Nanny really work for the reference?

Some nannies in Alexandria have sought and obtained references from individuals for whom they never worked. Because of this behavior, it is essential to flush out if the reference is one of these pseudo-references. "First, make sure this person did actually employ your candidate as a Nanny. Find out for how long and for how many children and what are there ages. Ask why she left their employ." If an employer is given a dishonest reference, it combines two awful characteristics in the applicant: reference problems plus dishonesty. Ask direct and hard questions about work hours, start dates, pay, daily routines. If the reference you have been given is a phony reference from someone helping the nanny, it is only a matter of time before the problems will manifest in your house. And if you are asked to give a phony reference, do your neighbors a favor and refuse to lie.

A good list of general questions are here.

More general questions are here

Finally, it is essential to ask the applicant in the telephone interview the reason for leaving the last job. Write the answer down. Ask it again in the in-person interview and beware of any discrepancies between the two answers. That is a huge red flag. Next, thoroughly explore the reasons with the last employer when you do a thorough reference check. Any discrepancies are red flags which must be thoroughly explored. Answers which cannot be reconciled should be disqualifying.