What’s Happened to Babysitting?
In America, babysitting has always been a respected job among young people; something near to home to make some extra money without the usual downfalls that come with a part-time job. Teenagers would often plan their strategies for summer break on how best to promote their services, getting as many good quality babysitting jobs as they could manage. But these days babysitting jobs are starting to fade.
As a youth worker, many hours of my week are spent with high school students, who, not long ago, were the CEO’s of the babysitting industry. But of the many I’ve spoken to, only a small amount even consider babysitting to be a viable option for a summer job, and none of them are actively trying to promote themselves and get jobs. It surprised me. It was less than fifteen years ago when babysitting seemed to be a bustling enterprise. My older sister was one of the many who made a consistent $400 a month from babysitting jobs, which was huge in those days.
Things have begun to change. Though the need for babysitters is at an all time high, the demand is spiraling down. The only explanation I can see for this phenomenon, is the growing lack of perceived security in our neighborhoods. Fifteen years ago or so, when babysitting was in full swing, kids would often spend entire days playing in public parks with friends, unsupervised yet generally safe all the while. I myself can still hear the quintessential line called out from my mother as often I would sprint from my house: “Make sure you’re home by dinner.”
But these days, kids stay close to home, only going to parks with their parents. With the decay of perceived security in our neighborhoods, it looks as though babysitting jobs are dwindling as well. But the problem deepens. During the old days that some of us still remember, it was a common courtesy for neighbors to knock on the doors of newcomers to the neighborhood, welcoming them with cookies and getting to know them. But in today’s day and age, with documented lists of registered sex-offenders available to the public, scores of neighborhoods countrywide are being put on alert when dangerous persons move into town. Neighbors are often distrustful of those living near them, and wouldn’t jeopardize their children by hiring someone as a babysitter unless they know them very well.
Though such caution is merited, it’s a shame to watch the decline of babysitting jobs. Not long ago, babysitting was the ideal job for high school students on summer break, wanting just a little extra summer spending money without the downfalls of a real job.
Categories: Babies Tags: baby sitting, babysitter, babysitting, jobs
Craig’s List used by “Heidi Fleiss of Houston” to Lure Families Seeking Nannies
compiled by Michael A. Gerard
After being arrested and charged as the head of a prostitution ring, the “HEIDI FLEISS of HOUSTON” – free on bail, is now Using Craig’s List to solicit nannies and parents for her new career: Child Care Nanny Agency Recruiter. Two weeks ago a woman and her husband were arrested for running the largest prostitution ring ever known in Houston.
The police searched their home, confiscated their two vehicles and found $40,000 in cash and several gold and silver bars. They have two little girls ages 1 and 3. The day following the arrest a nanny applied at a local nanny agency and said her employer was having financial problems and that she was let go just the day before – she provided a reference name – and it was the same name that was being reported in the news in connection with the prostitution ring.
IT’S A SMALL WORLD
You see, about a week earlier the agency had run an ad on Craig’s List to hire administrative help for the office. A woman responded with a very impressive resume – Masters Degree in Psychology, educated in England, 10 years of recruiting, etc. The agency didn’t immediately put two and two together and scheduled an interview to meet her at their offices.
The next morning her name rang a bell and they checked the internet and found several news stories that confirmed: this was the person that the Houston media was referring to as the Houston “Heidi Fleiss”. They cancelled the interview.
On Craig’s List yesterday, one of the agenices employees found an ad for a “Nanny Recruiter” who they’d never heard of before. Like all established, reputable agencies, they tend to know the legitimate competition in the area. They couldn’t figure out who it could be – and they’ve been in business in Houston for decades. They were very curious because many of the words in the AD were obviously taken from this agencies website. They did a reverse phone look-up and found that it was this same woman who had tried to apply at their office.
The “Houston Madam” is now recruiting child care providers on Craig’s List. That same day the major TV channels and one newspaper ran the story. See a video of the story as reported on April 9. The Turbivilles, who use Craig’s List as their marketing tool for prostitutes and nannies, do so because it’s free or cheap and without regulation or monitoring. They don’t really care what service they broker – they just want to do it on the cheap, with no interference from outside influences like trade organizations, law enforcement or government. Their attitude appears to that because they are ‘family oriented, hard-working people’ that they are above the law. It’s a pervasive attitude among many in our society that says as long as you don’t get caught, there’s nothing wrong with purposely doing what is illegal.
Be Careful; Be Safe!
Smart parents and care providers have always known that using free bulletin board web sites like craigslist.com is dangerous and extremely risky. As if the murder of Katherine Ann Olson (who responded to a Craig’s List Ad for a Nanny) wasn’t enough of a wake up call, we can now confirm that parents are putting their children at serious risk when they turn to unregistered, unaffiliated “nanny agencies”.
Rules To Live By:
- Never use a website that does not provide some type of ID Verification of the Parents or Agency
- Never use a website site that does not allow you to keep all of your personal information (including your email address) private
- Always check and verify references before agreeing to meet anyone in person who you found “on the internet”
- Always conduct a background check and investigation before hiring someone to watch your children
- Verify the legitimacy of a nanny agency by visiting the International Nanny Association (INA) website.
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Visit: The Sitter Cafe for more information on safety and privacy issues or to find local child care, babysitters and nannies.
Visit Childcare Solutions: www.4inHomeCare.com for more information about hiring a Nanny.
Categories: Parenting Tags: babysitter, babysitters, Childcare Solutions, craig's list, craigslist.com, find a nanny, INA, nannies, nanny, sittercafe.com, The Sitter Cafe, Turbiville
The Sitter Cafe: Where Parents Find Sitters and Sitters Find Jobs
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Categories: Parenting Tags: baby-sitter, babysitter, babysitter jobs, Child Care, childcare, find a babbysitter, find a nanny, nanny
