'You should have thought about it sooner': Nanny arrives at new job and immediately gets sick, boss refuses to give her a day off

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Apr 11, 2024 7:00 AM EDT

Being a full-time nanny can either be the best job of your life or the worst, it all depends on the family that you are working for. If the parents are chill and supportive, you can have the best time with their kids and actually become part of the family. But, if the parents are harsh and inconsiderate, the job can easily become a burden and a frustrating experience, even regardless of how the kids themselves behave.

Unfortunately, the family in this Reddit story resembles the latter. OP (original poster) has been hired to be a full-time nanny for this rich family. Even on the first day, she could feel that the vibes about them were just off as both the kids and their mom were sick, so it wasn't surprising when OP herself got sick a few days later. When she talked about it with her "new boss", aka the dad, he was less than thoughtful and insisted that OP getting sick wasn't related to them. He then continued to demand OP to come to work the next day, completely disregarding the fact that she was unwell.

Scroll down to read the full story, and even read some of the actual communication between OP and the dad. After that, click here for a story of an employee who made a mistake that might cost him his job.

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  • 01
    We need you here 5 days a week "You should have thought making about it sooner" t er to make money rather than not. But if I'm sick there's not much I can do about that
    via Canva
  • 02
    Texts between myself and new "boss"
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 03
    So I started a nanny position last week on Monday. It's a 45 hour per week job. I dont get paid overtime but I'm fine with that because the hourly wage is high and I'm paid in cash.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 04
    Upon showing up on Monday, my new boss let's call him Dave, stated that his wife and two kids were sick. I felt immediately annoyed because I hate getting sick and I ignorantly assumed
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 05
    that if they were sick, they'd have communicated that with me prior to showing up, so I was caught off guard. I should've discussed this with him prior to starting, but we
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 06
    had been in communication nearly every day prior to my start date and there was no mention of anyone being sick. So I explained to him my logic, which is that I like to know in advance if people in the house
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 07
    are sick, so I can either come prepared (with a mask) or wait it out until everyone is better. Otherwise I'm going to miss days regardless because I'll eventually get sick...
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 08
    Well I did get sick. I missed one day Wednesday. I went back the next day because I felt a bit better and I don't like missing work, especially since I don't get sick days. Thursday I spoke to
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 09
    Dave and I said that I should've communicated with him in advance about my preferences, but that moving forward I'd appreciate it if they tell me in advance that they're sick.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 10
    His response shocked me. He told me that I absolutely did not get sick from them! These are the only people I was around who happened to be sick but yet somehow he was adamant
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 11
    that I did not get sick from them be they weren't contagious. I responded by saying that they were the only people I've been around (literally). How else could I have gotten sick?
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 12
    He also stated out of the blue that if I didn't want to be around his sick wife just say so. Which I hadn't even considered that so I have no idea why he said that. He also said to stop
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 13
    guilt tripping him? And I said I wasn't trying to guilt trip him, I was just trying to have a conversation because I value communication.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 14
    Well fast forward to two days ago (Friday), and that night I'm literally so incredibly sick. Until then my symptoms were only a severe sore throat (like hurts to talk, breathe and swallow), and
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 15
    a stuffy nose. But Friday night and last night I was actually scared because it was so hard to breath and I lost my voice. I couldn't effectively cough anything up and I got hardly any sleep all weekend.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 16
    The texts here show me communicating in advance as I prefer to do telling them that there's a chance I won't be in tomorrow because I'm sick. His response just ped me off because firstly, this entire thing
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 17
    could've been avoided if they had just communicated they were sick. But as I told him, I'm now having to miss days because I'm so sick.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 18
    This person I work for drives me insane. I'll offer some more info on him. His mom is a millionaire and he doesn't work, even though he's in his late forties, so I feel like he's extremely privileged and out of touch. I
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 19
    feel a lot of pressure to show up tomorrow even though I feel like . I've already invested a lot towards this position. It's a drive that has tolls, so I bought a pass which will cost me about 40 dollars per week just to drive
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 20
    there, unless I want to sit in traffic for an hour there and back. And I've now spent more than I wanted to on cold remedies.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 21
    He also scratched his wife's car last week by not pulling in far enough before closing the garage door... and then the next day he got his car towed for parking in the wrong spot. He got his car back on Friday, but
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 22
    his wife's car is still being worked on, so I'm now expected to drive my car all around with the kids and the wife. She has a lot of appointments during the day so a big part of this job is driving.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 23
    Lastly I'll just say that I was hired for 8-5 Monday-Friday and almost immediately they tried strong arming me into changing the hours to 9-6, which isn't a huge deal but I already have limited time when
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 24
    I get home to cook, eat and shower before going to bed. But since I need this job I agreed to accommodate them. And I feel like the accommodation isn't being returned on their end when I need a day off to rest.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 25
    The only reason I took this job is because I'm seriously struggling in real estate right now... and I need money and to get paid regularly.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 26
    Please tell me objectively: am I overreacting? I genuinely feel like there's a huge lack of respect and consideration coming from them..
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 27
    Today 9:47 AM Did you guys get your car back yet? Monday hopefully Ok. Well idk if I'll be in tomorrow. I'm really sick this weekend. Friday around 4pm. I started feeling a lot worse and then last night was the absolute worst. I lost my voice as well. It's starting to come back a little bit though. I can check in with you guys later this evening on this. Please check in tonight. You just have a nagging thing that we all have thanks to Wuhan Tony Please rest all day if you can and drink some Gato
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 28
    12:24 MS KS 2 People > Please check in tonight. You just have a nagging thing that we all have thanks to Wuhan Tony Please rest all day if you can and drink some Gatorade. Lack of water and electrolytes is part of this Yesterday and today I just pounded water for my hoarse voice It's still hoarse some today but I feel amazing walking Roscoe We need you here 5 days a week Yes I understand that and taking days off is something I dont enjoy doing because I prefer to make money rather than not. But
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 29
    Chucktayz . 9 hr. ago I don't get why people give reasons and symptoms. If I call off sick it's literally "hey, I'm sick won't be in today. Thanks"
    via u/Chucktayz
  • 30
    Evening Midnight7 OP 9 hr. ago I feel like in jobs in the past (and currently) you can sort of get a vibe from an employer, or they flat out tell you that you're expected to come in even when sick... so I
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 31
    always feel like I need to over explain to make sure that they believe me or something? I know it's kind of pathetic and something I need to work on. I think also, always being in positions where I need the job more
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 32
    than they need me plays a huge part in it. Like I don't want them to think I'm lying etc. However, I did have one employer who was everything you could ever want... he was
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 33
    understanding, valued me and good at communicating. Most managers and employers lack these traits. With him I noticed I no longer felt the need to over explain, because I knew there was a mutual respect and understanding.
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 34
    < 4:23 2 People We were here, where you will be with the girls tomorrow after school Ok well I guess we can just try to get by tomorrow and hopefully her car will be ready soon We need you to be full of belief, not doubt This family is always optimistic with a never quit attitude We don't deal with negativity. Life is way too short not to attack everyday with joy in your heart and eternal hope. I can only be your cheerleader so much. + Mark Pandes iMessage What do you mean??
    via u/Evening_Midnight7
  • 35
    This is our correspondence upon telling him I'd show up for work tomorrow but that I won't have my car available to drive.... I literally just said hopefully his wife will have her car back soon and it like set him off
    via u/Evening_Midnight7

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