Babysitting requires patience, responsibility, and is a lot of work. So when Reddit user DancingQueenGreen was asked to look after a few boys for a few days while their parents attended a wedding out of state, she took it seriously.
Preparing for the gig, the Redditor even took time off her regular work. However, she later received an unexpected text from the couple, saying that her services are no longer needed.
The babysitter felt that she deserved to be paid at least what she would have made at her other job during that period, but the couple thought she was being ridiculous.
This babysitter requested time off from her regular job so she could take care of a few boys
Image credits: Ashton Bingham (not the actual photo)
However, their parents later said that her services are no longer needed and refused to compensate her at all
Image credits: Matilda Wormwood (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Liza Summer (not the actual photo)
Image credits: dancingqueengreen
Babysitting rates are skyrocketing all over the US
Image credits: LightFieldStudios (not the actual photo)
The sum that the Redditor wanted to charge the parents might seem high, but babysitting rates in the US rose 9.7% in 2022, which was a bit less than the 11% hike seen in 2021, but still outpacing inflation for the second year in a row.
This was largely because of a shortage of babysitters and other childcare workers — and the higher pay those remaining are able to command.
In fact, the industry reached a point where it is also attracting teachers, nurses, and other trained professionals into the career, which in turn drives up the rates even more because of their experience.
Last year's national average babysitting rate was $22.68 an hour for one child, $25.37 an hour for two, and $27.70 an hour for three.
Among the major U.S. cities, the highest babysitting rates were in the San Francisco Bay Area ($25.24 an hour for one child) and Seattle ($24.60). Springfield, Missouri, had the lowest rate, at $11.35.
And parents are feeling it
Image credits: Iakobchuk (not the actual photo)
A 2022 Care.com survey revealed that 51% of U.S. parents were spending over 20% of their income on child care, far more than the 7% that the federal government deems "affordable."
Because of that, working parents increasingly expect more childcare support from employers and the government, a recent KinderCare report found.
Childcare benefits are actually the second-highest reason parents stay at their job, behind health insurance.
The good thing is that a growing number of states, including New York, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Maine, and Connecticut, are offering childcare subsidies.
Hopefully, the situation will stabilize soon and parents won't have to drain their pockets whenever they need a babysitter.
Most people who read her story think that the original poster (OP) was well within her moral rights to request partial compensation
But some thought that either the OP is in the wrong (YTA) or "everyone sucks here" (ESH)
