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I used Care.com within the last month to find caregivers for my Mother with dementia. I sent over 30 messages and probably half never responded. Then there were others that responded that wanted to bring their infant with them, wanted to spend the night on days they worked and one when I googled her phone number came up as a possible thief/scam artist. So just make sure that you do background checks and call references.
We did however find two part time caregivers through the whole process. One could only come for a week and then she had a planned vacation until the first week of September. We REALLY hope she returns because she seems great!!! The other one we hired for the weekends can only do it until mid September because she will be moving.
We are now using an agency that provides caregivers to fill the gaps. Although the cost is a bit more ($28/hr) they are fully insured and bonded and they handle all the taxes.
Some other things to look out for on Care.com.......
Personally I think some of the profiles are fake. I received the EXACT response from two different profiles.
Care.com will continue to bill you UNLESS you cancel service before the next billing period.
Care.com will continue to send several email messages even after you stop their service.
A lot of people want to be paid under the table
Since we are looking for very part time and I did list all the duties they would have to do, I wonder if this has turned off some, however, some of the people I sent messages looked sincere but N Raleigh Mom, good points!
I have an investigative background and yes, definite background checks all the way!
My own sister has found positions (nanny) on care.com and usually is hired on the spot which has always surprised me so I wondered if I was asking too much.
I will say for her last nanny job that she was asked to do so much. She loved the people and the baby though so she never thought of it as work.
Eventually, I'm sure the job will grow to more hours - I plan to have several interviews - the first over the phone, second at a location mutually acceptable - just my husband and I, and then third - at my FIL's home.
We've used Care.com on and off for the last 3+ years to find help for my parents (now just my dad).
At first we used Craig's list, (Try posting a "job" ad on Craig's list. See what happens) - when we foud Care.com I switched because at least some level of "Filter" (i.e. they had to know about the website) had occurred.
Generally we have found a lot of deadbeats! LOL!! Sad but true, but I think that's more the nature of the career-path (caregiving, the non-career, careerpath) than the website.
We pay average to above average wages for our area, and honestly the amount of work was very minimal, but we learned to readjust our expectations to the COMPLETELY minimal.
We did get people who wanted to be paid under the table. Or who you got the feelign would rob you blind. Some people quit in the middle of a shift without ever coming back.
That said, we've also had a few really nice people, who've been with us for reasonably long periods of time.
We use agencies as backups, but at $25/hour, and agency is not cost effective long term.
We also pay employment taxes/SS for our employees. (Home health care is an "employee" relationship, so make sure you are prepared to to the necessary paperwork (minor, but annoying) to employ them legally).
Care.com -- not fantastic, but better than the alternatives.
I used care.com and was not impressed. The first few people I contacted were no longer interested, wouldn't take part time, etc. The person we finally hired was as flaky as could be. She claimed she couldn't call my mom because she didn't have their number (they are in the phone book). She had some health issues of her own, and once used my parents phone to call long distance.
My mom was so stressed by the experience that she refuses to have anyone else in the home. If we do ever get her past that, we'll hire an agency.
i'm sure there are some quality people on there. But there is no guarantee. I'd rather have someone prescreened by professionals.
I just came across this thread while searching for care.com reviews. I've considered setting up a nanny profile there but from what I understand families aren't even allowed to reply to you unless they have a premium account? Or if you pay for one yourself. I'd certainly never pay for more than the basic profile. This seems a bit dishonest and it's not explained very clearly in their FAQS.
I just came across this thread while searching for care.com reviews. I've considered setting up a nanny profile there but from what I understand families aren't even allowed to reply to you unless they have a premium account? Or if you pay for one yourself. I'd certainly never pay for more than the basic profile. This seems a bit dishonest and it's not explained very clearly in their FAQS.
Ill check it out!
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