Each month we highlight one of our agency partners, and get to know a little more about them and their insights into the household employment industry. This month we spoke with Jen Russo, Placement Counselor for Boston Nanny Centre.
Agency Vitals
- Founded in 1988
- Serves the greater Boston, Massachusetts area
- Specializes in long-term placements
How did you get started?
Our co-owner Barbara Chandra opened the agency in 1988 and quickly brought co-owner Sylvia Greenbaum on board. They both had young children and recognized a demand for quality child care. They opened the agency in Barbara’s home and it still operates from that location.
What is your biggest challenge?
Our biggest challenge is getting the message out to families about the strenuous process for building a high-quality candidate pool. Many families are not aware of how much work goes into finding, screening and placing the right nanny. We continually emphasize that because our candidates are true professionals, the likelihood of a successful placement increases dramatically over a family hiring on their own.
What do you look for to make successful placements?
The core piece of a successful placement is having clear expectations and articulating what those are. Never make any assumptions! Open, effective communication with both the family and the nanny will allow for a smooth relationship.
How do you help families understand paying their employee legally?
We discuss this repeatedly with our families – we put the message out there in verbal conversations and in our emails. Plus laws like the Massachusetts Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights keep the issue front and center. We remind families that they must think like an employer and must adhere to an employer’s responsibilities. We discuss the advantages of paying their nanny legally, along with the risks, such as a nanny getting injured on the job and needing workers’ comp insurance.
How do you help nannies/employees understand the benefits of being paid legally?
We remind them about the importance of having a legal record of employment and income; the advantages of contributing to Social Security and Medicare, and being able to receive unemployment benefits. We reinforce the message that a nanny is a professional career and if they want benefits like vacation time, they need to be paid legally.
How has GTM helped your families and your agency?
GTM provides us with all the information we need to inform prospective families about being a household employer. We rely on GTM’s expertise, and having a dedicated point person for our families to talk to and get answers from is critical. Plus GTM does the business payroll for our agency, so we can tell our families that we understand the benefits of being a client first-hand.
What are some fun facts about your agency?
We are in a period of growth – we just hired a new staff member for the first time in eight years: the daughter of our co-owner Barbara. Our staff now represents a wide range of backgrounds and family dynamics, and I think that gives us a well-rounded understanding of the variety of child care needs of our families.
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