Knowledge Center

Interest

• Can an employer pay the nanny on the payroll of their own business?

  Considering adding a nanny on business payroll? Nanny employers who own a business or a farm operated for profit can choose to include their nanny’s payroll in their 941 or 943 tax returns. The ‘nanny taxes’ are exactly the same employment taxes paid for other employees and do not require special calculation. What the sole… Read more »

• Nanny Fired: When are last wage payments due?

  Whether the nanny is fired (involuntary separation, termination or discharge) or resigns (quits) voluntarily, state rules define how quickly the employer must give the final paycheck. Below is a state by state summary of separation payment rules as they apply to household employees.* May 2019 You MAY NOT withhold the final paycheck pending the return… Read more »

• Nanny Terminated: Do I have to pay out Vacation or Sick Time?

  When your household employee – whether a nanny, housekeeper, senior caregiver or other – leaves your employment many states require that you pay out her earned but unused vacation time. Generally, it doesn’t matter if the separation of employment is voluntary or involuntary. If you have a separate bank for sick time, that is excluded… Read more »

• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Overtime Rules and Domestic Employment

  Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime rules and domestic employment are often misunderstood by the household employer. The temptation is to either agree to a weekly “salary”, agree to “average hourly rate” (pay $15 an hour for 45 hours for example) and or to average weeks (pay bi-weekly and average the two weeks hours to… Read more »

• I hired a nanny. What about household employers workers’ compensation and disability insurance?

  SUMMARY: State insurance regulations determine when household employers workers’ compensation and disability insurance are required. The rules vary by state. We recommend meeting with a licensed insurance broker to review all of your insurance needs when you become a household employer. HWS has a licensed insurance partner who will provide HWS clients a no obligation… Read more »

• I Want to Net a Take Home Pay of $600 a Week. A Family Just Offered Me a Job, but Listed a “Gross” Pay Rate, What Does That Mean?

  Many household employees expect to negotiate a “net wage” or “net take home pay” agreement with their employer. The net take home pay agreement is an unfamiliar concept for many nanny employers, and often the new employer does not fully understand the financial implications of a net pay agreement with the employee. A lack of... Read more »

• Overtime Rules for Senior Home Care Workers

  Direct hiring of senior caregivers by families continues to increase, and families have questions about minimum wage, overtime rules for senior home care workers, and questions about what constitutes payable hours during the care day. Senior Home Care Overtime Law and Minimum Wage The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) applies minimum wage and overtime rules… Read more »

• What may happen if I do not pay the nanny taxes?

  What happens if I don’t pay for my nanny taxes? Failure to report wages paid to a domestic service worker – including a nanny, senior caregiver, housekeeper and more – and failure to pay the nanny taxes compromises the validity of your personal income tax return. These taxes are included on your personal federal income… Read more »

• Is Health Insurance for My Nanny or Senior Caregiver Taxable?

  Many employers understand that key benefits such as employer paid health insurance is an important employee recruitment and retention tool. Is health insurance taxable? Household employers with fewer than 50 household employees may reimburse health insurance premiums obtained in the individual marketplace on a tax free basis utilizing either a Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement... Read more »

• Great Options for Nanny Health Insurance Benefits

  More and more we’re getting nannies asking about how to get health insurance built into their compensation packages; we’re realizing many more employers asking how they can help too. That’s fantastic! Just knowing how to go about doing it is where things get confusing. Let's consider the question: what's a good option for nanny health... Read more »