If you’re considering adding a team of staff to your home or estate this year, there are some important things to keep in mind.
Experienced domestic staffing professionals can truly keep things running seamlessly, but if you aren’t prepared to step into your role as a domestic employer and understand the duties that come with that, it could cause difficulties later down the road.
Here are some common hiring mistakes and how you can avoid them.
Common Hiring Mistakes
Hiring Too Quickly
Life gets hectic and sometimes urgent coverage in your home is needed. Maybe it’s a life change, relocation, or the sudden resignation of a previous household staffer. If you hire too quickly and settle for a candidate that doesn’t have exactly what you’re looking for, it can lead to a headache later.
To avoid this, work with our team of qualified recruiters to find a temporary candidate who’s been vetted. Hiring an experienced temporary employee can help give you the extra help you need while you continue to look for a long-term placement. And sometimes, that temporary employee could turn into a long-term fit for your home.
Vague Job Descriptions
Detailed job descriptions are crucial to finding the right employee match. When working with your recruiter, be sure to clearly outline daily responsibilities and priorities. Specify work hours, benefits, wages, and travel requirements. Transparency is always the best policy, as it prevents misunderstandings later.
Misclassifying or Underreporting Wages
Whether it’s a live-in nanny, a private chef, chauffeur, or another type of household employee, when you hire staff for your home, legal pay is required. Paying them ‘off the books’ or ‘under the table’ is against the law and if that’s discovered, you could be forced to undergo a state audit which could yield hefty fines or penalties.
In addition, underreporting or not reporting wages at all will negatively impact your employee’s unemployment benefits should they need those, and it can also cause problems for Social Security income later. It’s common to feel overwhelmed by tax and payroll details.
So, once you’ve found your new employee, ask us about our household payroll and tax company partners. Working with a specialized household payroll team ensures both you and your employees are within compliance.
Ignoring the Personality Fit
Skills, certifications, and hands-on experience are all very important when it comes to hiring your household employee. But it’s important not to ignore the interpersonal fit that comes with this type of hire.
This person will be working in close quarters with you and it’s crucial to find someone who you trust and communicate well with. Assess their style of communication, how they adapt to changing situations, and their overall emotional intelligence.
During the interview process, don’t be afraid to ask situational questions to understand how they might handle feedback or stress. Try to get a sense of their values and long-term goals and determine compatibility.
Not Using a Written Work Agreement
A written work agreement is a standard in the domestic staffing world. Crafting a work agreement that outlines duties and expectations, wages and payment schedule, and any other important details regarding your staff and their employment with you should be done at the time of hire.
Be sure to include a list of paid time off, vacation policy information, and any other benefits that are provided such as health insurance coverage, travel or mileage reimbursement, or retirement benefits. In addition, define job responsibilities clearly.
If you need to adjust any of those once your employee has started their role, refer back to the work agreement and be sure both parties are on the same page about the changes. A work agreement can be treated as a living document.
Rushing Reference Checks or Neglecting Privacy/Security Details
Reference and background checks should never be hurried. Take the time to speak directly to references and ask them specific questions about reliability or reasons for leaving. Background checks are also key and should never be skipped.
At Household Staffing, we take your safety and privacy seriously. That’s why we perform an exclusive and extensive screening process that includes a Nationwide Criminal Records Investigation, a Nationwide Sex & Violent Offenders Search, Driving Record Report, and Social Media Search.
After the Hire
Once you’ve hired your new employee, be sure to outline any rules or details surrounding privacy or security at your home. Are there specific alarm codes or passwords that they should know? Or perhaps you have guidelines related to what they can share on social media.
All this information should be clearly communicated to your employees so they can ask questions. Some households take it one step further by asking employees to sign a confidentiality agreement or non-disclosure agreement. If that’s the case, be sure you have your legal advisor review everything before asking for a signature.
We’re Here to Help
Ready to start your journey to build an outstanding team of qualified and experienced in-home staff for your home? Household Staffing has three decades of expertise working with homes of all sizes around the country.
No matter what type of employee you need, we take the time to listen to each requirement and find the ideal placement. Contact us today to get started!
