Salaries of babysitters increase by 60 percent

ISTANBUL

Monthly salaries of babysitters have skyrocketed by 60 percent, ranging between 10,000 and 80,000 Turkish liras ($550 and $4,400) due to increasing demand after the COVID-19 pandemic while parents have complained about these excessive prices, as per local media.

Nizam Ali Eriş, family relations director of a private caregiver company, stated that salary ranges between 10,000 and 80,000 liras depending on their experience, though some parents could not find a caregiver even for 12,000 to 13,000 liras ($655- $715), adding that his company has a caregiver who receives a salary of 80,000 Turkish Liras.

The Philippines, Uzbeks and Turkmens are the most preferred nationalities for getting babysitters, while parents started to hire Turkish nannies because of high prices.

Eriş also pointed out that nannies provide some special training not only to children but also to the parent, claiming that some nannies guarantee to teach children to speak three languages until the age of 5.

Some parents stated that caregivers demand such high salaries that is almost a monthly salary of a working family, while others said that some caregivers suddenly quit their job when they were offered a higher salary.

Despite the high prices, many families are still struggling to find a babysitter, which is appropriate to their criteria.

Some families have found a solution to hiring a nanny for two families to work on different days of the week, Eriş stated but added that the method is not sustainable.