Male babysitter

harr

Quick question on behalf of a friend, he is currently a stay at home dad but needs to find part time work that is flexible, like he needs to be around during the day for school runs and stuff and like that
So he was thinking of trying to get babysitting jobs during weekends.
Do you fellow parents feel he is wasting his time going down this road . Being a man and all.

s4uv3

Being a man and all? What?

Anyway, no - a good few stay at home parents that I know have taken on an extra kid or two to mind in their home part-time, or do afterschool care etc. It can work brilliantly if your own kids are a similar age.
One guy I know is at home with his kids but they're in school, so he minds a baby for three mornings a week.

Springfields

Yeah he might be able to get some child minding work for mornings / after school which would have to fit in with his own kids schedule but there are always people looking for.reliable childcare.
But if you are talking about a night time babysitting gig I'd be surprised if he got anything...

harr

s4uv3 wrote: »

Being a man and all? What?

Anyway, no - a good few stay at home parents that I know have taken on an extra kid or two to mind in their home part-time, or do afterschool care etc. It can work brilliantly if your own kids are a similar age.
One guy I know is at home with his kids but they're in school, so he minds a baby for three mornings a week.

Thanks , the reason I said him being a “ man and all “ is that a lot of people still don’t like men in traditional child minding roles. I am a stay at home dad myself and I often get comments about how it must be my turn “ to babysit” or if I am giving my wife a “ deserved day off “.
So he is a little apprehensive about offering babysitting services as a 40 something year old male.

popa smurf

Stay at home dad here too and get slaged off all the time and you do get sick of it plenty of construction work out there again but I feel I would be working for nothing as I would have to sort out child care for 4 kids. I think its Very hard for a man to get a part-time gig I Don't know too many lads job sharing which is the way to go i think.

drunkmonkey

I'd feel safer if it was a guy but it's all girls round here. I don't think women notice danger as much and are prone to panic rather than act.

Gatling

Unfortunately being a man makes it less likely a parent would trust him ,
Coming from a man who is actually in childcare , taking on other peoples babies or children is seriously stressful unless you know what you are doing and are committed it's not something you can or should attempt to wing ,
And just to show how some parents think I'm regularly asked if I'm Garda vetted in my work the 8 other staff all women have never been asked if they are vetted by parents using the service ,Or you hear it's great to see a dad giving up his time to volunteer to help do games .

harr

Gatling wrote: »

Unfortunately being a man makes it less likely a parent would trust him ,
Coming from a man who is actually in childcare , taking on other peoples babies or children is seriously stressful unless you know what you are doing and are committed it's not something you can or should attempt to wing ,
And just to show how some parents think I'm regularly asked if I'm Garda vetted in my work the 8 other staff all women have never been asked if they are vetted by parents using the service ,Or you hear it's great to see a dad giving up his time to volunteer to help do games .

The thing is he great with kids, has looked after a lot nieces and nephews as well as being a stay at home dad since his kids were babies. He does underage training for local Gaa and has done the child protection course and is Gardaetted for the club.
He would be in my opinion a fantastic babysitter/child minder but it’s peoples opinions on males working in childcare that is putting him off.
Even looking for normal part time work it seems all shops and the like want is teenage girls or college age workers.
I suppose the big gap in employment is another disadvantage..

Big Bag of Chips

To be honest the only adult babysitters I have ever used were family. I had a teenage girl babysit for a while who was a neighbour. But it would never occur to me to hire an adult babysitter! That's just me. Occasionally friends might step in and mind mine but it's more on a favour swap basis, and I would then take theirs occasionally.

He might get more 'business' as a childminder for during the day, but without formal qualifications it's more likely to be for friends who already know him. But it is an option he should look in to and let people know he's available.

Gatling

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I don't think women notice danger as much and are prone to panic rather than act.

So many different levels of wrong with this

December2012

I wouldn't hire anybody I didn't know personally for years as a babysitter.

But maybe as a child minder?

Because there is a perception that women are better at childminding than men, he may want to get as many qualifications as possible. Just to give himself more sellability

Becks610

My personal opinion is I wouldn’t hire a male to babysit my child that I didn’t know for years. It may be harder for him- a lot of people may not hire adults may just hire younger people.

Flyingsnowball

Not a hope. For no other reason than I don’t trust men who want to mind their own kids never mind men who want to mind other people’s kids.

It’s absolutely wrong but that’s how I feel. I wouldn’t be able to do my job to my best ability if some dude was at home in charge of my kids. Why would he go out of his way to get a minimum wage job where people are always second guessing him like this?

drunkmonkey

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Not a hope. For no other reason than I don’t trust men who want to mind their own kids never mind men who want to mind other people’s kids.

It’s absolutely wrong but that’s how I feel. I wouldn’t be able to do my job to my best ability if some dude was at home in charge of my kid

You've hit the nail on the head there with why men are better babysitters than women. You'd be sitting in the office wondering if the man was doing bad stuff with the kids.
A man wouldn't sit around wondering if someone was interfering with his kids he'd be straight over to knock 7 different kinds of **** out of them.

harr

Op here...I don’t think it will be complete strangers as he lives in a fairly small rural area and babysitters are hard to come by. He is basically looking for a little extra income and something he could do at night or evenings. He has a niece who can get €60 for a few hours babysitting on Friday and Saturday nights and she was saying people are finding it very hard to get reliable sitters.
As for going and getting qualified he hasn’t the time for college or probably the cash... and going by some replies here I can see why he is apprehensive about it.

helimachoptor

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Not a hope. For no other reason than I don’t trust men who want to mind their own kids never mind men who want to mind other people’s kids.

It’s absolutely wrong but that’s how I feel. I wouldn’t be able to do my job to my best ability if some dude was at home in charge of my kids. Why would he go out of his way to get a minimum wage job where people are always second guessing him like this?

da fuq?

I've 3 kids, "minding them" or parenting as i like to call it is awesome.
I wouldnt be keen on other peoples kids, my 3 are enough but have done it to help out if a babysitter fell through.

Robert McGrath

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

I don’t trust men who want to mind their own kids

Has to be a troll. There is no way anyone can have this as a sincerely held belief

pwurple

helimachoptor wrote: »

da fuq?

Ditto.
I was just about to say flyingsnowball is singlehandedly throwing women’s lib back 100 years. Chain the ladies to the kitchen sink there why don’t you.

Men are well able to look after their own offspring, unless they’ve got some sort of learned helplessness forced on them.

Christ, she wouldn’t want to come to my house... it’s the bloke minding all the kids here, and minding other neighbours smallies too in a kind of swaperoo where the kids go play at each others houses various days of the week.

For OP, you’re talking about being a childminder in your own house maybe? I don’t think I’d hire a grownup for babysitting either, just cos I think it’s one of the very few jobs teenagers can get, and I prefer them to have that opportunity.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Not a hope. For no other reason than I don’t trust men who want to mind their own kids never mind men who want to mind other people’s kids.

It’s absolutely wrong but that’s how I feel. I wouldn’t be able to do my job to my best ability if some dude was at home in charge of my kids. Why would he go out of his way to get a minimum wage job where people are always second guessing him like this?

You absolute dirt and I don't care if it gets me a ban from this forum.

I just spent the last two days minding my son. And I won't have dirtbirds like you casting aspersions on me or men like me.

Go and take a jump

drunkmonkey

Nonsense your kid starts choking and you want a young girl there instead of man. Seriously?

Flyingsnowball

Holy **** lads. I don’t belong in this forum. I hope you arnt teaching the kid them manners.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Holy **** lads. I don’t belong in this forum. I hope you arnt teaching the kid them manners.

Did you get the plumbing gig yet or did you get sacked for being such an absolute troll.

Flyingsnowball

listermint wrote: »

Did you get the plumbing gig yet or did you get sacked for being such an absolute troll.

Sorry for expressing my views.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Sorry for expressing my views.

They aren't views . You just said men that mind their own kids have problems.

Your a tool. That's not a view . Probably the drink speaking I presume . Grow up you man child

Flyingsnowball

listermint wrote: »

They aren't views . You just said men that mind their own kids have problems.

Your a tool. That's not a view . Probably the drink speaking I presume . Grow up you man child

Nope I said men that want to mind their own kids do. I have kids. I don’t want to be sat at home mindinv them all the time.
Testosterone or Mother Nature or something makes me happier out chasing food or money or whatever. You seem angry. Is there a guide to posting on this site to stop you running foul of some militants.

There seems to be people looking for an arguement everywhere.

Male childminders will not get work on average. You can bull**** the man all you want.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Nope I said men that want to mind their own kids do. I have kids. I don’t want to be sat at home mindinv them all the time.
Testosterone or Mother Nature or something makes me happier out chasing food or money or whatever. You seem angry. Is there a guide to posting on this site to stop you running foul of some militants.

There seems to be people looking for an arguement everywhere.

Male childminders will not get work on average. You can bull**** the man all you want.

No wonder you can't get the work your looking for.

Doing engineering requires a brain.

drunkmonkey

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Sorry for expressing my views.

That you don't trust men with children. You don't need to be sorry just plenty of therapy.

Flyingsnowball

listermint wrote: »

No wonder you can't get the work your looking for.

Doing engineering requires a brain.

Have a job thanks.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

Have a job thanks.

I frankly couldn't care less.

Flyingsnowball

listermint wrote: »

I frankly couldn't care less.

I’m not sure you have all the parenting tools needed in the little parenting toolbox that great parents have.

listermint

Flyingsnowball wrote: »

I’m not sure you have all the parenting tools needed in the little parenting toolbox that great parents have.

Who's a great parent ? I'm just a parent.

I've a keen eye for idiot's though. Great at that.