Foreign Caregiver Shakes the Budget Milliyet

Source: Milliyet

The dollar's record has entered between families and babysitters like a 'black cat'. Families either fix the rate with babysitters or, if they are very satisfied with the babysitter, they pay at the current rate without eating or drinking.

In Turkey, nearly 15,000 registered and many more unregistered foreign 'babysitters' or 'helpers' are employed. There are also companies providing babysitters for children and patients that operate unregistered and at very high rates, outside of those affiliated with the Ministry of Labor. These babysitters, especially from Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, the Philippines, Russia, and Georgia, negotiate their fees in dollars. Periods when the exchange rate rises are the biggest nightmare for families, as they face significant increases month by month.

'They ask on the net'
Families and companies accustomed to this situation fix the rate at the level of the exchange rate on the day the babysitter is hired. For other families, however, everything is very complicated; some even write their problems related to the 'exchange rate' on certain websites and seek 'agreement' ideas from families who know the subject. In this case, generally, either the babysitter is satisfied and stays without any issues, or the family, if very satisfied with the babysitter, accepts the increase in the exchange rate to avoid losing them.
Vural Şeker, President of the Istanbul Private Employment Agencies Association, stated that families are anxious in the face of the rising exchange rate and that the 'undetermined exchange rate' issue remains unresolved during such times.

'We work in TL, let's pay in TL'
Belgin Gündüz from Erenköy Consultancy stated that families are sensitive because they entrust their children and family members in need of care, and they are willing to pay any amount for a good babysitter. She emphasized that payments should be determined in TL by law. Gündüz explained that they have started to work in TL due to these situations, saying, "You earn in TL in this country, so you want to make payments in this way. Otherwise, the dollar and euro keep rising, but it is hard to witness a decrease. We accept our employees this way. The lowest wage is between 2000-2500 lira."

Solution is with Turkish babysitters
Şeker stated that families want to know how much they will pay at the end of each month, calculated based on the exchange rate at the time the babysitter was hired, along with annual raises. He emphasized that the exchange rate does not drop significantly after a certain rise, thus not causing significant losses for the babysitter. Şeker said, "Otherwise, families who do not know what to do at the end of the month consider changing their working style and switching from live-in staff to daytime and Turkish staff."

There is a raise, no exchange rate difference
Employers who want to agree on a common ground fix the dollar at a certain rate but try to avoid losing the babysitter by making a slight raise. This is a solution frequently resorted to by families. The monthly wages paid to babysitters vary according to the job description and even nationalities. Uzbek, Turkmen, Georgian, and Moldovan babysitters working 'daytime' receive monthly wages between 700-800 dollars. Filipino babysitters, on the other hand, work for monthly wages between 1000-1500 dollars. According to the information provided by Anıl Consultancy, families are currently 'in limbo.' Although most want to convert to Turkish Lira and hire, foreign babysitters are reluctant to this situation. A large segment that cannot reach an agreement accepts payment in dollars and at the current exchange rate.