Hellobee Boards

I worked as a nanny for a family who had cameras in their home, although they told me they primarily used them to keep track of the kids in their house (it was an older home - not open concept - with a lot of square footage, so with the cams I could watch them from the kitchen through the tv). I don't know if they used them to watch me or not, but honestly it wouldn't have bothered me if they did. I had nothing to hide - and frankly, they didn't know me when I first started! Any parent has a right to be wary with whomever they entrust their child - you earn trust, it's not just given.

So I don't think they're a bad thing. The key is just letting the nanny know they're there... although I think there are a few exceptions to that (safety, if you believe the nanny is harming your child).

We now have a security system that has cameras that we can check from our phones or any computer. We don't have a nanny, but we have an occasional date night babysitter, and I just told her right from the beginning that we have cameras in the living room/kitchen and in LO's room.

I think it's totally fair to have cameras, but I think you should disclose it. If they have nothing to hide, they should be fine with it. Otherwise, if something comes up you need to ask about, how do you ask? It's so much easier to say, "I turned on the camera today while you were feeding LO and noticed she was refusing to eat. Do you think she didn't like the food, or that she wasn't feeling well?" or whatever.

I said "other" because in addition to our traditional video monitor, we also have a dropcam that we view on our cell phones. We initially got it when we went away on our first trip without our son. We wanted to be able to peek in on him while in his crib if we missed him. But then we realized if we placed it a certain spot we could see the entire room plus the crib. So now we also use it to check in on him during naps and sometiems my part time nanny is with him. She knows about it (that we can view it on our phones) but I'm not sure she realizes/remembers that we sometimes see her too.
I personally love it. I love being able to see what he's up to when I'm gone and I love hearing the way she talks to him. So sweet
I trust her, but I do think that if we ever had to get another nanny we would also get one for our living/dining area. It's just nice to have.

I'd like to hear some nannies weigh in on it.

Personally, I would/will have them. Nanny will know about it in advance.

I'm a nanny, and the family I work for doesn't use them. I wouldn't care if they did, as long as they told me about them. I totally understand why parents would want to set them up! If I found out someone I was working for had cameras set up and I didn't know about them, it would make me extremely uncomfortable and I'd likely give my notice as soon as I found out.

We have had two nannies but no cameras. The first nanny we trusted with our lives, plus I was home all the time with my newborn. The second we also trust! I think I'm just lazy. I have certainly thought about it, and we do have one lying around, but it's just not set up. I have told her that we might have a nanny cam and she was OK with it. She's been with us a couple of years now. It's your child, you're paying, and as long as you told Nanny and they know about it, and are ok with it, I wouldn't worry too much about it!!