Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Nanny Confessions: Social Media and Children

Are You Allowed to Post Pictures of Your Charges Online?
By Elizabeth Hawksworth

Do your employers allow you to post pictures and updates about their children on your social media accounts? It’s an important question these days, especially with the advent of Internet information and its permanency in the world. Simply by Googling someone's name a wealth of information can be found about any individual, which means that a  picture that you think is cute can be potentially damaging or revealing to the wrong people for your charge.

This week, I confess that I want share stories, photos, and videos of the children I care for on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube but I can't without first having permission from the parents.

It’s important for parents to be upfront about expectations regarding social media. Many parents don’t mind their nanny sharing photos of their kids as long as their nanny runs every post or picture by them first. Some parents like to keep an eye on what the nanny is doing with their children by quickly checking their Facebook or Twitter from a mobile device.

However, some parents prefer that you keep all mention of their child from social media. The nanny must respect the parent's decision. A nanny should never post a picture of a child’s face or the child’s name on social media without written permission from the child’s parents.

It’s tempting to want to share our jobs with our friends and family, especially when we love the children we care for so much. However, it’s important to abide by all our employer’s rules, and that includes sharing of information about their children. Ensure that a social media clause is written into your contract so that you are fully aware at all times of what expectations are around social media and children.

Do your employers allow you to share pictures and stories of the children you care for on social media? Why or why not?

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