Transcription
Draft Au Pair Manual Kindly Provided by Host Family to needuAu Pair Manual for the XXXXXX FamilyPage 1 of 22
ContentsBasic Family InformationEmergency NumbersMontessori Contact DetailsWeekly Household RoutineMonday to ThursdayHouseworkLaundryRubbish CollectionFridaySaturdaySundayCarFood Preparation and HygienePage 2 of 223444466778889
HeatingYour Own RoomHouse SecurityEnvironmentTrips AwayGrocery ShoppingPersonal PurchasesTelephoneThings to DoFor AuroraFor YouSummaryWhat About You?Departure ChecklistPage 3 of 22111112121213131314151515
PurposeThe intent of this manual is to provide guidance in the day to day operation of our household.This manual should be used as an addendum to the employment contract, and wherever there is a conflict between your employment contractand this manual, the employment contract takes precedence. In New Zealand it is a legal requirement that you have an employment contract with us, andyou will be pleased to discover that, unlike Australia, au pairs are protected by New Zealand employment law, just like any other resident employee.This means you have entitlements, such as a minimum wage and days off on public holidays.Basic Family InformationAddressBirthdaysPhone NumbersHome(if calling from overseas)If calling from within New ZealandIf calling from within the XXXXX areaCellphone numbersEmail and WIFI passwordsPage 4 of 22
If you need something its fine to call either of us during work hours, 24 hours a day. Text or leave a message if we don’t answer.Emergency numbersFire, Police, Ambulance – dial 111. The operator will ask which service you require (Fire, Police or Ambulance) and will then connect you to that service.Doctor – we tend to use XXXXXXXX. For non-urgent matters there is a wait of about 2-3 days, but if you tell the receptionist the matter is urgent they canusually get you in the same day.His number is XXXXXX and he is atSchool Contact DetailsPHHours are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 3 pm.Our Weekly Household RoutineThis is the usual routine. Note that there will be exceptions based around short weeks due to public holidays, school holidays, or during our absence fromNelson.We hope that you will be flexible and help out when needed as a family member and a member of the household. Our contract with you is for up to 40hours a week but we can be flexible within these times if needed. There will be times and days that are busier than others (like school holidays) when wemay expect a little more but this should be balanced out by times which are not so busy. This is the general routine - there is a lot of information buthopefully this makes it easier for you.Our main priority of course is the safety and health of Aurora and then your positive relationship with her. If you have any concerns please talk to us, wewill always try to be fair.Page 5 of 22
XXXXXX is a self-employed midwife. She has a structured day, which can be distorted by on-call work.XXXXX sells real estate for the company XXXXXX.Monday through to ThursdayAs a household we are usually up by 7.30 am – 7.45 at the latest. This allows XXXXX to dress, have breakfast and get ready in time for XXXXX to take her toschool by 8.50 amXXXX and/or XXXX will prepare XXXXX for the morning.XXXX will usually make breakfast for whoever wishes him to.Our breakfasts will either be fresh fruit and unprocessed cereal, or eggs in some form – usually omelette with vegetables or scrambled eggs.We will have freshly brewed coffee and sometimes toast, from wholegrain bread.Generally XXXX takes XXXXX to school and the two of them will be out the door before 8.50 am.XXXXX takes a bag with a piece of fruit, a sunhat, and a spare change of knickers, top and trousers or shorts.XXXXXX hours vary because she works on call so this is hard to predict.If she has been called out overnight she may still be in bed asleep.At midday be ready to start work.As we require grocery items we will all write them on a shopping list in the dining room.If you use something all up, or require something from the groceries, write that item on the list yourself.Between midday and 3 pm your duties will consist, as required, of housework, grocery shopping, and preparing the evening meal.Page 6 of 22
At 3 pm you pick up XXXXX from school.It is quite Ok to take XXXXX grocery shopping with you.Please occupy her from 3 pm until dinner, by which time either XXXXX or XXXXX should be home.We would like you to cook dinner on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. We will cook on Friday and Saturday nights and on Sundays wewill discuss who will cook that night.If we manage to have dinner, clean up the dining area and the kitchen prior to 8 pm, then your work day has finished. Otherwise it finishes at 8 pmXXXXX and/or XXXXX will spend time with XXXXX until her bedtime, which we aim to have at about 7 – 7.30 pmOn very rare occasions neither of us has arrived home by her dinner time, in which case please prepare her for bed – brushing teeth, into pyjamas, and intobed. Read her a story for 5 minutes or so.Once you’ve left her, please remain upstairs until one of us gets home.Most nights after XXXXX is in bed XXXXX and XXXXX will watch a movie or spend time in the lounge. You are more than welcome to join us there, but it isup to you what you do.This house goes to sleep at around midnight. If you have been out late in the evening or until the early morning hours, we don’t want to hear a lot of noisewhen you come home, nor can you expect us to be quiet while you are sleeping off a hangover. Our home is not a student flat.HouseworkPage 7 of 22
Wherever possible this is done between midday and when you pick up XXXXX, Monday through to Thursday.You do not need to do the entire house on any one day, and may wish to spread it out over a number of days.At first this might seem overwhelming but within a few weeks you will develop a routine that suits you best.Vacuum the house at least once a week.more if required. When vacuuming please vacuum any dead flies off window sills and in the corners of ceilings.Also when vacuuming please vacuum the area of the garage just beyond the sliding door so that we don’t bring any dirt up the stairs on our socks, slippersor shoes.Clean bathrooms at least once a week. Please clean all chrome fittings including the shower chrome.don't worry about the shower head itself, and don’tworry about doing the en-suite shower door – XXXX will do that once a week when he showers.Toilet bowls need to be cleaned with the toilet brush, which is next to each toilet.The chrome plug surrounds need to be cleaned when basins are cleaned.The vacuum cleaner, cleaning products and scrubbing brush are kept in the laundry.Empty all rubbish bins once a week, preferably on Sundays because rubbish collection is the next day. There are 6 including yours and the garage bin.If the black rubbish bin outside the laundry door fills up before rubbish day, there are two other black bins you can use – one by the pizza oven and oneoutside by the garage door.When main housework is done please do the things that don't need everyday attention, for example cleaning the fridge, wiping down inside of drawers andcupboards, dusting all surfaces, keeping the microwave interior cleanBathrooms need to have attention paid to the corners of floorsLaundryPage 8 of 22
All clothes are washed in the machine in the laundry, apart from a few items that XXXXX takes to a drycleaners.We wash most days and you are welcome to put your clothing in with ours when we wash.Set the COLD wash option at all times.We are very reluctant to ever use the clothes drier (also in the laundry), except in extreme emergencies (rain for 2-3 days in a row might possibly constitutean emergency). If you do use it, please open the outside laundry door to allow moist air to escape, and close the internal laundry door so moisture doesn’tcome inside the house.In most cases the clothes will be hung on the washing line outside the master bedroom en-suite in the morning, and taken in before dark if they are dry.Generally if they are not dry leave them out until the next day. Sometimes, if rain is forecast, we can bring them in and then hang them out the next day.Once a week there will some ironing to do. The ironing board and iron is kept in the laundry, but you can iron in whichever room you wish to. It’s nothingtoo complicated – napkins, handkerchiefs, pillow slips – that sort of thing.Rubbish CollectionThere is rubbish collection on Monday morning and recycling.glass one week and paper, plastic and tins the other week.For recycling, all but the glass goes into the large blue bin outside the laundry door. Cans must be rinsed to remove food residue otherwise it will attractvermin – rats, mice and flies.The glass goes into a red bucket next to the blue recycling bin, and the same rinsing applies to any glass that contained food.Rubbish goes into blue rubbish bags kept inside the black plastic bin outside the laundry door. Keep the lid on to keep out vermin.Green kitchen waste goes into the plastic ice cream container at the kitchen bench and when full goes into any of the black worm farm bins outside thelaundry door. Waste that will not easily rot down such as walnut shells, large bones etc should just go in the rubbish bin.FridayPage 9 of 22
This is the first of your two days off per week.The day is entirely yours and you have no obligations to us.XXXXX or XXXXX will prepare dinnerIf you are not going to be home for dinner please let us know that morning if possible so that we don’t cook for you. If you are home it would be expectedthat you assist with setting the table and cleaning up after meals the same as you would as a family member.In the evenings in your free time and on weekends if you are at home we are happy for you to stay upstairs and watch TV or be with the family. If we havegone to bed you are welcome to watch TV or movies in the living room but we usually don’t go to bed before 11.30 pm. We expect that most weekendsyou will want to get out and about and see friends, the city, the beach and lots of other places to enjoy your time in Nelson. We also appreciate that it isdifficult spending a lot of time with people who are not your own family and that you may want some time to yourself and away from the family.SaturdayThis is your second day off. Same applies – its yours to do with as you wish.We often go to the Saturday market in town in the morning.You are very welcome to come with us.XXXXX or XXXXX will prepare dinner.SundayThis is the start of your working week.If you go to church there are plenty to choose from that have morning services.We are not church goers, and if you are, we respect that but please don’t try and convert us.XXXXX is very likely to be working the entire afternoon and will usually be out of the house by midday and may not return until after dark.Page 10 of 22
If XXXXX has to work or is called out, please look after XXXXX for as long as required this day, from midday.CarYou will have a car for your exclusive use.Please keep the car tidy, inside and out, and make sure that when you refuel it the water, oil and tyre pressure is checked.There are car cleaning products in the garage, and a vacuum cleaner in the garage for that purpose.We will provide 20 per week for petrol, and any additional private use will need to be covered by you. The car takes unleaded, standard petrol.We take care of insurance premiums, and all other on-road costs.If you have an accident that is your fault, you will need to pay the insurance excess.Any traffic fines, including parking tickets, are to be paid by you.The Police are more strict about speeding in New Zealand than they are in some northern hemisphere countries. There are often traffic speed radar outsideschools. If you are even 1 kilometre over the speed limit driving past a school, you will receive a traffic ticket.At 50 kilometres per hour, you must be a minimum of 3 car lengths behind the car in front of you.At 100 KMH you must be at least 6 cars lengths behind.If you accumulate too many traffic tickets, you are automatically disqualified, at which point your employment would be terminated with us.At home, park your car on the gravel area outside your bedroom.In the event of a traffic accident, you must stop, and ascertain if anyone is injured. If someone is injured, you must render assistance. The most appropriateway to do this is to call an ambulance (dial 111), and then render physical assistance where possible.Page 11 of 22
Failure to take these steps is illegal and you could be arrested for either failing to stop, or failing to render assistance.If there is no injury, but you have damaged another vehicle, you must provide that driver with your details, and you must obtain theirs.In the event of an accident, you are not to admit any liability to anyone, except us.When driving your vehicle you must have your driver’s licence with you at all times.We will make available to you a book on the road rules, commonly referred to as The Road Code.When driving with XXXXX in your car, she must be buckled into the car seat at all times.When you stop and both get out, you must insist that you hold her hand as she comes out of the car. If necessary ask her to put her hands on the car if forsome reason you cannot immediately hold her hand.Always cross the road holding hands, but as a matter of good training, ask her to look both ways and tell you if there are any cars coming. If there are none,cross the road. If there are cars coming, train her to wait until they have passed, check again, and if clear, cross the road.Texting or using your phone when driving is against the law and absolutely forbidden. If you must use the phone, pull over to the side of the road SAFELY,and stop.Drink driving - the rules in New Zealand are very strict and you can expect random roadside breath tests at any time of the day or night. As part of youremployment with us driving within 12 hours of drinking is absolutely forbidden.Leaving XXXXX in the car while you go shopping, even if at the supermarket, is not done. Please don’t. Even if she wants to stay in the car, please take herwith you.Food Preparation and HygienePlease always wash your hands before preparing food, and please always rinse vegetables and fruit before they are eaten or prepared for a meal.Page 12 of 22
Anytime you are preparing raw chicken, there is the risk of salmonella poisoning unless care is taken. Wash any knives or other utensils, and the choppingboard, all with hot water before using the board or the utensils for any other type of food. Please don’t rely on dishwashing liquid to kill bacteria, but hotwater definitely will.This last paragraph is important so please go back and read it again.With very few exceptions, any evening meal should include vegetables of some kind.It is unusual for us to have the same meal twice within a month – we eat a lot of variety but most meals will contain salad, or veggies, and usually meat,poultry or fish.When you cook, feel free to cook your favourite dishes – we are adventurous eaters - and when we cook please do give us feedback – what you like anddon’t like. We won’t be offended.Timing – on the days when you are cooking and also picking up XXXXX from school – we recommend you do as much preparation as possible betweenmidday and 3 pm, so that you are not having to divide your time between XXXX and cooking.You have access to every food item in the pantry, refrigerator, freezer, and the downstairs freezer.We do not make special meals for XXXXX – she eats what we eat.As a basic food rule we avoid where possible foods with extra sugar (for example fizzy drinks, cake), high fat content (for example chips and deep friedfood), or highly refined foods (for example biscuits, cake, white bread - unless crusty bread to accompany a meal which is OK – we usually have olive oil andbalsamic vinegar available)The green olive oil bottle by the stove has locally pressed oil, available from XXXXX. We use this for cooking. There should always be two full spare bottlesof the same oil in the pantry.Please use the extractor fan whenever cooking on the stove topTea towels and hand towels in the kitchen have different uses. We use the dark green towels to dry or wipe our hands.Page 13 of 22
We use the tea towels to dry anything else – dishes, the table or bench after it has been cleaned. Once tea towels have been used they can be put in thewash. The yellow dishcloths can be put in the washing machine at any time.Please keep cupboards tidy – have a look at how we have them now. There is usually a reason for things being where they are and so in order for us to beable to find things when we cook, please leave the cupboards how they are now, not how you think they should be.Some of our pans and our rice cooker have a Teflon coating. Ask us if you are not sure which ones these are. To ensure the Teflon does not scratch, wenever use metal cooking implements in those pans, and do not use a scouring pot mitt when cleaning them. When cooking we use plastic implements, andto clean them only the kitchen scrubbing brush.HeatingXXXXX summer weather means heating is not generally required from October to March.From about April to September we are most likely to use the heating as required.For your room there are two upright electric heaters. Because your room and lounge are double glazed this will be sufficient to keep you warm.If using the main central heating upstairs heating, all the windows of the house must be closed - if you want to heat the lounge only, just use the gas fire.In winter (about 4.30 pm) close up the house (by closing all the windows including your top windows) and put heating on before the house gets too cold.Upstairs there is the gas fire for the lounge. This is usually used in the mornings to take the chill off the dining room and is turned off as everyone leavesthe house.In the evenings we are more likely to use the central heating, and this is operated by pushing the yellow wall switch on or off. Temperature is controlled bythe up or down buttons next to the yellow switch.Page 14 of 22
Ventilation during the day is very important. Please open windows in the morning to clear any moisture from the house interior, including in your ownroom, bathroom and lounge.In the heat of summer it may be necessary to leave windows open overnight for cooling and ventilation.Your Own RoomYou have the exclusive use of the downstairs rooms – lounge, bedroom, bathroom.You will have a key for the ranch-slider door.Please keep your room well ventilated during the day and curtains open to assist such ventilation (except when required for privacy). This is important notonly for your health but also to avoid the build-up of moisture in the room, which will create mould on the walls, ceiling and curtains.Let us say that again to emphasise an important point your room must remain well ventilated during the day, by you keeping the curtains open and thetop windows open. The top window in the bathroom should be perpetually open.There is a tint on the window glass which helps retain your privacy when the curtains are open and you will discover that it is difficult for people that areoutside to see inside, not that there’s ever anyone outside your windows during the day anyway.You have a refrigerator in your lounge. This is for keeping your own food in, although in most cases we would expect that food is stored and consumedupstairs in the kitchen and dining room.Please keep your room tidy, and at the end of your time with us we expect that it will look the same as when you began.Water is remarkably cheap here so XXXXX and I usually shower twice a day. What you do is up to you but don’t feel that you have to conserve water.House SecurityWhenever leaving the house, if no-one remains at home, please secure all windows and doors throughout the house (apart from the top
Draft Au Pair Manual Kindly Provided by Host Family to needu Au Pair Manual for the XXXXXX Family . Page 2 of 22 Contents . au pairs are protected by New Zealand employment law, just like any other residen
