Benefits of Au Pair Child Care for Working Parents

One of the most important decisions for working parents is choosing a child care provider. Child care for working parents must be both flexible and reliable. Whether you work in the office, remotely or on a hybrid schedule, working parents can benefit from hosting an au pair. 

Here are five benefits of au pair child care assistance for working parents: 

1. Peace of Mind 

Hosting an au pair makes it easy for working parents to maintain an open line of communication with their children. Au pairs can provide daily updates of what your children have been up to, helping working parents stay more connected to their children’s lives. 

Plus, when you host an au pair with Au Pair in America, you gain peace of mind knowing that our au pairs are thoroughly screened and trained. Through our multi-tiered screening process and comprehensive au pair orientation program, we make sure that our host families are matched with the best au pair candidates for their family’s needs. 

2. Flexibility

Unlike most other forms of child care assistance, au pairs are ideal for working parents who have varying schedules. The days of strictly working a 9 AM – 5 PM schedule are all but gone and families need childcare that allows for flexibility. When you host an au pair, you set the schedule to meet your family’s needs – au pairs can provide up to 10 hours per day and 45 hours per week of child care assistance.

“What would our family do without Paula? I honestly have no idea, and even shudder at the thought! Between my husband’s and my busy schedules (him as a neurosurgeon and me as an orthopedic surgeon), two energetic boys both under 2 years old, and 3 rambunctious dogs, our lives are perpetually in motion. Paula is the effervescent and diligent force which helps keep things running smoothly.”

Host Family in Tennessee

3. Improve work-life balance 

With in-home child care assistance, you no longer need to rush from the office to a daycare center or babysitter – your children are already safe and sound at home with your au pair. Plus, au pairs can help with child-related household tasks such as children’s laundry, meals, tidying toys and more. This means no more rushing to pack school lunches after your workday ends. Instead, you can spend quality time with your family after work! 

4. Increase productivity and attendance at work 

Hosting an au pair in your home eliminates the need to take unexpected time off for school breaks, snow days and children’s sick days. One former host parent described the impact hosting an au pair had on their careers and family: 

“[Our au pair’s] reliability enabled my husband and I to be better parents and better employees; we went from using up all our paid leave by mid-year between the kids’ illnesses and snow days, to carrying over the bulk of our leave at the end of the year.”  

5. Value  

Working parents – especially those with more than one child—may find that they can save on child care costs by hosting an au pair. Unlike most other forms of child care assistance, the cost of an au pair is per family, not per child. Plus, Au Pair in America offers several discounts for new and current host families, including corporate and military discounts.