Unpaid Overtime and Mishandled Tax Advice
Hi everyone. I’m looking for honest advice from other nannies/household employees because I’m feeling really overwhelmed and unsure what to do next.
I worked for a high-income family in Ohio as a nanny/family manager for almost a year. I had a written contract that stated I would be paid hourly at $28.85/hr and receive overtime pay at 1.5x my rate for any hours worked over 40 in a workweek. I received 3 raises through out my time.
My responsibilities went far beyond basic childcare and included:
- overnights while the parents traveled
- travel with the family
- household management tasks
- scheduling camps/activities
- laundry/ironing
- pet care
- research and booking travel itineraries
- transporting kids constantly
- emergency assistance when a parent was away
(These were all listed in the written job description.)
The issue is that I frequently worked WELL over 40 hours, including overnight stays and travel weeks, but was never paid overtime despite the contract specifically mentioning overtime. I was also guaranteed 40 hours weekly regardless of schedule fluctuations.
On top of that, taxes/withholdings were never handled correctly from what I can tell, and now after being suddenly let go, I’m realizing how much may have been mishandled.
What’s making this emotionally difficult is that I was extremely close with the children and genuinely treated this like more than “just a job.” I have years of positive texts, photos, praise, and messages from both the parents and children saying how much they loved having me there. Then I was suddenly terminated with criticisms that honestly don’t match the reality of my employment experience.
I’ve started speaking with employment attorneys and documenting overtime hours, but I wanted to ask:
- Has anyone here successfully pursued unpaid overtime as a nanny/household employee?
- How hard is it to prove overtime if you have kept texts, travel schedules, overnight stays, etc. from the past two years?
- Did anyone report household employers for payroll/tax violations?
- Is going through the Department of Labor realistic without a lawyer?
- Emotionally, how did you handle losing a family you were deeply attached to while also taking legal action?
Please be kind. I’m already stressed enough and genuinely trying to understand my options.