Au Pair World

Around the world there are many nations that accept the practice of hiring au pairs for work. While the United Kingdom and France are the nations most commonly known for using au pairs, there are many different nations that have an au pair program, including the United States and several other European countries.

Au pair world agencies can often line up prospective au pairs with whatever nation they want to go to, depending on each nation’s individual laws. The United Kingdom, for example, has a list of nations from which it accepts au pairs from, and often does not accept au pairs from other countries. The United States has a more restrictive age limit than other nations, while Finland has a bare minimum pay level for au pairs. This is truly an opportunity for young adults looking for employment and opportunity in other nations across the world.

Finland, like the UK and France, is one of the major European nations that encourages the use of au pairs. In Finland, an au pair’s list of responsibilities includes not only child care, but also light housework, and is very specifically set up for six hours a day, five days a week. The au pair should always be allowed her own room, is provided with food by the family, and is paid a weekly allowance that has to add up to a bare minimum of 252 euros a month (approximately 64 euros a week). While this is suggested as an appropriate approximate rate for many nations, this amount is actually laid out as the minimum that can be made by an au pair under Finnish minimum wage laws.

In addition to this, while most countries assume that au pairs will enroll in a language school or be there to further their own educations, but in Finland it is not only assumed, but required. To help out, the host family will arrange a Finnish language course for the au pair to learn how to communicate better and more fluently during the stay in Finland. This works not only as an educational benefit, but will help the au pair communicate with the kids better, and also whenever she wants to get around on her days off.

While these all sound like additional bonuses compared to other nations’ ideas of au pair compensation, au pairs are expected to be flexible and if the family needs them to, they are required to work more than thirty hours a week, as necessary to satisfy the family’s needs. But the good news is that for extra hours, the au pair will make five euros an hour, a rate that is also set in law. Au pairs working in Finland, like most au pair world, receive one week of paid vacation every six months, for two weeks per year. They are allowed to stay for one for year, or they can choose a shorter stay.

Many nations in the world don’t have such detailed laws as Finland, so it is always good to have a written contract that stipulates what your responsibilities are, as well as the pay and protection for the employer, as well. Doing this can open up entirely new worlds to workers of all nationalities.

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