The Au Pair program allows young people worldwide to live with American host families and provide up to 45 weekly childcare hours. Cultural exchange is a two-way street as Au Pairs share their culture, language, and traditions with Host Families.
Agencies are essential for this cultural exchange to be successful and safe. Here are five reasons why au pairs and host families should use an agency.
Screening and Selection
The Au Pair Program is an international cultural exchange that pairs young foreigners with welcoming American families for a year of childcare and learning about America. Au pairs receive a stipend and share their home culture with their host family in return for help with children and housework. This unique, intercultural experience allows au pairs to come away from their host year with a greater understanding of American people and values they can share back home with friends and family.
To become an au pair, participants must complete a comprehensive online profile detailing their childcare experience and family life, education, work-related skills, and lifestyle habits. Some representatives review these profiles and interview au pairs before making matches. Additionally, au pairs must attend an info meeting in their home country to meet with a representative to discuss program requirements and expectations.
Unfortunately, despite the rigorous screening and selection process, there are cases of abuse and exploitation of au pairs. A documentary explores the exploitation of au pairs and discusses how au pair agencies must be more aggressive in removing abusive families from the program.
Choosing an au pair agency that has designated staff in each state can help reduce the risk of abuse and mistreatment. These au pair directors can mediate issues and support both au pairs and host families. In addition, many au pair agencies have Area Directors who are located within an hour’s drive of every placement and can be contacted for any questions or concerns.
Support
A reputable au pair agency such as Go Au Pair should provide ongoing support services for both the au pairs and host families. This will help ensure that the relationship is positive for all involved. For example, a reputable agency will assign a local area director to every placement. These staff members live within an hour of each au pair and will be available to answer any questions or concerns.
These representatives can also assist with problems that arise during the program. They can also help to negotiate pay raises or other changes to the au pair agreement. In addition, they can help the au pair find a new family if the original match is no longer working out.
Young women often become au pairs for a variety of reasons. Some want to travel and live abroad, while others have family obligations they can’t ignore. Some may even have career aspirations and dreams they can’t pursue at home, so becoming an au pair allows them to pause their lives and reassess their options.
To maximize the value of the au pair program, its work and cultural exchange components must be aligned with labor laws and other protections. The program’s agencies must be more aggressive in removing abusive host families from the program, and they should also make it easier for au pairs to switch placements if necessary.
Reputation
Many families participate in the au pair program for cultural exchange and flexible childcare. As schools and daycares remain closed during the coronavirus pandemic, live-in child care is even more attractive. Unfortunately, the reputation of au pair programs has been marred by accusations of abuse and exploitation.
Agencies contribute to these issues by employing recruitment tactics that mislead au pairs, failing to support au pairs who report issues meaningfully, and campaigning against program changes intended to bolster protections for au pairs. In addition, the rhetoric of “cultural exchange” and “family” used in government and au pair agency materials obscures the boundary between work and free time, enabling host families to take advantage of au pairs by asking them to perform tasks outside their work scope.
Furthermore, the Department of State often grants agencies sweeping leeway in determining how to enforce and monitor program regulations, and the agency’s determinations are not made public. As a result, au pairs have little to no recourse when agencies fail to protect their rights. Despite this, there are some signs that au pair agencies are becoming more cautious in recruiting and treating au pairs. However, these improvements may not offset broader issues with the program itself. Until the United States restructures its au pair program to more closely mirror those in other countries, au pairs will continue to be vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
Flexibility
An au pair is a young foreign woman looking to share her culture, learn a new language, and create a life-long friendship with the host family’s children. Au pairs are different from nannies, as they live with your family and become like siblings to your children.
While au pair agencies charge a fee to both hosts and au pairs, they offer a great deal of flexibility that is only sometimes available with other child care options. For example, if you need to change childcare providers mid-way through the program, your agency can help. Similarly, your agency can facilitate that process if you’re having difficulties with an au pair and want to swap them out for another au pair.
Au pair agencies also have Area Directors and staff members who live within an hour of each au pair placement and can be reached 24/7 to assist with any issues. These are often former au pairs and host parents who can offer support from a personal perspective. They’re available to help you maximize the au pair experience while staying safe and meeting your family’s needs. This considerable benefit sets au pair agencies apart from direct placements.