I suggest you call your local Labor board to find out what your rights would be. The few things that have come out on this forum concerning live ins are:
1. They are not considered self-employed. The person hiring them must deduct payroll taxes. With SS they also match what has been deducted. If not, this will effect the amount of money u receive at retirement.
2. That they must receive at least minimum wage and cannot be charged rent for the room they are using.
3. That a contract needs to be in place. A live in does not work 24/7. They are allowed time off. At which time the employer needs to bring in other help. This contract should also say what happens when the client passes away. How long does the aide have to move out. Will there be severance pay?
There are horror stories on this site concerning live in. People expected to work 24/7. Some having rent taken out of their wages. Others not getting a wage because its felt the aide is getting room and board. One case I remember the aide took over to the point she bossed around the kids. Another instance, the aide moved her family in. She had been given an apt in the basement. She ended up placing the client in the basement and taking over the house. The POA lived out of state.
For me, having a live in is more work and potential problems. I would rather take that money and find a nice AL for my LO.
And a live in cannot be a 1099 contractor. They are an employee of the person needing care, so all witholding needs to be done by the employer. Room and board are not considered as even partial payment for services.
We have seen well meaning caregivers taken advantage of many times on this site. Don't fall into that trap. You are wise to ask questions here before you get into an arrangement.
In my area a live in would be in the area of 12k a month. That amount includes overtime pay for over 40 hours.
The best way to answer this is to call a few agencies in your area and ask what they charge. A % will be going to the agency so the worker will not get all of it so take that into consideration. Each part of the country, each part of every state has a different "standard" so the cost will be different everywhere. I live a bit more than an hour from Chicago, the cost for me to hire will be far different than if I lived 2 hours north in Wisconsin or a few hours south. A caregiver that is a Live In also needs time off. So if the person they are caring for needs supervision 24/7 you will also need to hire someone else. Unless you hire through an agency you will also need to complete appropriate forms for taxes. I would also make sure your insurance includes a live in caregiver and you have the right insurance policy. Just a few things to think about. Also compare hiring more than 1 person so you do not have a "live in" it is very possible that 1 or 2 people doing late night could be paid far less than caregivers that are doing "active caregiving" such as bathing, dressing, meal prep, cleaning. Ones doing overnight shift would be "sitters" not actual caregivers. Some sites indicate that overnight sitters or caregivers can sleep if the client can easily awaken them, other sites say they should not sleep during the shift. I would think it depends on the client so every case would be different.
3 Answers
Helpful Newest
First Oldest
First
1. They are not considered self-employed. The person hiring them must deduct payroll taxes. With SS they also match what has been deducted. If not, this will effect the amount of money u receive at retirement.
2. That they must receive at least minimum wage and cannot be charged rent for the room they are using.
3. That a contract needs to be in place. A live in does not work 24/7. They are allowed time off. At which time the employer needs to bring in other help. This contract should also say what happens when the client passes away. How long does the aide have to move out. Will there be severance pay?
There are horror stories on this site concerning live in. People expected to work 24/7. Some having rent taken out of their wages. Others not getting a wage because its felt the aide is getting room and board. One case I remember the aide took over to the point she bossed around the kids. Another instance, the aide moved her family in. She had been given an apt in the basement. She ended up placing the client in the basement and taking over the house. The POA lived out of state.
For me, having a live in is more work and potential problems. I would rather take that money and find a nice AL for my LO.
We have seen well meaning caregivers taken advantage of many times on this site. Don't fall into that trap. You are wise to ask questions here before you get into an arrangement.
In my area a live in would be in the area of 12k a month. That amount includes overtime pay for over 40 hours.
ADVERTISEMENT
A % will be going to the agency so the worker will not get all of it so take that into consideration.
Each part of the country, each part of every state has a different "standard" so the cost will be different everywhere. I live a bit more than an hour from Chicago, the cost for me to hire will be far different than if I lived 2 hours north in Wisconsin or a few hours south.
A caregiver that is a Live In also needs time off. So if the person they are caring for needs supervision 24/7 you will also need to hire someone else.
Unless you hire through an agency you will also need to complete appropriate forms for taxes. I would also make sure your insurance includes a live in caregiver and you have the right insurance policy.
Just a few things to think about.
Also compare hiring more than 1 person so you do not have a "live in" it is very possible that 1 or 2 people doing late night could be paid far less than caregivers that are doing "active caregiving" such as bathing, dressing, meal prep, cleaning. Ones doing overnight shift would be "sitters" not actual caregivers.
Some sites indicate that overnight sitters or caregivers can sleep if the client can easily awaken them, other sites say they should not sleep during the shift. I would think it depends on the client so every case would be different.