Should grandparents get paid for babysitting grandchildren?

A grandmother caring for her grandchild made it clear her help doesn't come for free. Photo / Getty Images

A grandmother asking for payment for babysitting her granddaughter has sparked a heated debate online, with social media users questioning if grandparents should in fact be paid for childcare?

And if you have to pay a grandparent to look after your child, are you entitled to expect the same level of care you would receive from, a professional child carer?

One grandmother, whose daughter is returning to work, shared her predicament with Reddit, asking if she was wrong to ask for payment.

"My daughter is 29, she has a one-year-old son and will be returning to work soon," the post read.

"She works five days a week, about 7-8 hours a day from 7.30am-3pm, and asked me if I would be willing to babysit her son either two or three days a week."

The grandmother agreed, saying she would love to help out, but asked US$12 ($17) an hour to do so.

"She understood my need for payment but then lowballed me with requesting $10/hour ($14) because she claims that she cannot afford it even with her $22 ($31)/hour job," the woman continued.

"I'm not a daycare, I have my own life, I work for myself and I think she should understand that I'd be giving up my time when I work from home, and if I'm going to be giving up that time then I need money to replace that time I'm giving up from my job."

The grandmother stated that while she loves her grandson, she will be missing out on income, which her daughter then argued it's "only" two or three days a week. The daughter also shared that she is willing to provide all food to save on expenses.

"I love my grandson," the grandmother shared, "but as I stated above, I'm not a daycare."

However, social media users were quick to call out the grandmother, even suggesting she had edited the post after it first read she wanted $15 (NZ$21) an hour.

Users suggested that the woman lacked empathy for her daughter's situation trying to make ends meet and get into the workforce.

"Dude, just say you don't want to babysit," commented one person. "You're asking for over 2/3 of the money she's making pre-tax. Obviously she can't afford that."

Some felt the grandmother was in the wrong, not for asking for payment, but instead for not just saying no if she can't manage the situation.

However, some argued that she has every right to be paid for her time, particularly if she's going to be losing money by helping out her daughter. But most still felt she was asking for too much.

Many shared that unless the woman had a professional childcare qualification and current first aid certificate, she had no right to ask for so much money when a professional childcarer would charge about the same and comes qualified.

One person pointed out why this wasn't fair: "Sure, she'll probably have to pay that at a daycare centre – maybe even more. But a centre comes with qualifications and certifications. Why do you feel like you deserve a pay rate almost equal to professional daycare workers?"

Another added, "In my area, these are the qualifications for paid child care workers who earn that much who also manage more than one child at a time."

One person summed up the mood of the comments, simply writing: "You wanna charge your daughter more than half of what she makes to watch your grandson? If you don't wanna do it just say no and let her find someone else."

Do you think grandparents should be paid for childcare? Have your say below.