We find and post all current program discounts for you, the host parent!
Fall & Winter Program Discounts by leading Au Pair Agencies
Don't Break the Family Budget - Check out these Discounts Instead!
goAUPAIR - During the month of November, families can view available Au Pairs with no commitment and no contracts. goAUPAIR is also waiving all airfare surcharges up to $500, plus no application fee means a total savings of up to $750. Families must apply by November 30, 2009 and match by December 31, 2009. Click here now to read the details: http://www.goaupair.com/
Au Pair in America - Special Promotion! Save $350 and lock in 2009 program fees when you sign up before Novemeber 30, 2009. Check out the details at: http://www.aupairinamerica.com/fees/discounts.asp
Au Pair International - They welcome repeat host families, who are switching from another program, with the same loyalty reward as their own. With this, you can save up to $2,000 depending on which agency you switched from. Click: http://www.aupairint.com/index.php option=com_content&view=article&id=67&Itemid=
Eur Au Pair – This agency is offering repeat host families, as well as new host families, savings of $900. Contact them now for details: http://www.euraupair.com/
Chi Au Pair USA – You can lock in their 2009 program fees for 2010 if you sign up before the new year: http://www.chiaupairusa.org/news.asp
Friday, October 30, 2009
goAUPAIR responds to Swine Flu Concerns
Au Pairs Help Fight Against Seasonal & H1N1 Flu Strains
by goAUPAIR.com October 2009
As the flu season settles upon us, many daycare and child care centers across the country are bracing for possibly one of the worst flu seasons in history. With the seasonal and the H1N1 flu viruses (Swine Flu) children are at a particularly high risk for getting infected.
"Since the virus has emerged, we've seen a number of groups that are at higher risk for complications from H1N1, and these include children under five and, especially, children younger than two," says Bill Hall, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services. Daycare centers, school and other child care providers are expected to be hit especially hard this flu season.
As parents look for ways to help their children avoid contracting either strain of the flu, the area of child care is getting a lot of attention. Of the many choices for child care, having live in child care from an Au Pair is one of the safest ways to help your children avoid getting the flu.
One of the great advantages of having an Au Pair is that your children are cared for in your home, minimizing the exposure to germs and sicknesses. In daycare or childcare centers, your children are constantly exposed to other children who may be sick and even if they are not sick, they may be carriers of the germs and flu viruses.
In addition to children who are ill, toys, food and the daycare centers themselves are not always sanitary. Many young children love to bit and suck on everything they play with, leaving countless germs on each toy. The with flu season, daycare centers quickly turn to flu virus incubators.
To avoid sending your children to germ invested center, hoping that by some miracle they won't get sick, consider and Au Pair. Hosting an Au Pair gives families the peace of mind that their children will be cared for in a clean and sanitary environment, free of other children's germs. Because your Au Pair only takes care of your children, they can help keep them clean by helping wash their hands, by disinfecting toys, play surfaces and preparing germ free food.
Time Magazine recently posted a great article about how daycare centers are bracing for the flu season.
Read goAUPAIR’s blog post about how to avoid getting the flu or H1N1 virus and for more information to help keep your kids safe during this flu season.
SOURCE: http://www.goaupair.com/blog/default.aspx
by goAUPAIR.com October 2009
As the flu season settles upon us, many daycare and child care centers across the country are bracing for possibly one of the worst flu seasons in history. With the seasonal and the H1N1 flu viruses (Swine Flu) children are at a particularly high risk for getting infected.
"Since the virus has emerged, we've seen a number of groups that are at higher risk for complications from H1N1, and these include children under five and, especially, children younger than two," says Bill Hall, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services. Daycare centers, school and other child care providers are expected to be hit especially hard this flu season.
As parents look for ways to help their children avoid contracting either strain of the flu, the area of child care is getting a lot of attention. Of the many choices for child care, having live in child care from an Au Pair is one of the safest ways to help your children avoid getting the flu.
One of the great advantages of having an Au Pair is that your children are cared for in your home, minimizing the exposure to germs and sicknesses. In daycare or childcare centers, your children are constantly exposed to other children who may be sick and even if they are not sick, they may be carriers of the germs and flu viruses.
In addition to children who are ill, toys, food and the daycare centers themselves are not always sanitary. Many young children love to bit and suck on everything they play with, leaving countless germs on each toy. The with flu season, daycare centers quickly turn to flu virus incubators.
To avoid sending your children to germ invested center, hoping that by some miracle they won't get sick, consider and Au Pair. Hosting an Au Pair gives families the peace of mind that their children will be cared for in a clean and sanitary environment, free of other children's germs. Because your Au Pair only takes care of your children, they can help keep them clean by helping wash their hands, by disinfecting toys, play surfaces and preparing germ free food.
Time Magazine recently posted a great article about how daycare centers are bracing for the flu season.
Read goAUPAIR’s blog post about how to avoid getting the flu or H1N1 virus and for more information to help keep your kids safe during this flu season.
SOURCE: http://www.goaupair.com/blog/default.aspx
What Is Your Au Pair Agency Doing About the Swine Flu
We have been posting warnings about the swine flu and how it will affect your au pair. Today, Reuters published an article (from the Center of Disease Control, CDC) with new statistics that indicate half of those hospitalized with the new H1N1 virus are under 25, a clear illustration that the pandemic is affecting the young disproportionately. Au pairs range in age from 18 - 25, the same group that the CDC is concerned about.
They said "reports from 27 U.S. states show 53 percent of people sick enough to be hospitalized with H1N1 flu are under the age of 25, with only 7 percent of hospitalizations among people 65 and older."
"This is really, really different from what we see with seasonal flu," the CDC's Dr. Anne Schuchat told reporters. "With seasonal flu, about 60 percent of hospitalizations occur in people 65 and over.
She stressed the report was incomplete but said if anything, it was underestimating the extent of the pandemic. An analysis of 292 deaths from 28 states showed that younger people than usual are also dying, she said."
About 24% of deaths from the Swine Flu are among this age group, young people under the age of 25.
If your au pair contracts the swine flu, will she pass it on to the family, and your young children? Should au pair agencies share their concern as well by informing host parents on their swine flu policies during this flu season? We don't see anything posted on the au pair agency websites that is current and that deals with the present flu season.
We would like to hear from au pair agencies about how they are handling this health crisis. Please call you agency today to find out what they are doing (or not) and please post your information here, on the www.aupairclearinghouse.com au pair consumer website.
They said "reports from 27 U.S. states show 53 percent of people sick enough to be hospitalized with H1N1 flu are under the age of 25, with only 7 percent of hospitalizations among people 65 and older."
"This is really, really different from what we see with seasonal flu," the CDC's Dr. Anne Schuchat told reporters. "With seasonal flu, about 60 percent of hospitalizations occur in people 65 and over.
She stressed the report was incomplete but said if anything, it was underestimating the extent of the pandemic. An analysis of 292 deaths from 28 states showed that younger people than usual are also dying, she said."
About 24% of deaths from the Swine Flu are among this age group, young people under the age of 25.
If your au pair contracts the swine flu, will she pass it on to the family, and your young children? Should au pair agencies share their concern as well by informing host parents on their swine flu policies during this flu season? We don't see anything posted on the au pair agency websites that is current and that deals with the present flu season.
We would like to hear from au pair agencies about how they are handling this health crisis. Please call you agency today to find out what they are doing (or not) and please post your information here, on the www.aupairclearinghouse.com au pair consumer website.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Cultural Care Gets Sued - Again - 2009!
Hello readers,
Well, it seems that Cultural Care is back making headlines with another law suit involving sexual abuse and pornographic activity. This is a very troubling news story and one that can not be easily swept under the rug. This is not the first time Cultural Care has been sued by host parents!
If you recall, in 2008, Cultural Care was sued by a host family for 5 million dollars in a civil suit when their au pair took pornographic photos of their 5 year old daughter, and soon after that, one of their au pairs from Slovakia came forward and accused her host father of sexual assualt (criminal trial against Mr. Bhatti is still pending).
Regarding this latest story, a Lockport mother is suing Cultural Care after their au pair allegedly sexually abused her young boy. To read the entire story, see Cultural Care Gets Sued Again.
According to the complaint, the mother hired Cultural Care, in October of 2007, to find her an au pair and she was told an au pair named Julian from Columbia was available. The complaint states that defendant Dorte Strobel, an executive from Cultural Care, told plaintiff that if she did not pay the fee that evening and pick up Julian from his host family, "he would be returned to Columbia and the search process for another au pair could take several months."
The complaint further states that Strobel told the plaintiff that Julian's "previous placement did not work out" and that his prior host family's telephone number would be provided, but was not.
Shortly after his arrival in the home, the host mother complained about the au pair, telling the defendant, Ms. Strobel, Julian was having parties and drinking and smoking against the host mom's wishes.
In November, when the host mom asked her LCC and the agency's Program Director, Maureen McDonnell, to remove Julian, Ms. McDonnell refused.
The host mom, probably concerned that she would not receive a refund (Cultural Care takes a large deposit, and when things go wrong, are often reluctant to pay the refund) relented.
Host parents complain about the difficulty of getting a refund from this agency, here on this website, on our host parents' customer satisfaction surveys and on other websites on the internet.
Tragically, between November and December of 2007, the au pair hit the young son, sexually abused him and took nude photos of him (all of this is stated in the formal complaint).
Perhaps I was right the first time, maybe Cultural Care is getting too big for their britches, and they are growing too fast and, in their aggressive bid to be number one and take market share from the other au pair agencies in the USA, they have bitten off too much to chew.
Children are getting hurt and that is not okay.
Abused children suffer all their lives with the scars of abuse: the breach of trust in adults, the betrayal, the physical pain and the shame.
We are sorry for the mother and her child. We can only hope that Cultural Care begins to really screen their au pairs, stop their sales war with other agencies, and listen to their families - if a mother wants an au pair removed, remove him!
Mothers do know best!
Well, it seems that Cultural Care is back making headlines with another law suit involving sexual abuse and pornographic activity. This is a very troubling news story and one that can not be easily swept under the rug. This is not the first time Cultural Care has been sued by host parents!
If you recall, in 2008, Cultural Care was sued by a host family for 5 million dollars in a civil suit when their au pair took pornographic photos of their 5 year old daughter, and soon after that, one of their au pairs from Slovakia came forward and accused her host father of sexual assualt (criminal trial against Mr. Bhatti is still pending).
Regarding this latest story, a Lockport mother is suing Cultural Care after their au pair allegedly sexually abused her young boy. To read the entire story, see Cultural Care Gets Sued Again.
According to the complaint, the mother hired Cultural Care, in October of 2007, to find her an au pair and she was told an au pair named Julian from Columbia was available. The complaint states that defendant Dorte Strobel, an executive from Cultural Care, told plaintiff that if she did not pay the fee that evening and pick up Julian from his host family, "he would be returned to Columbia and the search process for another au pair could take several months."
The complaint further states that Strobel told the plaintiff that Julian's "previous placement did not work out" and that his prior host family's telephone number would be provided, but was not.
Shortly after his arrival in the home, the host mother complained about the au pair, telling the defendant, Ms. Strobel, Julian was having parties and drinking and smoking against the host mom's wishes.
In November, when the host mom asked her LCC and the agency's Program Director, Maureen McDonnell, to remove Julian, Ms. McDonnell refused.
The host mom, probably concerned that she would not receive a refund (Cultural Care takes a large deposit, and when things go wrong, are often reluctant to pay the refund) relented.
Host parents complain about the difficulty of getting a refund from this agency, here on this website, on our host parents' customer satisfaction surveys and on other websites on the internet.
Tragically, between November and December of 2007, the au pair hit the young son, sexually abused him and took nude photos of him (all of this is stated in the formal complaint).
Perhaps I was right the first time, maybe Cultural Care is getting too big for their britches, and they are growing too fast and, in their aggressive bid to be number one and take market share from the other au pair agencies in the USA, they have bitten off too much to chew.
Children are getting hurt and that is not okay.
Abused children suffer all their lives with the scars of abuse: the breach of trust in adults, the betrayal, the physical pain and the shame.
We are sorry for the mother and her child. We can only hope that Cultural Care begins to really screen their au pairs, stop their sales war with other agencies, and listen to their families - if a mother wants an au pair removed, remove him!
Mothers do know best!
Cultural Care Sued last Year
Guilford CT Family Sues Cultural Care For 5 Million Dollars Charging Breach of Contract, Fraud and Negligence - 2008
Host Family Sues Agency - Au Pair Took Pornographic Pictures of Young Daughter
A host family from Guilford is suing Cultural Care for $5 million dollars and the civil lawsuit charges the agency with breach of contract, negligence and fraud. They allege that their Swedish au pair took inappropriate photographs of their 5-year-old daughter. The suit claims that the daughter and her family are suffering from "irreversible emotional injury and distress" and seeks damages that include financial cost to the parents associated with finding another au pair, providing medical care for their minor child as well as the costs of litigation.
The civil lawsuit, filed in Federal court, claims that the agency failed to adequately screen, train, supervise and monitor the au pair. When the host mom found the alleged photographs, police took the au pair in for questioning. The photographs showed their child wearing red silk pajamas and her face was covered in heavy make-up. In some of the photos, the girl's top was open, in others, the top was off altogether. In one picture, the girl had her hand down her pajama bottoms. This was the only photo that was later interpreted by the police to be pornographic.
Because the law stipulates that there must be at least three pornographic pictures for an arrest - the au pair was released and the agency sent her home to Sweden. No charges were ever filed against the au pair.
According to Ms. Jordan, Cultural Care VP, this case was dismissed.
View a video on this story on
YouTube
Host Family Sues Agency - Au Pair Took Pornographic Pictures of Young Daughter
A host family from Guilford is suing Cultural Care for $5 million dollars and the civil lawsuit charges the agency with breach of contract, negligence and fraud. They allege that their Swedish au pair took inappropriate photographs of their 5-year-old daughter. The suit claims that the daughter and her family are suffering from "irreversible emotional injury and distress" and seeks damages that include financial cost to the parents associated with finding another au pair, providing medical care for their minor child as well as the costs of litigation.
The civil lawsuit, filed in Federal court, claims that the agency failed to adequately screen, train, supervise and monitor the au pair. When the host mom found the alleged photographs, police took the au pair in for questioning. The photographs showed their child wearing red silk pajamas and her face was covered in heavy make-up. In some of the photos, the girl's top was open, in others, the top was off altogether. In one picture, the girl had her hand down her pajama bottoms. This was the only photo that was later interpreted by the police to be pornographic.
Because the law stipulates that there must be at least three pornographic pictures for an arrest - the au pair was released and the agency sent her home to Sweden. No charges were ever filed against the au pair.
According to Ms. Jordan, Cultural Care VP, this case was dismissed.
View a video on this story on
YouTube
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