I was a nanny for 12 years, and know many nannies, because I attended a "Nanny School" (yes there is such a thing) so this is the opposite point of view but I hope I can help you a little.
I agree that flexibility is a must! A comfortable and respected nanny is the best kind to have, you will get the most out of her/him because it will be less like a job and more like family.
I looked at the link above and I think one thing that is good to be flexible on is sick days. If I was able to function but knew I was contagious I liked to stay home, otherwise we would have a cycle of sickness that would go on forever. I don't think nanny sick days should be treated like other jobs for that reason.
One thing that was often unclear to many nannies I know is household chores. Some people think nannies are house cleaners, and to be honest, for a professional nanny that can be insulting because their job is to take care of the most important thing in your life, not your house. So laying down expectations there is always a good idea, and some nannies are perfectly happy doing housework. I did a lot of organizing for my families, especially in the kids' rooms...getting rid of stuff they don't use, cleaning up etc...but that was something I did extra (and for my own sanity! lol!) I just think that for the most part a status quo house is good, keeping the house the way it is, if not slightly cleaner at the time to go home. All toys/dishes taken care of etc. Again, flexibility is a must, when we would build a giant fort in the LR I would often leave it so they could continue playing with it, and that was okay too.
An issue I ran into with a family: We went on a vacation and they thought that was payment enough. I had the baby in my room and was responsible for him the whole time. We were at a very fancy resort (in which I was quite uncomfortable...models and pro golf players everywhere) and I had no idea what to do all day...and when they left the resort for outtings they didn't take me so I was stranded w/ no money or transportation...and alone. They assumed this fabulous vacation was payment enough and didn't pay me for the trip. Please don't do that! It was a lot of work, waking in the middle of the night, entertaining a baby at a resort for adults.
Discipline is also something you should talk about, professional nannies will never use physical punishment, (or shouldn't, but I do know families that have requested the nanny do it!
) but if you use time-outs etc..and want her to do the same you need to let her know. I often implimented extra disciplinary tools, such as sticker charts to target issues we may have been having.
I think the schedule is a good idea, as in, "these are options for outings and what the kids like to do at these times" but not something that dictates every day activities.
Use of a car/facilities...especially for a live-in. I would hope that the car seat rule would not be necessary, if you can, it's always nice to buy the nanny her own seats.
Not really necessary for a contract but something that was always a little blurry for me was my "spare" time on the job. Nannies don't have lunch breaks, or breaks at all...and it's very uncomfortable not knowing what you can do. My jobs always said it was fine for me to make personal phone calls (not long ones obviously), or even read/watch a little TV while the baby naps and if I am done doing things.
I've had jobs where we had meetings w/out kids to address any issues/concerns. I've also had a job w/ food allergies where I needed to write down everything they ate. I think anything concerning the kids is reasonable to expect. I did all grocery, school and clothing shopping for kids, and even planned birthday parties.
It's good to have expectations, and I always liked the types of contracts that were flexible, but give you an idea (such as laundry on a certain day, etc) of what is expected of you. Flexibility is very important though.
Good luck with your new nanny! Feel free to pm me if you have any Nanny pov questions.
