Should Grandparents Be Paid To Babysit Grandchildren?

Illustration:Jianan Liu/HuffPost; Photo:Getty Images Should a grandparent be paid for taking care of their grandchild? In Sweden, it's now an option.

Pam Barnes, a resident of Louisville, Ohio, watches her 3-year-old grandson 10 hours a day, four days a week. She loves being involved in her grandchild’s life, but being a full-time caregiver also comes with a price.

Barnes had to quit a “good-paying” job as an office manager. Her daughter and son-in-law “knew I couldn’t do it for free” and agreed to pay her $50 a day as a result, Barnes said. She said talking with her family about getting paid was “a little awkward,” but she sees this money as a sign of appreciation for the career sacrifice she has made.

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“I’m not looking to replace my other salary, but I did need something, so [my husband and I] could have a little cushion,” Barnes said. “I also take [my grandson] places and out to lunch occasionally and use my pay for that.”

“I didn’t want to cheat them or take too much from them. But they needed to understand that when you have kids, there’s expenses,” Barnes added. “You can’t expect your parents, friends ― whoever might want to do it ― you can’t expect them to do things for nothing.”

And yet, many Americans do have the expectation that grandparents should take care of grandchildren at any time, under any circumstance, for free.

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“One time, my daughter-in-law told [her] older friend that they paid me and [that friend] couldn’t believe that I took money,” said Janis Bowlby, a retired HR professional based in Newberg, Oregon. “It really hurt my feelings that someone would say that.”

Bowlby took care of her two grandchildren for $75 a week until the grandchildren went to school and her f