Yongxiu Hu (胡永秀)

We originally only wanted to sign for 30 days, but she said her schedule was hard to arrange and insisted on 40 days, so we agreed. But not long after the second wage settlement, she suddenly said she wanted to leave early and had already arranged her next job. She collected the money in installments, the contract was signed, and after receiving the money she then said she wanted to leave. The $2,000 deposit could only be deducted during the last 13 days, so throughout the entire service period that $2,000 was in her hands; if something went wrong, you had to think carefully first. The contract also forcibly included a 10% tip—not suggested, mandatory—and the entire contract protected her interests. Attitude She habitually spoke in a commanding tone, was forceful, and always thought she was right. We hired a postpartum nanny because I hoped someone would help me get through the hardest period, but instead I had to deal with this way of interacting every day. Flashlight At night, when watching the monitor, she was holding the baby while using her phone, and whenever messages came in the flash kept flashing nonstop in the dark baby room. It wasn’t mentioned only once; every time I brought it up she argued back, and the last time it directly turned into an argument, with the baby sleeping right next to us. It only stopped after I was the first to say I didn’t want to continue. No apology, no change. That night we decided to let her go. Phone always in hand She used her phone while caring for the baby. The flash incident only brought this problem out into the open; in fact, it ran through the entire service period. Disrespect for privacy She would push the door open and come in for any reason or no reason, without saying anything first. Even in the morning when we were still sleeping, the door would open directly and she would come in. We reminded her, and she said she did not do it and talked back on the spot. Not taking care of things in the home She broke two faucets by using excessive force—one was bent crooked and one leaked and could not be turned off. In the end, we had to hire someone to replace them to solve the problem. She used a lot of force in everything she did; doors and drawers slammed loudly. During postpartum confinement my sleep was already light, and telling her did not help. Kitchen hygiene After using the sink, she never wiped it dry. After she left, we discovered the grout had already become moldy and black. The refrigerator handle was greasy, there were often oil stains on the table, and many details did not hold up to scrutiny. Because I didn’t want to wake up early, I proactively said she did not need to make breakfast and that two meals were fine, thinking she could spend more time on the baby. In the end, she still neglected what she neglected. Professional negligence After my C-section, I had been using my hands to support myself when getting up, and now my tenosynovitis is very severe. It hurts even to hold the baby, and I need steroid injections. During the entire service period, she never reminded me to pay attention to the way I got up after a C-section. This is the most basic thing a postpartum nanny should tell someone. Something went missing The egg beater she asked us to buy—when she used it, she even asked how much it cost and said she wanted one. After she left, it was simply gone. It was only something worth a few dozen dollars, but this kind of behavior made me very uncomfortable. The day she left We bought her plane ticket, reimbursed her transportation, and paid her an extra half day’s wages because we wanted to part on good terms. She was unwilling and wanted a full day, making sarcastic remarks like, “Taking that bit of money won’t make you rich, and not having it won’t make me poor,” and she was about to start cursing in public. At the airport, she messaged again saying the $45 baggage fee had not been reimbursed, and continued messaging the next day. Speechless. After the new nanny arrived and checked the baby supplies, she found that the bottom of the baby bottle sterilizer was full of limescale, black and dirty, and had never been cleaned. The baby’s bottles were sterilized in it every day, and I had no idea before. After Hu Yongxiu left my home, she discussed my private matters at her new employer’s home, and without any factual basis, spread false information about my profession to the employer and the postpartum nanny group, making rumors and malicious guesses about my work and identity. During her time in my home, she also repeatedly mentioned negative things about her previous employer, complained that the employer “threatened her,” and attributed things like my slow postpartum reactions to employer-related issues, while frequently making negative comments about her previous employer. Looking back now, someone who keeps creating negative comments between different employers was actually someone we should have cut ties with in time. During her time in my home, when I, as the mother, went to see the baby, understand the baby’s condition, or raise reasonable opinions, she said I was “too demanding” and “like a supervisor.” It was as if an employer could not care about their own child or raise opinions about the caregiving work. In addition, she often recommended expensive silk quilts, bird’s nest, and postpartum recovery programs to the mother. I later learned from postpartum recovery staff that for every successful referral of a client to do postpartum recovery, she could receive a $500 referral fee. This also made me question her true motives in recommending these programs.

This nanny is really terrible, like some pretentious old princess. Her age and other information were all altered and fake, and the real facts differ by a lot. She is actually over 60 years old. She kept going on about how great Americans are, in an extremely fawning way. While taking care of the baby, she was always on her phone. She would not even put it down when feeding milk, and she choked my child twice. I told her about it and she did not change. She also dressed very sexy and revealing, walking around my house like that, and wore a sexy transparent nightgown while video chatting with men, flirting with them, deliberately using a cutesy voice, and talking for one or two hours at a time, saying a lot of disgusting vulgar things. I really do not understand how someone in her 60s can still be so flirtatious. Her mind was not on the baby at all. In the end I truly could not tolerate it anymore and kicked her out.