British American Household Staffing — Local services in New York

My review is written from the perspective of the hiring family, and is vastly different from the other reviews. The nanny candidate we hired through BAHS, who commanded a very high salary and thus a significant agency fee, was terminated after 3.5 months of employment (just after the replacement term ended). It was brought to my attention that this caregiver made statements about my children that would make the hairs on the back of any parent's neck stand up. I am a reasonable, level headed person, and understand the agency's perspective that they have no "proof" that these statements were made (the comments were revealed to me by another staff member who was subsequently let go, as well). However, how could I possibly continue to employ someone to help with my children after hearing these things?

So I started to dig deeper, and speak with our housekeeper and a babysitter, both of whom shared stories about the nanny that showed her lack of professionalism (though not disparaging my children). I shared the feedback with the agency, thinking it would cause them to stand up and want to know more, and would result in at least a conversation about the fee we paid, or at the very least a credit for a replacement. Instead, we have been met with a highly inflexible response that says their fee terms are clear and they require concrete proof of a caregiver's unprofessional behavior. It was highly surprising to me, as I have worked with several agencies in the past who have always been willing and wanting to learn as much as they can in an instance where a candidate did not work out, especially in such a short time frame. I have never had a situation like this one, where a caregiver has been accused of making horrific statements about the children she is supposed to help care for. However, I would have imagined that such a situation would garner, at the very least, a highly responsive position from the agency and a willingness to work with the family to right the situation.

I want other families to know our story because I would want to know. Nothing is more important than our children and every experience in their world shapes them and matters. I want to know that any agency I work with is advocating as much for the families as they are for the candidates. The stakes are...

Very unprofessional, I went there to interview for a chef position. They kept me in the waiting room for a hour an a half. Remember now I had a scheduled appointment . I could hear one of the employees telling Anita (the owner) hes been waiting a long time. For no real reason. So when Anita does finally interview me ,you can tell she is just going threw the motions. While waiting in the office I could here them help other job seekers . Adjust there resumes so it would look more professional to the employer. I guess this is there M.O if they like you. I have plenty of experience as a private chef. For private estates and working for famous people. Anita and her staff dont answer my e-mails or send my info over to a potential employer. I seems this Co. put more emphasis on looks the subsists. Very pretentious company. Bottom line , if Anita dose`nt like your look or clicks with your personally she sort of blows you off. It seems she feels if u dont click with her u wont click with her potential client. Which is not true alot of times. P.S There are good and not so good agency. This one is unprofessional and pretentious. NYC has a lot more agency give them a try. Like Greenhouse ,the Lindquist Group and so many more. I hope this helps job seekers, and maybe helps BAH reevaluate the M.O. . Thank you ,Ezez I

P.S.S So now they reply to my review months later. As if they care ,so the public thinks it was a misunderstanding. So I apply for another chef position they have posted. Never heard from them. And I interview at there office. There relies to these reviews are insincere at best. I stick to my review . From my experience this is one of the most unprofessional staffing agencies. Just read my review it was sincere and honest. Don`t waste your time. It all begins and ends...

SCAM! This company is horrible and will make your life a living Hell! They take your money for placements based on the salaries of the workers causing the workers to hold out for much high offers than they are actually worth! The clients are not protected by using this agency at all! If, a placement doesn’t work or the agency fails to do their screening effectively then the clients only option is to keep getting replacements from them! We hired several staff from this agency and they all ended up being complete nut jobs with fluffed resumes and poor screenings from the agency! The agency failed to check that the chef actually had any culinary education or basic certifications, the chef made a mess of our home and was completely unsanitary! He only had training from Whole Foods and failed to maintain any serveSafe certifications. Nannies “screened” for our family all ended up being a mess unable to perform any task from the job duties, not able to fulfill any of the requirements, a ton of personal issues that prevented them from working properly, one drank on the job and another did drugs! The cleaners had a lot of talk about what they could do but hours of camera footage showed they didn’t even know how to clean a floor! My house was left a mess from using this company, DO NOT pay them a dime because all they will do is say that they screened the placements properly and can provide a replacement but there is no protection for the clients when we don't want to use the agency itself again because THEY FAILED and refuse to refund the hundreds of thousands in fees they charged!! USE another agency that doesn’t charge fees based on the salaries you hire candidates and have a protection clause in their contracts for the clients if they are not pleased! ABSOLUTELY A...