Should children be paid to do chores?

notshanarishona

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 6:59 am

I don’t see anything wrong with offering an allowance of a few dollars a week to the kids who do their pre agreed upon chores nicely. You need to be careful to not get into the trap of your kids only helping if they get paid.

OOTforlife

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 7:24 am

amother [ Firebrick ] wrote:

For regular chores, no, but unusual or more advanced chores, yes.

I agree. Especially if they are chores that I would otherwise outsource to a landscaper or cleaning service.

caffeine99

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 8:18 am

When I was little having allowance was really nice because it taught me about money, giving my own Tzedakah, and savings. My parents would give us specific responsibilities and if they were completed we'd get a little bit of allowance. (Half our age a week or so. 8-$4)

Jordan Page has a really cool video about encouraging kids to save money beyond their allowance. She basically rewards her kids for doing extra chores or yard work and instead of giving them $.50 she allows them to color in a square on that kids chart. This allows them to see the savings without needing to deal with the cash aspect.

Both are good models for kids. Especially with Tzedakah having real coins is good - but also giving them opportunities to work to save for something big is really great too

behappy2

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 8:24 am

depends on the kid and on the job. If you can get a kid to do it without paying go ahead, but for some kids it's a great way to teach responsibility and value of money. If he wants to earn money and is generally helpful, does his regular chores, cleans up after himself then you can give him anything you would outsource to someone else. You can also encourage him to get hired out by neighbors for things he is good at.

amother

Lemon

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 10:01 am

I think what I've heard from various sources is that allowance shouldn't be tied to chores. it's ok to pay kids only for chores that are above and beyond that you would be paying someone else for like if they paint your house they don't have to do that for free Wink

FranticFrummie

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 10:08 am

DD was expected to do basic things that contributed to the overall upkeep of the house, like picking up her toys, sweeping the kitchen, little things like that. Not every day, and not on a schedule. Just being part of the family.

If she wanted money, I'd find a job for her to do. Then she could decide if it was worth the effort or not. There was no judgement either way, and if she decided it was too much work, that was fine.

Sometimes she'd get her BFF to come over, and they'd split the chore, split the money, and then go to the corner store to buy treats.

I never asked her to do anything that was too hard, or too gross. She never had to mow the entire lawn, or scrub the toilets. Washing a pan of dishes, or dusting the living room were always good suggestions.

mha3484

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 10:32 am

If there is a chore that I would normally do and I dont want to do it I will pay my son to do it. If its something I would normally expect him to do I dont.

Teomima

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 11:06 am

I don't pay my children to do regular household chores. They live here and part of that includes taking responsibility for maintaining cleanliness.

But I will occasionally pay them for bigger jobs I would otherwise outsource, for example cleaning the stairwell in our building (we live in an Israeli apartment building that would normally have a regular stairwell cleaner, but I'm happy to pay my kids to do it instead).

ShishKabob

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 11:25 am

I tried it and it didn't work out well. I would just give an allowance as well with no strings attached, or as many other posters said, for unusual work that you would pay someone else to do. Good luck figuring it out!

keym

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 11:30 am

I give a monthly allowance no strings attached. (My kids prefer monthly for various reasons). They have specific chores they do regularly. However, additional chores that come up, I will pay those who do it.

sky

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 11:34 am

Depends on situation.

My kids are careful and frugal with money so I give them for whatever extras they ask for as needed.
But they are expected to help around the house as I ask.
I could see it being a great learning tool for a kid who is really bad at finances or asks parents for more then typical amounts of money. Or kids who don’t want to help around the house but think everything should’ve coming to them.
I’d think it’s an individual situation to be evaluated based on situation and child temperament.

little neshamala

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 1:53 pm

My kids each have daily chores that they are expected to do, as well as Erev Shabbos chores. No payment, just because everyone under this roof chips in.
If they want to earn some money, they ask if theres anything extra that they can do to earn it, and I can usually come up with something.

essie14

Tue, Jan 12 2021, 2:24 pm

Teomima wrote:

Exactly what I do.
Deep cleaning that I would have my cleaning lady do I will pay them for. Like cleaning the oven.
Sweeping, setting the table, etc are part of being a member of the household.