FINANCE
Izabela Zdan
A
au pair
'
u Pair is the cheapest way
to go to the USA, however,
there are tonnes of hidden
expenses. At the end of the Au
Pair program, I had to pay tax
that amounted to 1.5 months of
my work,' says Izabela, who used
to be an Au Pair in NYC before
moving to North Carolina. 'I would
be lying if I said you can make a
jack out of it. The ‘salary’ amounts
to $200 a week. However, the
money is not based on working
hours which are between 20 –
45/h a week The only way to
save a great amount of dollar is
to sit at home all the time.' And
who would want that having 5th
Avenue just few minutes away?
The
fundamental
idea
behind
Au
Pair
program
is that you do not have to
worry
about
maintenance
costs, all of this is paid for you.
Although, it’s hard to have your
cake and to eat it, explains
Isabela, things are not entirely
impossible. Au Pair might not
be all about earning money but
making sure you travel safely
without spending thousands.
Apart from that, you earn
skills and experience.
'Spending time with children
taught me to be patient. I learned
to manage money too. Not to
mention it helps you practice and
master other language.'
'
T
he first time I ever really
thought that it was possible
for me to become a holiday
rep, was when I went on holidays
in the past,” said McNamara,
former Tui holiday rep. “Seeing
the Tui reps do their jobs made
me realise that it was something
I could see myself doing.
After applying for the job
online and being one of the lucky
applicants who were successful,
McNamara was flying off to the
Greek Island of Rhodes where she
would be able to get all the perks
of a regular holiday, but also work
in the sun and earn some cash.
“The pay with Tui was like a normal
job, so I would receive my wages
monthly,” said McNamara. “I
was paid a set rate of 800 euros,
so that would be my income
for the month and I would
only spend about 300 of that.''
Having
the
extra
cash, if needed, is always a
reassurance, especially when
you’re in a foreign country.
Going abroad on your
own can always be a daunting
thought, especially when you’ll be
living and working there for a set
amount of time. For McNamara,
she was able to become more
independent and self-reliant. “I
would 100 per cent recommend
it,” said McNamara. “I was able
to better my communication
skills as well as my confidence.”
tui rep
Georgia McNamara
4