SHE WORKS at least 12 hours a day, seven days a week—but then has a week off. She might earn $200,000 a year, which at an hourly rate is on a par with(与……不相上下) a private-equity associate(私募股权公司副经理). High pay for long hours on a rota(轮班制) is common on oil platforms, in mines and on container ships. It is increasingly so in another exacting(要求严苛的) field: caring for the children of the super-rich.
她每天至少工作12小时，一周七天连轴转——但之后可以休息一整周。她一年可能挣20万美元，按小时算，与私募股权公司的副经理不相上下。在石油钻井平台、矿场和集装箱船上，轮班制下长时间工作换取高薪很常见。如今，在另一个要求严苛的领域也越来越普遍：照顾超级富豪的孩子。
A decade or so ago, such highly paid gig(活儿，工作)s were rare. “We used to get a lot of: ‘Oh, I’m not paying that’,” says Anita Rogers, the founder of British American Household Staffing (BAHS), an agency that finds nannies (as well as governess(家庭女教师)es, butler(管家)s and chefs) for wealthy households. “Now it is quite the opposite(恰恰相反),” she says. Clients demand nannies who have not only trained at the best academies but also speak several languages, have degrees from elite universities and are willing to travel constantly and put in very long days(每天工作很长时间). And they are willing to pay.
大约十年前，如此高薪的活儿还很罕见。“我们过去常听到：‘哦，我可不会付那个价’，”英美家政服务公司（BAHS）创始人安妮塔·罗杰斯说。这家机构为富裕家庭物色保姆（以及家庭女教师、管家和厨师）。“现在完全反过来了，”她说。客户要求的保姆不仅要在最好的学校受过培训，还要会说几门语言、拥有名校学位，并且愿意频繁出差、每天工作很长时间。而且他们愿意为此掏钱。
This has led to a boom in the top-of-the-market nannying, which is something of a cottage industry(家庭作坊式行业). Although some institutions are of long standing—the Norland University of Early Childhood, a posh British training school, has been around for more than a century—many of the agencies to which upper-crust parents are turning are much younger.(尽管有些机构历史悠久——英国贵族式的诺兰德幼儿教育大学已有一个多世纪——但上流社会父母如今求助的许多中介都年轻得多。) Ms Rogers set up BAHS in 2012; among her competitors are Adventure Nannies (established in 2007) and Morgan & Mallet (2015). Ms Rogers says she now has 7,000 clients.
这催生了高端保姆市场的繁荣，而这一行多少还带着家庭作坊的色彩。虽然有些机构历史悠久——英国贵族式的诺兰德幼儿教育大学已有一个多世纪——但上流社会父母如今求助的许多中介都年轻得多。罗杰斯女士于2012年创立了BAHS；她的竞争对手包括Adventure Nannies（2007年成立）和Morgan & Mallet（2015年成立）。罗杰斯女士说，她现在有7000名客户。