Wolfish, My apologies for ignoring you. I wasn’t monitoring this thread.
Wolfish, when the cat’s away, the mice come and play. Look at all the scandals being uncovered now because people thought they wouldn’t get caught. Aroid, Madoff, etc.
Would you eat in a restaurant if there’s no mashgiach except for the guy who turns on the pilot light, but they tell you “Don’t worry, the goyishe cook knows not to do treif”?
Halachicly, goyim have no ne’emanus. If you don’t check up, your house is halachicly treif.
Allow me to share with you some stories I heard first-hand or experienced. These aren’t someone’s friend’s friend stories.
I have a friend of mine who didn’t monitor his babysitter.Even though he’s a kollel guy and should have known to be more machmir on halacha than that, He assumed she would listen to him. One day a friend passes by and hears his microwave going off. Busted!
This poor shlemazel then starts checking up regularly on his babysitter. (One posek I know recommends 5-6 random checks per month.) One day he’s nannycamming his baysitter. She sees her cooking something in a pot. She spots him coming up to investigate through the window. She quickly stuffs the pot in the fridge. When he leaves she says “That was close!” Busted!
These were just 2 times that they happened to catch her. Clearly there was no fear factor.
A second friend of mine is makpid on kashrus. He was very clear with the babysitter that she shouldn’t bring in outside food. After she leaves, he dumpster dives through his garbage can. He finds a packet of hot cocoa and marshmallows. He confronts the babysitter, who says “This isn’t food!” She never shows up again, probably because she thought she was nannycammed.
The same 2nd friend used a babysitter a third friend (also a kollel guy) recommended. “Don’t worry”, my 3rd friend says, “She doesn’t eat!” Well, my second friend hires her. Sure enough, she comes in with her own food. She doesn’t eat because she brings her own food. Busted!
I used to share a babysitter with someone at their house. During the summer, I was stuck with her in my house. I checked up regularly. So one week I can’t check up during the daytime. That week I find a glob of cheese in our fleishigs microwave. Busted!
My sister was in someone’s house. The hostess wasn’t home. She saw the cleaning lady take out the milchigs frying pan and fry herself up a hot dog. Busted!
The only people who don’t have horror stories are those who don’t check.
But let’s get back to nannycamming. If you nannycam your babysitter, you will often be surprised at what goes on when the owner is not home, DESPITE the fact that they know you don’t want them to do it, eg hitting the kids, etc. So even if your posek holds that there is no kashrus issue with a goy being at home all day with no supervision or random checking (good luck finding one who holds like that), random checking to keep your babysitter honest is recommended for your kids’ sake. As the Gemara says, “Kabdeihu vechashdeihu”. As Reagan said, trust but verify. I have friends (again, first-hand) who nannycammed their babysitter and were shocked at the neglect and abuse their “trusted” babysitter did when nobody was looking.