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You can watch a video about SUNdeVICH at voaspecialenglish.com.

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BOB DOUGHTY: Todd Pliss is a former teacher. He started a company in Los Angeles called Rent a Grandma. He says he got the idea when he was teaching children in Hollywood.

TODD PLISS: "I would hear these horror stories all the time, like the sitter that almost burned down the house when she forgot there was dinner on the stove, or the nanny that fell asleep and locked the kids outside the house."

Rent a Grandma provides care for children, the elderly and pets. Prices for these services range from fourteen dollars an hour to more than twenty dollars an hour. Mr. Pliss says the women go through an interview process and background check. The business has gotten a lot of media attention. Mr. Pliss says he has been flooded with calls from women who want to work for his company.

TODD PLISS: "The economy is not good and I see that. And grandmas -- sometimes I have them crying on the phone to me. We had a grandma who's living in her car. The economy is terrible, and a lot of these grandmas can't find work."

The good news for Americans age fifty-five and older is that their unemployment rate is lower than the national average. The bad news is that unemployed older workers take longer to find a job than younger workers. Mr. Pliss says ninety percent of the women who contact him for a job cannot find work. He says among them are teachers and lawyers.