You Must Pay Your Workers on Time
The Torah is abundantly clear on this.
At this moment in history, organized labor and unions are having a moment. From the Writers Strike to Ohio auto workers getting raises as they negotiate to impending strikes and labor actions across several industries.
This week’s Torah portion, Ki Teitzei, has a fair bit to say about labor, including:
You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer, whether a fellow countryman or a stranger in one of the communities of your land. You must pay them their wages on the same day, before the sun sets, for they are needy and urgently depends on it; else they will cry to the LORD against you and you will incur guilt.
(Deuteronomy 24:14-15)
The Torah is pretty clear on this, it seems: pay your workers and in a timely fashion.
Throughout the Talmud, there are many instances when this is more granularly expressed and evaluated. For example, on Bava Metzia 111a:
We learned in the mishna: If they were a weekly laborer, a monthly laborer, a yearly laborer, or a laborer for a Sabbatical cycle of seven years, if they left upon the completion of his work in the day, they collects their wages all day; if they left at night, they collects their wages all night and all day. This indicates that one who finishes his work at night can be paid throughout the following day as well.
If you work, you get paid when that time period is over. Fairly simple.
But most notable is what the Talmud says about those who do not fulfill this timely requirement. Just a few lines below on Bava Metzia 111a, it says this:
From here the Sages stated: Anyone who withholds the wages of a hired laborer violates these five negative prohibitions and one positive mitzva.
They violate the prohibition of: “Do not oppress your neighbor” (Leviticus 19:13), and the prohibition of: “Do not steal” (Leviticus 19:13), and the prohibition of: “You should not oppress a hired laborer who is poor” (Deuteronomy 24:14), and the prohibition of delaying payment of wages (Leviticus 19:13), and they have not fulfilled the positive mitzva of: “On the same day you shall give them their wages” (Deuteronomy 24:15), and they have violated the prohibition of: “The sun shall not set upon him” (Deuteronomy 24:15).
When someone does not pay their workers on time, the Talmud suggests that they violate six total mitzvot:
Oppressing one’s neighbor.
Stealing.
Oppressing a poor laborer.
Delaying payment.
We must pay wages on the same day. (Positive)
Not paying wages on the same day. (Negative)
Each of these is attached to a verse and expresses a different idea. That keeping someone’s wages or payment is a form of oppression and theft.
One simple act carries tremendous consequences.
The rabbis go further on Sukkah 29b:
Rav said: On account of four matters the property of homeowners is confiscated by the state treasury [timyon]:
On account of those who delay payment of the salary of hired laborers (see Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 24:15); on account of those who withhold the salary of hired laborers and do not pay at all; and on account of those who throw off the yoke of communal responsibility from their own necks and place that yoke on the necks of their friends; and on account of the arrogance of those who, due to their wealth, exercise power over the community.
And the punishment for arrogance is equal to them all. However, with regard to the humble it is written: “The humble will inherit the land and delight themselves in the abundance of peace” (Psalms 37:11).
Rav explains that there are four situations in which the community might confiscate property. Admittedly, I didn’t know this was an option suggested by the rabbis before this. Elsewhere, our Torah portion also includes the subject of homeowner responsibilities.
More important are the situations themselves since we can learn from each and apply them to others.
First, the pair of related offenses: those who delay payment or withhold salary. Based on what we’ve learned already, this makes sense. The community has a vested interest in having everyone paid on time.
Next, those who shirk public responsibility and attempt to place it on others. Each of us has obligations to our communities. They are foundational to how Judaism and halakhah function. We're doing something wrong when we try and push it off to someone else. We each have our role.
Lastly, those who are arrogant and attempt to apply power over others. Despite its patriarchal elements, Judaism fundamentally believes that each of us is equal to the other. Rabbis don’t have more power or ability than anyone else, neither do lawyers, accountants, bus drivers, or retail workers. We each stand equally before the law and the community.
When we begin to believe that we’re better than another, that is when we’ve crossed a line.
The Talmud says, “Arrogance is equal to them all.” It is equal to delaying payment and attempting to absolve ourselves of responsibilities. When we apply that in the other direction, it means that when we delay payment, we express arrogance.
This is a serious issue, and not just in the Torah.
According to the US Department of Labor, “WHD investigations in fiscal year 2022 found, on average, $1,393 for each employee due back wages. For retail cashiers, that means more than three times what they would earn in a typical workweek.”
This equates to 2-4 weekly paychecks for many people in the country. Imagine losing an entire month’s worth of your payment.
Wage theft is rampant in the United States.
According to sources, more than $50,000,000,000 (yes, that’s 50 BILLION dollars) are stolen from US workers annually due to wage theft, and little is done to hold employers accountable.
And, truth be told, the Jewish community has a bad habit of delayed payments too. Ask any Jewish professional looking for a reimbursement or independent Jewish professional working on contract. We can and must be better about this.
The Torah is clear, and the rabbis reinforce this idea: pay your workers on time.