On Shabbos is a babysitter permitted to charge by the hour?
Before we can answer this particular question, we must present the
basics. The issue involved is called S’char Shabbos and it deals
with the topic of receiving payment for work done on Shabbos. We are
obviously not talking about work that involves chilul Shabbos,
rather we are referring to work that is permitted to be done on Shabbos
and the receiving of payment is the issue.
One is forbidden to take s’char Shabbos as a g’zeira lest
one will buy and sell on Shabbos.
The issur of s’char Shabbos falls upon the receiver for
receiving payment for work done on Shabbos. At the same time the payer
is not exempt of an issur - for transgressing the violation of
'lifnei iyvor'
- causing
another person to violate an issur.
Which is the issur - receiving the payment or
doing the work?
The simple p’shat
is that the issur is only for the payment and not for the work.
However there is a famous p’shat from Rav Chaim Soleveitchik
ztz”l who says that when one is working on Shabbos with payment in
mind it is the work that is ossur. Accordingly, being a baby
sitter on Shabbos with the intention of being paid after Shabbos is
violating the actual Shabbos (albeit with an issur d’rabanan).
Which type of “work” is included in this issur?
It is prohibited to
receive s’char Shabbos for physical services such as babysitting,
guarding premises or serving as a waiter at a function. It is also
ossur to receive s’char Shabbos as payment for things that do
not involve physical functions, such as renting out dishes for a
function, renting a hall for a kiddush or for a Shabbos meal, etc.
What type of “payment” is included in this
issur?
Anything given
against one of the above services will be considered as s’char
Shabbos. This includes money, food, services etc. Accordingly, a
babysitter from the Levy family may not baby-sit on Shabbos for the
Cohens, when the method of payment will be the Cohen’s babysitting for
the Levys, even on a weekday. However, a gift is not included in this
issur and one may give a gift as a token of appreciation for a
service performed on Shabbos. A gift would be anything that is not
agreed upon and the giver is not “obliged” or compelled to give.
It seems then that there is no viable solution
for babysitting on Shabbos, is that the halacha?
That is not true.
The Shulchan Aruch teaches us that there is a method of payment
which is legal, and it will permit paying someone for work done on
Shabbos.
We see from the
Shulchan Aruch
that when one is paid
per day to guard a patch of vegetables, the guard may not receive a wage
for guarding on Shabbos and hence if there are any losses incurred on
Shabbos the guard can not be held responsible.
On the other hand,
when the guard is paid per week or per month, he is paid for Shabbos as
well and if any losses are incurred on Shabbos he is held responsible.
How do you explain the difference between the
two?
In the first case
the Shabbos is reckoned individually and therefore it is called
s’char Shabbos, whereas in the second case the Shabbos is not
reckoned individually and the payment is therefore not for the Shabbos
but for the week. We see that Chazal were concerned with the
individual reckoning of receiving payment for Shabbos.
Based on this we can
find a way to receive money for a service done on Shabbos. A babysitter
should baby sit before Shabbos or after Shabbos, or she should baby sit
during the week and receive an all inclusive payment for babysitting.
This kind of payment is called 'b'habal'ah'.
The Chofetz
Chaim
was perturbed by the
way the merchants hire watchmen to guard the wagons over Shabbos because
they were paid for Shabbos work. His solution was to hire them to guard
the wagons before or after Shabbos for a few hours and thus pay them for
guarding the wagons on Shabbos 'b'habal'ah'.
