Cleaning lady from 10 am to 2 pm need to provide lunch?

Emotional

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 11:52 am

Yes, I find it an annoyance to have one more person's lunch to worry about, but having her quit on me in search of greener pastures will be a much bigger annoyance.
There were times I just didn't have the time or the head to prepare her food, and I handed her an extra $5 to buy herself something on her way home.

amother

Smokey

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 11:53 am

DVOM wrote:

What an eye opening thread.

I don't currently have any cleaning help, but I did for most of the school year last year. My cleaning help came for four hours from 5-9 or 10 in the evening and ate the same dinner I prepared for myself and my kids. We don't eat fancy meals, so it was never extravagant. I wanted to be kind to my cleaning woman, who was doing a very critical job that I didn't want to do myself, but more than that it was important to me that my kids witness my respect for our cleaning help. With my help, my boys would set a place for her, call her to the table, ask her what she wanted to eat and drink, serve her, and clear her place when she was done. Her dinner break never took more than 15 minutes. My cleaning woman loved my kids, and they loved her. She moved at the end of the school year, and we are really going to miss her.

On a side note, my current place of employment serves coffee and snacks every day, and if they have us work through lunch (lunch meetings) they provide lunch too. In a past place of employment where I was expected to lunch with clients, I was given a company credit card to pay for restaurant meals. I have a friend who is sometimes asked to put in very long hours at her place of employment; lunch and dinner are provided as well as a masseuse, a manicurist, and laundry service. It is not so strange for employees to provide 'perks' to valued employees. I valued my cleaning lady; dinner was a perk I provided gladly.

If she works long hours, then yes I would give her lunch, but not 4 hours. After the 4 hours I would send her off with a light snack and give her to drink while she's working.

amother

Slateblue

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 11:54 am

amother wrote:

These things take time, time that I don't have for myself. Op when she is done I would give her a yogert, fruit, maybe bread as well.

Hard boiled eggs I have in the fridge--I make two dozen every Sunday for family lunches. It takes less than two minutes to add hot water to ramen noodles, pop bread and cheese in the panini maker or put pizza in the toaster. If you don't have two minutes to be a mentsch....

amother

Lemon

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:04 pm

watergirl wrote:

And the question still holds - are people asking a shailah to find out if they are halachically required to feed their household workers who are in their homes during a meal time or x amount of hours?

This would be unfair. In my neighborhood some people can't afford much help and the CL can split her time between 4 families in a day. What if those 2 hours are between 11 and 1? If you can barely afford the cleaning lady, lunch will run you an extra half of help and $5.

Emotional

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:06 pm

amother wrote:

Then those four families need to work something out where they each take a turn feeding her.

watergirl

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:10 pm

amother wrote:

If its halacha? Then what? Then find a lady who comes not during those hours if you cant spare the extra $. Are there other halachos that are unfair and cost $$ but we pay?

My question is if anyone has asked if its a halacha.

ra_mom

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:23 pm

amother wrote:

Touched a nerve when I pointed out your post on payroll taxes trying to slam Leriem doesn't make sense?

Neither that post nor the one I am quoting are nice.

What nerve? Smile

How would I know that amother X on one thread is amother Y on another?

Last edited by ra_mom on Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:35 pm; edited 1 time in total

creditcards

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:24 pm

watergirl wrote:

Has anyone asked halacha if I need to pay my cleaning lady 12 or 13 an hour? Or if I need to pay for her transportation?
You need to give her what u made up to give her. Otherwise it's stealing. I have never heard of any halacha to feed employees. The only ones I've herad is that you need to let them eat if they work with food. Ex: if they work in a restaurant or a bakery you need to let them eat from the food they are working with. Why would this even be a question?
My cleaning lady doesn't even expect me to feed her. We never discussed food and she never asked for meals. If she sees something she wants she can ask me if she can take and I always say yes.
My cleaning lady sometimes bringa along a big smoothie and sips on it while working. Her food is her department.

watergirl

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:30 pm

creditcards wrote:

My question is quite literally, is this a question and has anyone asked. We are a people who live life according to halacha and we seek daas Torah. This is an area that has great potential to cause a chillul Hashem. Ok so YOUR cleaning lady doesnt seem to expect it. Someone elses? I’m sure there are other issues that you bring to your lor that one might think “why is this even a question”.

amother

Apricot

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:43 pm

amother wrote:

You don't have bread in the house you can serve with cheese?

My lunches for my cleaning lady:

Hard boiled eggs, bread, cream cheese

Fried eggs, bread, cheese

Ramen noodles, crackers, peanut butter

Grilled cheese
Pizza

I don't keep bread or cheese in the house. Crackers and Matzah I have. Not every cleaning lady will eat everything.

creditcards

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:45 pm

watergirl wrote:

As far as I know there is Halacha to feed pets/animals and slaves.
(I consider cleaning ladies regular workers who are hired to complete a job?) Are they considered one of the two?

Last edited by creditcards on Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:46 pm; edited 1 time in total

ra_mom

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:45 pm

amother wrote:

You knew who Leriem was when when you tried to slam her. Your post was not nice to Squishy regardless of who is on X or Y thead.

I don't slam. I respond to hypocrisy when someone else slams.
My point remains the same.
If a worker is an independent contractor that doesn't file taxes, the one who hires is the same complicit whether they fail to file payroll taxes on a W2 or fail to file a 1099 for independent contractors.
If a poster is going to express that a group of workers who don't pay taxes are not worthy of the respect of those who hire them, then that poster can expect someone to point out the hypocrisy.
Back to this thread.

amother

Smokey

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:45 pm

[quote="amother"]Hard boiled eggs I have in the fridge--I make two dozen every Sunday for family lunches. It takes less than two minutes to add hot water to ramen noodles, pop bread and cheese in the panini maker or put pizza in the toaster. If you don't have two minutes to be a mentsch....[/quohe]

Guess why I take cleaning help? Because I don't have the extra time to clean. Niether do I have the extra time to prepair food. I don't have hard boiled eggs in fridge. ( we wouldn't eat cooked eggs that's in the fridge longer then 3 days niether would I give that to my cl) and no I will not make a pot dirty to make her lunch. I will provide anything from the fridge that doesn't take time or energy out of me, like yogert, bread, butter, cheese, fruits and juice.

amother

Lemon

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:48 pm

watergirl wrote:

We asked about our handyman who is there every Sunday. We were told we only have to provide a space for him to eat. Since he doesn't have transportation, DH gets him hot food to eat. He goes off the clock during lunch time which is according to law.

NY law states for domestic workers:

Meal Breaks
Employees who work a shift of more than 6 hours which extends over the noon day meal period (11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.) are entitled to at least 30 minutes off within that period for a meal break.

watergirl

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:50 pm

creditcards wrote:

As far as I know there is Halacha to feed pets/animals and slaves.
(I consider cleaning ladies regular workers who are hired to complete a job?) Are they considered one of the two?

So thats the question. I dont know. Obviously not an animal and not a slave (because CLs are paid).

tichellady

Fri, Jul 27 2018, 12:50 pm

This thread is ridiculous. Talk to the cleaning lady about her expectations and work it out between the two of you. You do not need to make her lunch if that’s not feasible for you, especially if you yourself are at work when she comes, but she should have time to eat lunch like any employee, and if you don’t want her to bring food into your house, then you need to come up with a reasonable solution that may involve you buying things that she can eat.