D’var Torah – November 28

In the classic Jewish film Fiddler on the Roof, the character Perchik teaches Tevye’s youngest daughters, Shprintze and Bielke: “Now after Jacob had worked for Laban for seven years, do you know what happened? Laban fooled him and gave him his ugly daughter Leah. So to marry Rachel, he had to work another seven years. So you see, children, the Bible clearly teaches us you can never trust an employer.”[1]

I was reminded of this line when I saw its antithesis in the new Netflix historical fiction series House of Guinness. In episode 3 (set in the 1860’s/1870’s), Edward Guinness introduces a pension program for retiring workers of his family’s brewery. When Sean Rafferty, the loyal chief foreman and head of security for Guinness proclaims that the idea of the pension is madness, Edward explains: “It is the future Mr. Rafferty. My brother will soon be standing for election and new electoral rules mean that more ordinary workers will be allowed to vote.”[2]  In other words, the pension will bind the employees’ loyalty to the Guinness family not only when they’re on the job, but also when they’re at the polls.

There is an old expression: “you get what you pay for.”

In this week’s parsha of Vayetzei (Genesis 28:10–32:3), we read of one of the most infamous swindles in history – Laban, who had promised his younger daughter Rachel to Jacob, switches her out with Leah, his elder daughter. Jacob is forced to work for his father-in-law for 14 years in order to secure the woman he loves. Throughout the 20 years that Jacob ends up working for Laban, their relationship is fraught with distrust and dishonesty. As Jacob tells his wives before they flee Laban: “As you know, I have served your father with all my might; but your father has cheated me, changing my wages time and again.” (*Genesis 31:7-8)

When Laban catches up to Jacob following the latter’s flight and asks him why he departed in the debt of night without offering a single goodbye, Jacob answers him:

“I was afraid because I thought you would take your daughters from me by force.” (*Genesis 31:31)

When Laban further accuses Jacob of stealing his idols and cannot find them in Jacob’s camp (it was Rachel, who unbeknownst to Jacob, stole her father’s idols), Jacob lets his father-in-law and former employer have it:

“What is my crime, what is my guilt that you should pursue me? You rummaged through all my things; what have you found of all your household objects? Set it here, before my kin and yours, and let them decide between us two. These twenty years I have spent in your service, your ewes and she-goats never miscarried, nor did I feast on rams from your flock. That which was torn by beasts I never brought to you; I myself made good the loss; you exacted it of me, whether snatched by day or snatched by night. Often, scorching heat ravaged me by day and frost by night; and sleep fled from my eyes. Of the twenty years that I spent in your household, I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flocks; and you changed my wages time and again. Had not the God of my father’s [house] — the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac — been with me, you would have sent me away empty-handed. But it was my plight and the toil of my hands that God took notice of — and gave judgment on last night.” (*Genesis 31:36-42)

Jacob’s words are perhaps one of history’s first and finest resignation letters.

In all seriousness though, Laban is a terrible example of what it means to be an employer. He lies, cheats, goes back on his word, and creates what we would today term “a hostile work environment.” No matter how much Jacob prospers, and in doing so, creating the conditions for Laban to prosper, Laban and his sons still try to pull one over on Jacob. Who can honestly blame Jacob for finally pulling up his stakes and leaving “Laban & Sons LLC” behind?

In 2019, a study by Oxford University found that a “happy” workforce is 13% more productive.[3]

Conversely, Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Jeffrey Pfeffer warns, “Research shows that when people believe implicit [employer-employee] agreements have been violated, they are more likely to be dissatisfied, less engaged, less committed to work, and less productive.”[4]

Finally, a recent article by Forbes put it best, “Gallup’s latest State of the Global Workplace report found that employees who are actively engaged at work are 87% less likely to leave their companies. This means that retention strategies must go beyond offering competitive salaries—employees want to work in environments where they feel trusted, respected, and have opportunities to develop.”[5]

But what do our own beloved sages and great texts say of the employer-employee relationship? Perhaps Justice Louis D. Brandeis said it best, “Don’t assume the interests of employer and employee are necessarily hostile…The opposite is more apt to be the case.”[6]

In sum, when an employer, organization, or business views and treats an employee like nothing more than a cog, a means to an end, or a line item on a budget, employees will naturally respond by doing the bare amount to keep their job and actively looking for somewhere else to go. This will cause the employer or organization to stagnate and profits to fall. On the other hand, if an organization or employer not only provides an employee with a competitive paycheck and benefits, but also invests in their professional development and education, regularly gives them public recognition for their accomplishments, treats them daily with dignity and respect, and lays out a track for them to have increased duties and levels of responsibility, that employee will in turn display an unparalleled amount of loyalty and dedication to both the job and organization, be more willing to put in extra hours, and be more likely to pour their talent, ideas, blood, sweat, and tears, and their hearts and souls into the company. As a result the organization will prosper and its profits will skyrocket. Nothing beats a devoted, dedicated, and loyal workforce.

All of us are or have been either employers or employees. Others of us have served as both. The story of Jacob and Laban is a reminder of why employers and employees must establish a mutually beneficial relationship founded on respect and trust.

Bizrat HaShem, with God’s help, may we all help create such healthy and productive arrangements in our work lives.

Wishing you a Good Shabbos and a happy holiday weekend.

Bivrakha,

Rabbi Aaron Stucker-Rozovsky

Beth El Congregation | 520 Fairmont Ave, Winchester, VA 22601

(540) 667-1889 (office)