Sechar Shabbat

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The Rabbis forbad receiving wages for (permissible) work done on Shabbat. [1]

Upon whom is the prohibition?

  1. The primary prohibition applies to the one receiving the wages; however, it’s also forbidden to pay these wages (for permissible work) because one transgresses “Lifnei Iver”. [2]

Permissible Way to Receive Payment - Havla'a (lit: swallowed)

  1. It is permissible to receive payment for work done over a period of time such as a month, week, or year, even if Shabbat is included. This is known as the heter of havla'a (lit: swallowed up).[3]
    1. According to Ashkenazim, this is only true if each side sees the agreement as a unit. However, if each day is viewed as a separate entity, and either party can retract on any given day, then we don't view the shabbat payment as "nivlah" (lit: absorbed) in the weekday payment, and so it is not permissible to receive wages for the Shabbat.[4]
  2. Rentals
    1. One may not receive payment for renting out a room for Shabbat specifically, rather one should stipulate that the rental should begin a little before Shabbat or end a little after.[5]
    2. One may rent out a car even if the rental is paid per day and includes Shabbat, because the rental day goes by a 24-hour period (from morning to morning), and included in the payment for Shabbat is also a few hours during the week, either before or after Shabbat.[6]
  3. Services
    1. A Jew may serve as a waiter on shabbat provided he does some set-up before shabbat, or cleanup after shabbat.

Other Leniencies

Mitzvah

  1. There is a debate in the rishonim whether one is allowed to receive payment for rendering a service on shabbat if it is a mitzvah.
    1. Examples include being the chazan, bal koreh, scholar-in-residence, or mashgiach.
  2. Generally speaking, one may be lenient to receive payment (although he won't see a siman bracha from this payment[7]), but it is better to rely upon the leniency of havla'a by working or preparing during the week as well and being paid for the total job.[8]

Give the Payment as a Gift

  1. If one does not pre-arrange how much will be paid for the service rendered, and then after shabbat simply gives the payment as a gift, this is permitted.[9]
  2. Someone watching children every Shabbat can receive the wages as a gift. [10]

Interest in a Bank Account

  1. Interest in a bank accrued on Shabbat is permitted.[11]
  2. However, some are strict that if the interest is compounded daily, such that each day's interest payment is distinct, then one should not receive benefit from the payment received on days when yom tov immediately preceded or followed shabbat.[12]

Doctors and Nurses

  1. It is permitted for a doctor or nurse to take wages for their work on shabbat since it is a mitzvah and because it is important that doctors are encouraged to save lives even on shabbat. Ideally, the wages should include post-op care done after Shabbat.[13]

Renting to a non-Jew

  1. Sephardim may rent to a non-Jew an object on Friday which will be used for a Melacha Deoraita (biblically forbidden activity on Shabbat) as long as the non-Jew has time to remove it from the Jew’s house.
  2. Ashkenazim should not rent such an object except on Thursday or earlier in the week. [14]

Paying for Services

  1. If one purchases something on Shabbat (in cases where it’s permissible) one must still pay the amount owed after Shabbat. This is considered like the owner is receiving schar shabbat, since he is being paid for the sale of the object and not for his own work.[15]
  2. One can pay (after Shabbat) for going into a mikveh on shabbat, or staying at a hotel on Shabbat.[16]
  3. One can pay for a ticket to the zoo before Shabbat for a visit on Shabbat (this is only in terms of wages on Shabbat, but in terms of kedushat Shabbat it’s preferable to sanctify Shabbat with Torah and mitzvot, not by going to the zoo).[17]
  4. One can switch a rotation of a guard or cleaning duty to work on Shabbat instead of a weekday.[18]

Links

  1. Rav Herschel Schachter (Doing Business on shabbat – Schar shabbat
  2. Rabbi Shay Schachter Twenty Minute Halacha Paying a Chazzan and Baal Tokeah

Sources

  1. ↑ Rashi Ketubot 64a s.v. Kesechar explains that the reason chazal prohibited taking sechar shabbat, wages from work done on Shabbat, is based on a concern of coming to doing business on Shabbat. Shulchan Aruch 306:4 codifies this as halacha (see also Mishna Brura 306:16 and Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:54). Rabbi Simcha Bunim Cohen (The Shabbos Home p. 27) explains that Chazal forbade engaging in any type of business transaction because it might lead to Kosev, writing down the transaction in a journal or the like. A second possible explanation of prohibition of schar shabbos is found in the Tur siman 306, who seems to indicate that it may be included in the category of things forbidden under "ממצוא חפציך" - engaging in your own engagements / dealings on shabbos. A third explanation is said in the name of Rav Chaim Brisker (see dirshu Mishnah berura siman 306 footnote 14), who suggests that if one receives payment for services rendered on shabbos, the halacha views those services as if they are themselves forbidden melacha, even if they in fact are not.
  2. ↑ Mishna Brurah 306:21, Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:54
  3. ↑ Rambam Shabbat 6:25, Rosh Ketubot 5:37. The gemara in bava metzia 58a cites a beraisa that distinguishes between a guard who is hired just for shabbos, who may not receive payment and therefore is not responsible if something happens, and a guard who is hired for a longer period of time (e.g. week, month, year, shemitta cycle), who may receive payment and is therefore responsible for guarding. S”A (306:4) paskens this gemara. This is known as Schar Shabbos B’Havla’ah, Shabbos payments which are blended in, or literally swallowed up, with week payments. Rav Herschel Schachter (Doing Business on Shabbos – Schar Shabbos min. 43-45) explains that Havla’ah is when the unit that is paid is larger than Shabbos. If one were to pay an hourly rate, any hours charged on Shabbos would be schar shabbos. But if one pays a flat rate which includes services not performed on Shabbos, this would be permitted because of havla’ah. Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchita 28:64 in the footnote explains that since the gezeirah of schar shabbos is because we are concerned that one may come to write down the transaction on shabbos, the Rabbis didn’t extend the gezeirah to a case where one receives wages over a longer period of time, because we are not concerned that one will write down the transaction on shabbos given that they can write it down either before or after.
  4. ↑ Rama 306:4, Mishna Brurah 306:20, Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:64
  5. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:71
  6. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:67
  7. ↑ Mishnah Berura siman 306 s.k. 23
  8. ↑ The Mordechai (Kesubos 189) quotes from Rabbeinu Baruch that hiring chazanim or baalei keriah on Shabbos should be prohibited because of schar shabbos, but then he cites from R' Shmuel that maybe it is permitted because it is a mitzvah. The Shulchan Aruch (306:5) writes that it is prohibited to hire chazanim to daven on Shabbos, but that some say (יש אומרים) it’s permitted. As a general rule, when the Shulchan Aruch writes a halacha and then writes “some permit it,” we follow the first opinion (סתם ואחר כך יש אומרים, הלכה כסתם). So it therefore it seems, in terms of schar shabbos, that there should be no difference whether the work is a mitzvah or not. The Aruch Hashulchan (306:12) notes a contradiction with the Mechaber here and the Mechaber by Hilchos Rosh Hashana. There (585:5) he writes that one may take money to blow shofar, but just that he will not see a siman bracha from that money, yet here he seems to hold that it is prohibited (see Sh"t Yabia Omer OC 5:25 who points out this contradiction as well). The Aruch Hashulchan answers that perhaps the Shulchan Aruch really thinks that it is prohibited, but since the minhag is to be lenient, he was lenient by Hilchos Rosh Hashana. The Aruch Hashulchan then defends the practice to hire chazanim just for shabbos by explaining that they are really taking schar batala for all the practice they do during the week, and that the payment is also given to them as a gift. Yalkut Yosef (Shabbat vol 2, pg 121) writes that the minhag is to be lenient to hire Chazanim just for Shabbat as long as one doesn’t speak about the amount on Shabbat. Nonetheless one doesn’t see Bracha from that money, and so one should use that money for buying sefarim or the like. Rabbi Simcha Bunim Cohen (The Shabbos Home p. 35) concludes that as long the chazzan or baal korei prepare during the week, it would be permissible because of havla’ah. Sh”t Tzitz Eliezer 7:28(7), Sh”T Shevet Hakehati 2:103 agree.
  9. ↑ Mishnah Berurah siman 306 s.k. 24 writes this heter in the context of one hiring a chazan just for shabbos, who does not wish to rely upon the heter of it being a dvar mitzvah.
  10. ↑ Sh”t Bear Moshe 5:103
  11. ↑ Shabbat Kehilchata 20:8. [The Mishna Brurah 306:19 writes that one may not take interest from a non-Jew for money lent for Shabbat unless one doesn’t specify a number of days but only a number of weeks.] see Bayit Hayehudi 5:22(11) and BeYitzchak Yikareh on Mishna Brurah 306:19
  12. ↑ The mishnah berura siman 306 s.k. 19 writes that it is permitted to receive interest from a non-Jew, provided that the loan is extended over a period of time and not paid per day. If each day is a separate entity, then it would be prohibited to receive payment for the interest accrued on shabbos. Rav Moshe (OC:4:59) has a teshuvah in which he discusses modern banks and the interest that accrues in savings accounts. On a regular shabbos, part of the payment is included in the Friday interest, and part of it is included in the Saturday payment, due to the nature of the secular calendar starting and ending at midnight, so one can be lenient due to havla'a. On a regular yom tov, since really only 1 day is actually yom tov and we just don't know which, there is havla'a here as well, just like shabbos. However, for Rosh Hashana, which is two days not just m'safek, and for yom tov abutting shabbos, there are two consecutive holy days and so there is no heter of havla'a here. Rav Moshe recommends not receiving benefit from the (relatively insignificant) proceeds of these few days of interest. Rav Simcha Bunim Cohen (Shabbos Home V1 pg. 39), following this psak of Rav Moshe, suggests giving it to charity anonymously (and also not counted towards your ma'aser), such that you receive no benefit from it whatsoever.
  13. ↑ Sh"t Mahari Bruna 114, Shaarei Knesset Hagedola (Hagahot Bet Yosef 306:3), Mishna Brurah 306:24, Sh”t Teshuvot Vehanhagot 1:214, Sh”t Bear Moshe 5:102, Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata 28:75, Menuchat Ahava 10:28, Kaf Hachaim 306:36, Rabbi Eli Mansour on dailyhalacha.com. The primary reason of the Mahari Bruna is that it is a mitzvah of pikuach nefesh to save a life on Shabbat. The Mahari Bruna also adds at the end of his teshuva that we should pay them so that they don't delay in doing their job, which would endanger the life of the patient. Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata (Ch. 28, ft. 155) cites from Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank (Har Tzvi, OC:204) that perhaps the question of whether it is permitted for a doctor to receive payment - and whether this payment would be subject to "אינו רואה סימן ברכה" (you won't see blessing from this money) - should depend on the general debate regarding schar shabbos for a mitzvah. Dor Hamelaktim v. 2 p. 1312 quotes Rav Sheinberg (Chidushei Batra 306:24) who left as unresolved the question of whether there is a siman bracha for the wages a doctor takes for his work on Shabbat. Rav Willig (Asicha Shabbos 2 p. 12) said that it is permitted to keep the money. He added though that if someone doesn’t want it on their conscience that they’re making money on Shabbos they can give the money to tzedakah.
  14. ↑ Menuchat Ahava (vol 1, chap 19 #4) based on S”A and Rama 246:1
  15. ↑ Mishna Berurah 306:19, Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 28:57
  16. ↑ Sh”t Nodeh Beyehuda O”C 26, Sh”T Mishnat Halachot 10:65 since the work to prepare the mikveh before Shabbat and cleaning it after Shabbat is enough so that the payment is considered mixed with permitted payment. Concerning the hotel, so rule Sh”t HaElef Lecha Shlomo 125 since it’s payment for the stay mixed with payment for cleaning the room before and after Shabbat. see also Rabbi Eli Mansour regarding hotel
  17. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata 28:65
  18. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchata 28:55 the work he’s doing isn’t for a wage but just to exempt himself from working another day.
Category Topic
Mitzvot of Shabbat
Kiddush Levana - Enjoying Shabbat - Fourth meal of Shabbat - Havdalah - Having a meal on Friday - In the Spirit of Shabbat - Kiddush - Lighting Shabbat Candles - Making Early Shabbat - Making one hundred Brachot on Shabbat - Preparing foods on Shabbat - Preparing for Shabbat - Shenayim Mikrah - Kavod Shabbat - Shabbos Davening - Seudat Shabbat - Seudat Shelishit - Lechem Mishneh - Motzei Shabbat - When Does Shabbat Start?
Restrictions of Shabbat
Allowing Carrying Using an Eruv Chatzerot - Animals on Shabbat - Asking a Jew to work on Shabbat - Asking a non-Jew to work on Shabbat (Amirah LeNochri) - Benefiting from a Violation of Shabbat (Maaseh Shabbat) - Books, notebooks, and papers - Brushing Teeth on Shabbat - Building a structure on Shabbat (Boneh) - Carrying on Shabbat - Cleaning the dishes - Cleaning and Folding Garments on Shabbat - Clearing the table - Cooking (Ofeh and Bishul) - Cosmetics on Shabbat - Dancing and clapping on Shabbat - Electricity on Shabbat - Eruv Chatzerot - Eruvin - Games on Shabbat - Getting dressed on Shabbat - Giving birth on Shabbat - Grinding (Tochen) - Handling objects on Shabbat (Muktzeh) - Infants on Shabbat - Introduction to the Modern Eruv - Kneading (Lash) - Mail on Shabbat - Medicine on Shabbat (Refuah on Shabbat) - Melacha That Begins Before Shabbat - Opening bottles and containers (Boneh) - Plants on Shabbat (Zoreah) - Preparing for after Shabbat (Hachana) - Reading on Shabbat (Daber Davar) - Recreation on Shabbat - Sechirut Reshut - Separating mixtures (Borer) - Squeezing fruits (Sechita) - Speaking on Shabbat (Daber Davar) - Taking a cruise over Shabbat - Taking measurements on Shabbat - Techum - Transactions on Shabbat - Transportation on Shabbat - Going to and Staying in the Hospital on Shabbat - Wages on Shabbat (Sachar Shabbat) - Washing one’s body on Shabbat
Melachos
Introduction to Melechet Machshevet - Marbeh Bshiurim - Plowing - Planting - Harvesting - Gathering - Threshing - Winnowing - Separating - Grinding - Sifting - Kneading - Baking and Cooking - Shearing - Laundering - Combing - Dyeing - Spinning - Mounting warp threads - Making two loops - Weaving - Unraveling fabric - Tying - Untying - Gluing, taping, or stapling - Ripping - Trapping - Slaughtering - Skinning - Tanning - Smoothing - Scoring - Cutting precisely - Writing - Erasing - Building - Demolishing - Completing a vessel - Extinguishing a flame - Kindling a fire - Carrying
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