Tuesday, March 27, 2007

On Economic Justice

I keep talking about the importance of a living wage, and it's time to put my money where my mouth is. Or where my email is.

Saigon Grill has been mistreating their delivery employees in a variety of ways, including but not limited to: denial of proper wages and time off, disregard for worker safety, and now locking them out for their attempt to organize. For the full story check here, and for independent confirmation click here. (Although, for the record, I really dislike the flippant last sentence) Please support these workers in one of the following ways:

1) Don't patronize Saigon Grill until they meet the workers' demands (harder for those of us who keep kosher)
2) Send an email to the owners at info@saigongrill.com or call the following numbers (212 875-9072, 212 982-3691) to protest the treatment of their workers
3) Spread the word to friends/family
4) Make donations to support the delivery workers who are locked out (Make checks payable to Chinese Staff & Workers' Association, Attn: JWBS! Campaign, send to JWBS! Campaign, c/o CSWA P.O. Box 13041, New York, NY 10013-0995)

Please help to protest this injustice, it is especially important around Passover time to make sure that wage slavery and unfair employment practices are brought to an end.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please see list of articles, below, from the website of the jewish Labor Committee -
http://www.jewishlabor.org -
entitled
"Readings on Traditional Jewish texts on Labor and Worker Rights"

anon., "Labor," ENCYCLOPEDIA JUDAICA Vol. 10, Keter Publishing House (Jerusalem, Israel 1972)

Ayali, Meir, "Labor and Work in the Talmud and Midrash," [Hebrew] Yad La-Talmud (Ramat Gan, 1984)

Baron, Salo, "Economics and Social Justice," in "THE ECONOMIC VIEWS OF MAIMONIDES" in ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL JEWISH HISTORY, ed. Arthur Hertzberg & Leon A. Feldman, Rutgers University Press (New Brunswick, 1972)

------- "Free Labor," op. cit. , pp. 248-260.

Bazak, J., comp. JEWISH LAW AND JEWISH LIFE: SELECTED RABBINICAL RESPONSA (pp. 75, 80), Union of American Hebrew Congregations (New York, NY 1979)

Bleich, J. David, "Organized Labor;" "Tenure," in CONTEMPORARY HALAKHIC
PROBLEMS (Vol. 1), KTAV Publishing House, Inc. / Yeshiva University Press (New York, NY 1977)

----"Severance Pay;" "Teachers' Unions," in CONTEMPORARY HALAKHIC PROBLEMS (Vol. 2), KTAV Publishing House, Inc. / Yeshiva University Press (New York, NY 1983)

----"Organized Labor - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 13, no. 1 (New York, NY 1972)

---- "Physicians' Fees - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 19, no. 4 (New York, NY 1981)

---- "Physicians' Strikes - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 21, no. 3 (New York, NY 1984)

---- "Rabbinic Contracts - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 11, no. 3 (New York, NY 1970)

---- "Severance Pay: Hired Servant or Independent Contractor - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 17, no. 3 (New York, NY 1978)

---- "Severance Pay," in Jewish Law Annual 3 (1980)

---- "Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature [particularly p. 126, Tenure on p. 129, and Employment During the Post-Nuptual Week on p. 136]," in Tradition 14, no. 4 (New York, NY 1974)

---- "Teachers' Unions - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 19, no. 3 (New York, NY 1984)


---- "Teachers' Unions," in Jewish Law Annual (1987)

---- "Tenure: A Review of a Rabbinical Court Judgment," in Jewish Law Annual 1 (1978)

Blumenfield, Samuel M., LABOR IN THE BIBLE, Dissertation Hebrew Union College (Cincinnati 1930)

Cronbach, Abraham, "Labor," UNIVERSAL JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA (New York, NY 1939-1943)

-----------------------, "Social Thinking in the Sefer Hasidim," in Hebrew Union College Annual 22 (1949)

Elon, Menachem, "Ha'anakah (Severance Pay)," in ENCYCLOPEDIA JUDAICA Vol. 7, Keter Publishing (Jerusalem, Israel 1972)

Fasman, Oscar Z., "The Attitude of the Hafetz Hayyim toward Labor," in ISRAEL OF TOMORROW, ed. by Leo Jung, Herald Square Press, Inc. (New York, NY 1946), pp. 117-184

Federbush, Simon, THE JEWISH CONCEPT OF LABOR, Torah Culture Department, Jewish Agency and HaPoel haMizrachi of America (New York, NY 1956)

Fendel, Zechariah, "Employer-Employee Relations [p. 77];" "The Abusive Employer [p. p. 80]," in THE HALACHA AND BEYOND: PROVIDING AN INSIGHT INTO THE FISCAL ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE TORAH JEW, AS WELL AS AN IN-DEPTH STUDY OF THE BITACHON CONCEPT, Hashkafah Publications (New York, NY 1983)

Heinemann, Joseph H., "The Status of the Laborer in Jewish Law and Society in the Tannaitic Period," in Hebrew Union College Annual 25 (1954)

Hirsch, Richard G., "Labor - Rights and Responsibilities," in THE WAY OF THE UPRIGHT: A JEWISH VIEW OF ECONOMIC JUSTICE [pp. 36-62], Union of American Hebrew Congregations (New York, NY 1973)

Horowitz, George, "Hired Workers/Further Rules Favorable to the Worker," in THE SPIRIT OF JEWISH LAW, Central Book Company (New York, NY 1963)

Jacobs, Louis, "Strikes," in WHAT DOES JUDAISM SAY ABOUT ...? [pp. 309 - 310], Keter Publishing (Jerusalem 1973)

Jakobovits, I., "The Right to Strike," in STUDIES IN TORAH JUDAISM: JEWISH LAW FACES MODERN PROBLEMS, Yeshiva University Dept. of Special Publications (New York, NY 1965)

---- "The Right to Strike - Review of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 5, no. 2 [p. 273] (1963)

---- "Strikes - Survey of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 7,
no. 4/8, no. 1 [p. 98] (1965/1966)

---- "Workmen's Compensation and Severance Pay - Review of Recent Halakhic Periodical Literature," in Tradition 4, no. 2 [p. 260] (1962)

Jung, Leo, "The Workingman," in HUMAN RELATIONS IN JEWISH LAW, Jewish Education Press / Board of Jewish Education, Inc. (New York, NY 1967/1970) [Reprinted in BETWEEN MAN AND MAN, Jewish Education Press / Board of Jewish Education, Inc. (New York, NY 1976)]

-----. "Labor in Jewish Law," in BUSINESS ETHICS AND JEWISH LAW, Hebrew Publishing Company in conjunction with the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York (New York, NY 1987)

Katz, Mordechai, PROTECTION OF THE WEAK IN THE TALMUD, Columbia University Press (New York, NY 1925)

Klagsbrun, Francine, "Work, Wealth and Philanthropy," in VOICES OF WISDOM: JEWISH IDEAS AND ETHICS FOR EVERYDAY LIVING, Pantheon Books (New York, NY 1980)

Kogan, Michael S., "Liberty and Labor in the Jewish Tradition," in Ideas, A Journal of Contemporary Jewish Thought (Spring 1975)

Kohler, Kaufmann, "Labor," in Jewish Encyclopedia, vol. 7, p. 590 (New York, NY 1901-1906)

Levine, Aaron, FREE ENTERPRISE AND JEWISH LAW: ASPECTS OF JEWISH BUSINESS ETHICS, KTAV (New York, NY 1980)

----, "Jewish Business Ethics in Contemporary Society," in BUSINESS ETHICS AND JEWISH LAW, by Leo Jung, Hebrew Publishing Company in conjunction with the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York (New York, NY 1987)

----, "Labor Mobility: A Halakhic View, in Gesher 5, no. 1 [pp. 88-105] (1976)

Levinthal, Israel H., "The Attitude of Judaism Toward Labor," in JUDAISM: AN ANALYSIS AND AN INTERPRETATION, Funk and Wagnalls (New York & London, 1935)

----, "The Attitude of Judaism Toward the Laborer," in JUDAISM: AN ANALYSIS AND AN INTERPRETATION, Funk and Wagnalls (New York & London, 1935)

Neusner, Jacob, THE ECONOMICS OF THE MISHNAH, University of Chicago Press
(Chicago, IL 1990)

Perry, Michael S., LABOR RIGHTS IN THE JEWISH TRADITION, Jewish Labor Committee (New York, NY, n.d.)

Reines, Chaim W., "Labor in Rabbinical Responsa," in ISRAEL OF TOMORROW, ed. by Leo Jung, Herald Square Press, Inc. [p. 141] (New York, NY 1946)

----, "The Jewish Conception of Work," in Judaism, 8 [pp. 329-337] (1959)

Riemer, Jack, "The Jewish view of work (Avodah), in Jewish Heritage (Summer 1962), p. 21-23

Sacks, Eliot, "Teachers and the right to strike," L'eylah (New Year 5746), p. 16-17 [London]


Sacks, J[onathan?], "Halacha: Industrial Relations in Jewish Law," in Ha-Zvi 13 [p. 13] (Mizrahi Journal) (London Purim 5739)

Schnall, David J., BY THE SWEAT OF YOUR BROW: REFLECTIONS ON WORK AND
THE WORKPLACE IN CLASSICAL JEWISH THOUGHT, KTAV (New York, NY 2001)

Shapira, Abraham, "Work," in CONTEMPORARY JEWISH RELIGIOUS THOUGHT, by Cohen, Arthur A. and Mendes-Flohr, Paul, The Free Press (New York, 1987)

Sicher, Gustav, "Concept of Work in the Jewish Faith," in JEWISH STUDIES: ESSAYS IN HONOR OF G. SICHER, ed. by R. Iltis, Council of Jewish Religious Communities [p. 5] (Prague 1955)

Silverman, William B., "The Dignity of Labor," in THE SAGES SPEAK, Jason Aronson, Inc. (Northvale, NJ and London, England 1989)

Sulzberger, Mayer, "The Status of Labor in Ancient Israel," in Jewish Quarterly Review 13 (1922-23), p. 245-302, 397-459; reprinted separately (Philadelphia PA 1923)

Tamari, Meir, IN THE MARKETPLACE: JEWISH BUSINESS ETHICS, Targum Press
(Southfield, MI 1991)

-------, WITH ALL YOUR POSSESSIONS: JEWISH ETHICS AND ECONOMIC LIFE, The Free Press (New York, NY 1987)

Vorspan, ALbert, and Eugene J. Lipman, "Labor," in JUSTICE AND JUDAISM, Union of American Hebrew Congregations (New York, NY: 1956)

Warhaftig, Shillem, "Labor Law," in ENCYCLOPEDIA JUDAICA Vol. 10, Keter Publishing House (Jerusalem 1972)

Weisfeld, Israel H., "LABOR LEGISLATION IN THE BIBLE AND TALMUD, Yeshiva
University (New York, NY 1974)

Wigoder, Geoffrey, "Labor and Labor Laws," in ENCYCLOPEDIA OF JUDAISM, [2002]

Wolkinson, Benjamin W., "Labor and the Jewish Tradition - A Reappraisal," in Jewish Social Studies Vol. 40 no. 3/4 (S/F 1978)

Woll, Jonathan S., THE EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP IN SHULCHAN-ARUCH Dissertation Hebrew Union College (Cincinnatin, OH 1976)

Wolsey, Louis, "The Historic Attitude of Judaism to Labor," in CCAR Yearbook Vol. 38 (1928) [pp. 311-343]

Zipperstein, Edward, BUSINESS ETHICS AND JEWISH LAW, KTAV (New York, NY 1987)

This listing is a `work-in-progress' - additional suggested entries welcome.

Arieh Lebowitz
Jewish Labor Committee
25 East 21st Street
New York, NY 10010

Anonymous said...

We are already doing it!
in Israel there is an initiative that is called the "social seal" that check eateries to c if they are morally kosher, means dealing with their workers on a fair manner and accessible for people with disabilities, want to read more ?
http://www.mtzedek.org.il/upload/socialse.pdf

Annie said...

Thanks guys, I really appreciated the additional information.

Also, Assaf, this sounds like the conservative movement's proposed tzedek heksher.