Dollars And Sense
1
Do Jewish
ethics create
better
business-
people?
RUTH LITTMANN STAFF WRITER
PHO TO BY GRAN TRIE ST
Rabbi Avraham
Jacobovitz with
Randy Jerome:
"Judaism is a
religion, but much
more a way of life."
t's a little-known
fact: Nearly a
quarter of the
Shulhan Arukh
(code of Jewish
law) pertains to
monetary is-
sues.
"Many people are not
aware of the fact that so much
ofJudaism involves business
dealings," said Rabbi Avra-
ham Jacobovitz of Machon
L'Torah. "Judaism is a
religion, but much more
a way of life."
In fact, the Talmud says
the first question people are
asked as they enter the next
world is, "Hast thou been hon-
orable in business?"
"Jewish tradition has nev-
er recognized the distinctions
usually drawn between civ-
il, criminal, moral and ritu-
al law," wrote Menachem
Marc Kellner, editor of
the book Contemporary
Jewish Ethics. "Cheating
a customer, robbing a
home, failing to honor
one's parents and violat-
ing the Sabbath are all
considered to be violations
of halachic norms."
Among Jewish laws are those
that prohibit fraud. Fraud is con-
sidered a form of oppression,
which includes misguiding cus-
tomers through deceptive pack-
aging of a product or
overcharging them.
A while ago, Marty Goodman
of Lou's Deli in Southfield became
concerned that he was uninten-
tionally overcharging guests at
ILLUSTRATION BY ANDREE CHEVRIER
his restaurant. Waiters and wait-
resses — some were new and un-
familiar with the menu —
occasionally mispriced meals on
tabs they manually rang up at
the register.
Mr. Goodman discovered their
mistakes only after the guests
had left, and there was no way to
track them down to pay them
back the difference.
"It bothered me," he said. "If
you overcharge, you've received
money that is really stolen mon-
ey."
So eight years ago, Mr. Good-
man installed computerized reg-
isters with buttons that
automatically ring up the exact
cost of dishes.
Modern equipment has helped
Mr. Goodman live up to ancient
Jewish law, but in the days be-
fore computerized cash registers,
the Talmud called for market
commissioners responsible for ex-
amining and standardizing the
weights and measures of mer-
chants.
Though official price controls
did not exist, Jewish business-
men were allowed to profit only
under 6 percent on the sale of any
necessity. The Talmud also pro-
hibits price manipulation, like
hiking the price of matzah in the
days before Passover.
"There were two opinions in
the Talmud regarding the tasks
of these market commissioners,"
wrote author Leo Jung. "One held
that all they had to do was to ex-
amine weights and measures
without concern about high
prices, the assumption being that
anyone overcharging would grad-
ually lose his customers and
prove self-penalized.
"The other view held that pro-
tection of the customer implied
the obligation to inspect both
weights and measures and
prices."
Jewish law also addresses the
charging of interest. Although the
Torah does not consider the prac-
tice inherently wrong, it is pro-
hibited between Jews.
"Lending with interest is a nor-
mal business process, but ... as
Jews, we have a special (duty) to
help other Jews because we are
to treat one another as a family,"
Rabbi Jacobovitz said. "In a fam-
ily, I think one would be pretty
taken aback if the father or moth-
er were to lend a child $1,000 and
expect a cut. It would be quite in-
appropriate."
Jewish business law deals with
labor relations, as well. The law
advises that employer and em-
ployee agree on wages in advance
of services rendered. Withhold-
ing wages for more than 12 hours
violates Jewish law. Leviticus
reads:
"Thou shalt not oppress thy
neighbor, nor rob him; the wages
of a hired servant shall not abide
with thee all night until the
morning."
ETHICS page 22
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