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Jewish Business Ethics
Yitzchok Breitowitz, Rabbi
Yitzchok Breitowitz, Rabbi
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Abstract
"Let me give you a story which illustrates how this works in the business context. There was a rabbi, Rabba Bar Chanah who once hired workmen to transport barrels of wine for him. They were negligent and as a result, the barrels of wine broke and this man incurred a severe financial loss. He took the workers to court, suing them for the value of the wine that was destroyed and the workers' only defense was, "You know, we can't afford it. We don't have the money. What are you going to do about it?" So the courts found in favor of the workers. So, Rabba Bar Chanah questioned the court and said, "Is this the law? Is it not the law that I am entitled to recover for their negligence?" And the court told him, "For you, this is the law. You are a righteous person and because you are a righteous person, you have to take into account the equities of the situation, the unfairness, the fact that these are people who need the money, etc., and, therefore, you are compelled by virtue of your righteous status to go beyond pressing your exact legal rights." Well then, and perhaps this is an ancient example of chutzpah, they turned around and sued him for their wages. They said, "Well, wait a second, you didn't pay us our wages for that day." So, he was dumbfounded. He said, "Okay, it's one thing to say I can't recover from you but are you going to recover from me when you broke my wine because of your negligence?" Astoundingly, the court said, "Yes! That's a good idea. You have to pay." And, once again, he asked, "Is this the law?" And they told him, "For you, that's the law. These are people who need the money and therefore, you must go beyond the law." Part of the problem in American society - there are many, many structural problems in American society and many good points as well - is that too many of us are obsessed with asserting our rights to the fullest."(pg 1-4)
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1997
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With permission of the license/copyright holder