24 Jan NON-JEWISH CLEANING HELP IN HALACHAH

Many people employ
non-Jewish domestic
help, and many
halachic issues arise
regarding this. We
will deal with select
areas, as this matter is
a very large issue. It is
beyond the scope of
this article to discuss
a live-in maid as it relates to Shabbos.
Davening in Front of a Religious
Symbol
It is forbidden to bow during Shemoneh
Esrei towards a religious symbol, so one
must be aware of the presence of the
cleaning help if he davens at home.1
Checking Vegetables
It is routine to ask the cleaning help
to help in the preparation of foods,
especially before Yom Tov. Checking
vegetables for insects can be a long and
bothersome task. However, a non-Jew
cannot be trusted to check vegetables.
Leaving a Non-Jewish Woman Alone in
Your Home – Leaving Pots Unwatched

Although Jews have employed non-
Jewish domestic help for centuries,

today’s lifestyle creates numerous
challenges. Jewish women used to stay
at home. Today, many of them work, and
are out of the home for the better part of
the day. This raises halachic concerns of
leaving a non-Jewish cleaning woman
in the home all day with the pots and
pans. The halachah is clear that one is
not allowed to leave a non-Jew alone
in his home because the non-Jew may
cook non-kosher products in the kosher
utensils. If the non-Jew had access to the

utensils, one would have to wait twenty-
four hours before using them. Others

are not concerned, since our utensils are
placed in cabinets in an orderly fashion,
and it would be obvious if the pots were
used.
Regarding food that is cooking on the
fire, the halachah states that if one is not
“going and coming” (yotzei v’nichnas)
from his home6 then he should not leave
it alone with the non-Jew. The concern

is that the non-Jew will add some non-
kosher ingredients to the dish in order to

improve its taste.
If the Jew serves lunch to the non-Jew,
then there is no concern of a non-Jew

using the pots.
It is a good idea to be present when the
non-Jew washes the dishes in order to
make sure that she does not mix the meat
and dairy together in the same sink (or
use the same sponge for both).
Some poskim say that if the non-Jew has
cooking responsibilities in the home,
then one must lock up the dishes if she is
left alone in the home.
In a situation where one does not have
any dairy products in the home that the
cleaning lady might cook with her meat,
then he does not have to be concerned
about leaving the pots.
Leaving a Non-Jew Alone in One’s
Home
All too often, both spouses work all day,
and have the practice of leaving a cleaning
lady or a repairman alone in the home.
There is a possibility that the non-Jewish
worker will take a kosher product in the
home and switch it for a non-kosher
food. Is this a real concern? If so, what are
the ways to avoid this?
“Yotzei V’nichnas” (Going and
Coming)
One option to allow a non-Jew to remain
alone in the home (or store) is to “go and
come” from the home; this is known in
halachah as yotzei v’nichnas. This is
permitted even l’chatchilah. Even a child
may be used for the purpose, provided
that he is old enough that the non-Jew
is afraid to tamper with anything in his
presence. Nine years old is sufficient.
This option applies even if the owner
stays away for an extended period of
time, as long as the worker is not aware
of the owner’s schedule. The worker
is afraid to make an exchange, as he is
concerned that the owner might return at
any moment and catch him in the act. If
you tell your worker, “I will be back in a
number of hours,” then it is prohibited to
leave a non-Jewish worker in the home,
since the worker knows when the owner
is returning and might switch the food.
However, as mentioned below, if one is
not concerned that the worker has any
benefit from switching the food, it is
permitted to leave the worker alone.
This option does not apply if the worker
can lock the door, since he has no concern
of being caught. If the Jew has a key, then
the non-Jew may be left alone since the

Jew can enter the
home. If the non-Jew
does not realize that
the owner left then
it is permitted,23
since he does not
realize that he is
alone in the home.
In any case, if the
non-Jew shows signs
of not being afraid
of you (i.e. does not
listen to you), then
he cannot be trusted
alone in the home. If
a security camera is
installed in the home
and the non-Jew
knows you can look at it at any time, then
he may be left alone in the home.
What Constitutes Yotzei V’nichnas
L’chatchilah

The l’chatchilah situation to leave a non-
Jew in the home or store is when the

Jew will be returning within eighteen
minutes. Good Practice
To avoid problems of a non-Jewish worker
using your pots, she should be instructed
from the onset that non-kosher food may
not be brought into your home.
Some suggest placing a camera in the
kitchen where one can tell if she used
your kitchen to cook.
Bishul Akum
Food that was cooked by a non-Jew is
forbidden, even if the ingredients are
kosher (bishul akum). However, this
is only true if it is inedible raw and it is
a dish that would be served on a king’s
table. The reason for this decree is to
avoid socializing with non-Jews, which
might lead to intermarriage.
An interesting question arises in regard
to a microwave oven and how it relates to
bishul akum.
If a microwave oven is just used to
warm up food, then there is no concern
of bishul akum. The question arises
concerning cooking food in a microwave
oven, as it does not use heat to cook the
food. The consensus of the poskim is to
be stringent. Since a microwave can be
used to cook food, it is comparable to a
regular oven. Many times a non-Jewish
woman is left at home and it is possible
that she may cook food for the children.

Parenthetically, it is not a good idea to
leave a non-Jew at home without anyone
entering from time to time, since they
may prepare non-kosher in your home.
Some say that if a non-Jewish maid
cooks in a Jew’s house then the concern
of intermarriage is diminished and the
cooking is permitted, while others forbid
the food even bedi’eved. If the non-Jew is
hired by the Jew (and all the actions are
dictated by the Jew), there are grounds
to be lenient. Although some say this is
only bedi’eved, we can rely on the lenient
opinion in regard to this issue since we
can assume that the Jew will ultimately
do something to adjust the fire (this
relaxes the problem of bishul akum). In
addition, we can also apply the opinion
that in a Jew’s home there is no concern
of intermarriage.41 Although we do not
follow this opinion as halachah l’ma’aseh,
we can use it as a sniff (additional point
to give a heter).
Halachic Status of Today’s Workers
With modern work rules, the domestic
cannot be defined as dictated by the Jew,
since the worker can quit at any time, and
only works for us for a short part of the
day. In addition, our modern ovens need
little adjusting, and the chance that the Jew
will adjust the fire is minimal. However,
in pressing situations or in a situation of
a great loss, one can be lenient bedi’eved.
Another possible option is to set the oven
on a timer and let the non-Jew put the
food in the oven. This is permitted since
the Jew “turned on the fire.”
Old or Sick Person
Elderly and ill people hire help for
household chores and food preparation.
The opinion of the poskim is that just

as a non-Jew is not
allowed to cook for
a healthy person, he
may not cook for a sick
person even during
the week(whether

food cooked by a non-
Jew on Shabbos is

permitted for the sick
person or a healthy person on Motza’ei
Shabbos is a different dispute among the
poskim. In addition, there is a dispute if
the utensils require kashering).
This is based on the halachah that a sick
person who is not in danger may not eat
an issur d’Rabbanan.
However, based on the above discussion
regarding household help, we can rely
on the lenient opinion since it is cooked
in the Jew’s home, and it is a pressing
situation since there is no one else who
can cook for the person. If the food is
already cooked, and the non-Jewish
help is just re-warming the food, it is
permitted.
Praising a Non-Jew
The Torah tells us that it is forbidden
to show certain favors to non-Jews (lo
sichaneim). If a non-Jewish worker has
performed a job, one is allowed to tip. This
is because tipping is merely considered a
nice gesture, and has nothing to do with
lo sichaneim. Therefore, it is permitted to
tip a waiter or a cab driver. If one was not
treated properly, there is no need to give
a tip. It is unusual to receive poor service,
so one may assume that if he feels that he
was treated improperly too often, it may
be that his expectations are too high. It
is permitted to thank a worker after he
has finished a specific job. It is permitted
to praise and even give gifts to domestic
help, as this will encourage the worker
to do a better job of maintaining the
cleanliness of your home.
Benefiting from a Woman
A man is not allowed to benefit from
the assistance of a woman other than his
wife or very close relative (i.e. mother).
This issur includes being served drinks,
making his bed, or washing his face,
feet and hands. If his wife is present, a
different woman may serve him.
It is permitted for a woman to serve her
guests, since it is being done as hachnasas
orchim and not affection. The custom is
to permit a maid to serve a man since

this usually does not cause inappropriate
thoughts.
An older person may have a woman assist
him with things he cannot do himself due
to his condition. This is permitted since
he is weak and sick and will not have
improper thoughts about her.
Using Expressions of Affection
Many domestics come for a few days a
week, or even worse, live in the home. One
has to be careful how he communicates
with the cleaning help. One should avoid

saying “hi” to a woman, because it is an
expression which is only used by intimate
friends. However, saying “hello” would be
permitted.
Yichud
The most common question that arises
regarding cleaning help is how to avoid
the issur of yichud. Many times when
one is off from yeshivah or home from
work he is left alone with the cleaning
lady. How do we avoid yichud in these
situations? We cannot do the halachos of
yichud justice in this article, but we will
discuss how they apply to our situation.
It should be noted that the prohibition of
yichud with a single non-Jewish woman
is d’Rabbanan, while there is debate
regarding the status of the prohibition
of yichud with a married non-Jewish
woman. In any case, one may not take this
issur lightly. Our discussion is limited to
a non-Jew, as the halachah relating to a
Jewish woman is more severe.
Wife with You – in City

If the wife is in the house, even if she is in
a different area, there is no issur of yichud.
There are some poskim who contend that
even if the wife is in the city it would
suffice to avoid any issue of yichud. This
would not help if the husband and the
cleaning lady are on “close” terms.
Husband (of Cleaning Help) in City
In general, there is no issur of yichud if
the woman’s husband is in the city, as she
is scared to do any forbidden action since
he can arrive at any moment. This does

not apply to a cleaning lady, since she
knows that her husband will not enter her
employer’s home. Nevertheless, since the
issur is a d’Rabbanan, one can be lenient
if they are not on close terms. This only
works if her husband is definitely in the
city and did not travel elsewhere.
Door Open
A common way to avoid the issur
of yichud is to leave the door to
the home entirely open.73 This
way people can see from outside if
anything would happen between the
male and the cleaning lady. This only
helps if the entire area is visible, but if
there is an area which is hidden from
view from the open door this would
not be a viable heter. The same applies
to a window in front of the home with
completely open shades.
Door Closed but Not Locked
For obvious reasons, people do not
want to keep the door open to the
public. Is it acceptable to keep the

door closed but not locked?
If someone can enter at any given time
without permission, such as a family
member, and it happens that they do
come in unannounced, it is permitted.
Even if people do not actually enter, one
can be lenient in regards to a non-Jewish
cleaning lady, as long as a family member
has the ability to enter. Even then, one
must remain in an area where family
members frequent, such as a dining room
area. It is not acceptable to be alone in a
bedroom.
It is important to point out that these
heterim only apply to the daytime hours
and not to night hours. Today, this
would be until about ten o’clock in the
evening in a busy area. One should use
his judgment based upon location. The
reason for this is that it is uncommon for
outsiders to frequent one’s home during
the night hours.
Camera
Some people have security cameras
in various areas of their home. At first
this may seem like a viable heter since
the recording is checked from time to
time. However, since there are sections
in the home without a camera, such
as the bathrooms, this would not be an
acceptable loophole regarding the issur
of yichud.
Paying Workers on Time
In order to avoid problems of paying a
worker late, one should have the wages
ready before he hires the worker. One
who will be leaving the house while the
cleaning help is still working should leave
money with someone who is in the house
in order to pay her on time.