Labor on the Bimah 2021: A month of action for paid family and medical leave

Torah, in its many interpretations, is meant to guide Jewish life: our values, our actions, our goals, and our most important decisions. Sometimes, though, it can feel challenging to reconcile the ideals we learn from our study of Torah with the limitations and difficult conditions imposed on us by “real life.” For example, our tradition teaches that workers should not be oppressed, going as far to say that a poor worker should be treated like a member of our own household.

Such teachings may sometimes strike us as nice sentiments but unlikely or impractical to implement in an economic system based on the idea of limited resources. This kind of conflict may sometimes make Torah feel idealistic, esoteric, or impractical. Yet the Torah itself anticipates and responds to this argument, declaring that it is neither too hard for us, nor too distant. It must have meaning in our everyday lives and we are capable of living it.

That message can be applied to our actions to create a just workplace. If we have the courage to recognize that some labor practices create working conditions that run contrary to Jewish values we can act knowing that a just workplace creates a net positive good. Parashat Nitzavim urges us not to imagine this goal as too far away or unattainable, but to take it upon ourselves to act, using our mouths and our hearts, to enact policies like a Paid Family and Medical Leave program for Maryland that will help us care for ourselves, benefit our whole community, and honor the Divine spark in every human being.

-Alana, Kehilat Pardes, Rockville

One thing that has stood out to me during this pandemic is how little our society puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to actually valuing the role of the caregiver: whether it’s women dropping out of the workforce in record numbers to respond to newly expanded childcare needs, the mental health toll on healthcare workers who have treated an onslaught of COVID patients in wave after wave, individuals with chronic conditions who have had to figure out workarounds for living/working/existing in the middle a global pandemic to adequately protect and care for themselves.  All of these things reveal the failures to create safeguards in our country and communities that would ensure there is not a floor below which people can fall because they get sick or their loved one gets sick or because they welcome a child into their life. 

-Lauren, Bolton Street Synagogue, Baltimore

One interesting aspect of the parashah is the inclusivity of its definition of community. This is especially poignant as we prepare to stand together, physically in the building or virtually online, and call on God to consider our fate, standing as one people – im haavaryanot – with all the sinners. And the inclusive definition of community is even more noteworthy in contrast to the exclusivity described when the Torah was given at Mt Sinai… In Exodus 19, we read that God will give the Torah לְעֵינֵ֥י כׇל־הָעָ֖ם in eyes of all people. However, a few verses later, we see that the word ha-am, at least according to Moshe, does not include women... Furthermore, the text emphasizes a hierarchy – Moshe’s unique position is made clear, as well Aharon. The elders and kohanim are singled out, but no one else. Several midrashim emphasize that Israel is singled out among all the nations to receive Torah. The everyone of kol ha-am at Har Sinai appear to only refer to the adult male Jews, with special roles for the leaders. 

Compare that to parashat Netzavim… Yes, the various divisions are mentioned, but they are mentioned to emphasize that everyone was standing there and that all were of equal standing in the eyes of God, regardless of position or stature in the eyes of humans. Perhaps Moshe has grown in his understanding, realizing the mistake that he made earlier by interpreting God’s command that the people should “stay purified for three days” so narrowly that it excluded women from the community…

When I first came to Washington as an intern in the summer of 1990, I lobbied on behalf of the American Jewish Congress for passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act – FMLA. This bill was first introduced in 1984 and was re-introduced every single year until it was finally signed into law in January, 1993. The bill, like most great legislation in America, was a compromise – the original goal was up to 16 weeks of paid leave for every worker. What actually passed was 12 weeks of unpaid leave and businesses with less than 50 employees were exempted. There were also no provisions for the self-employed. This landmark bill simply guaranteed that if you were out with a major medical catastrophe for yourself or a defined family member, you would still be guaranteed a job when you returned.

Just as Moshe’s understanding of “everyone” deepened over the course of the Torah, so too has our society’s understanding of the need for a more inclusive Family and Medical Leave Act. In fact, tired of waiting for the federal government to act, 9 states and the District of Columbia have already passed some form of paid medical leave. And this year, there will be major push to bring it to Maryland also.

-Rabbi Marc Israel, Tikvat Israel, Rockville

As you all are already aware, this year Rosh Hashanah has intersected with Labor Day. My hope is that this intersection will provide us with a reminder that a better, sweeter, more justice-filled world is possible…

This year, congregations from across the state are participating in Labor on the Bimah and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to continue this tradition this morning with Hinenu by sharing about one ongoing labor justice campaign here in Maryland.

So many of the benefits that come with a majority of jobs today are due to the standards that were created by the labor movement of the late 19th and early 20th century. The 40 hour work week, minimum wage, paid vacation days, sick days, lunch breaks, employer-provided health care, and safety standards are just a few of the many achievements that have resulted from the ongoing labor movement. This movement continues to be an important catalyst for improving the working conditions for all workers in our country. Here in Maryland, we have the opportunity to achieve another long-sought goal for workers – that of passing an inclusive and progressive paid family and medical leave policy.

-Matan, Hinenu, Baltimore

So long as we in the Jewish community do our part to honor human dignity and work collaboratively to fulfill our community’s aspirations, so long will we remain faithful to the covenant established between Moses and all of the people of Israel.

-Rabbi Mitch Berkowitz, B’nai Israel, Rockville

Judaism teaches us, in numerous ways, that caring for ourselves and others is a religious obligation. When we recite the prayer for healing, or wish someone a refuah shleimah – complete healing – we are reminded of the duality of caring for both the body and the soul. When we fulfill the mitzvah of bikkur cholim, visiting sick people, we lessen the burden and suffering of those who are ill. Maimonides elaborated on this notion by putting healthcare first on his list of the ten most important communal services that a city must offer.

Paid Family and Medical Leave is an essential component of today’s healthcare because it enables us to care and heal completely. When an illness – or the illness of a loved one – prevents a person from earning the paycheck they need, that added stress and anxiety only complicates the recovery process. Whether you believe, as taught by Maimonides, that sickness separates us from divinity, or you simply notice how difficult it is to be part of a rich communal life when suffering and struggling economically, we all need time for caregiving, nurturing, and recovery so that we can be our full selves in community and connection with the Source of Life.

-Jeff, Adat Shalom, Bethesda