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February 13, 2012
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Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
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Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
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January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
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January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
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Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
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Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
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January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
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January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
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January 11, 2012
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Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
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January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
July 16, 2008
/13 Tamuz 5768
Poaching humans
By
Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Q: My firm would have trouble filling an open position with a simple ad asking for CV's. But we know an existing worker at another firm who is suitable. Can we try to lure him away?
A: Jewish law has a healthy respect for existing business relationships and negotiations, and educates us to be reluctant to disrupt them. The Talmud tells the following story:
Rav Gidel was bargaining on a certain property, when Rebbe Abba came along and bought it. Rav Gidel went and complained to Rebbe Zeira; Rebbe Zeira went and complained to Rav Yitzchak Nafcha. He said, wait until he comes to visit in the holiday. When he came, he found him and said, A poor person who is bargaining for a loaf of bread and someone else comes and takes it from him, what is the rule? He said, he is considered wicked. Then why did you do this? He said, I did not know [that Rav Gidel had already begun negotiations]. (1)
However, many commentaries limit this restriction to the case where the "poaching" is gratuitous or nearly so. They assume that Rebbe Abba could easily have found another property that suited his needs; in that case, it would have been unethical for him to undo all of Rav Gidel's concern and negotiation and make him start all over looking for a field. Rav Gidel is thus likened to someone "poor", who will suffer a loss if he has to look elsewhere, and Rebbe Abba to someone rich, who has many opportunities. If however Rebbe Abba had a special reason to want specifically this field, then it would have been proper. (2)
The same commentators also extend the analogy to the labor market. They state that a worker shouldn't try to offer himself to an employer who is already satisfied with his current employee. The assumption is that the unemployed worker has many work opportunities and that he shouldn't pick on the currently employed worker who is already invested in his current place of work. But it is permissible for an employer to hire away a worker from some other employer; again, the assumption is that good workers are hard to find. But these are only examples. If the facts were opposite - jobs hard to find and workers easy to find - the ruling would be opposite.
So given your statement that you would have difficulty finding a good worker through regular channels, it would be perfectly OK for you to offer a job to a person currently employed elsewhere. It is also OK to hire such a person if you solicit CV's and he sends one; then he has judged that it is in his interest to change positions.
However, in many lines of work there are unwritten agreements among firms not to poach. There is a kind of "golden rule" at work where firms agree that everyone would be better off avoiding a disruptive game of musical chairs. If this is the custom in your industry I would think twice before rocking the boat; your decision could come back to haunt you.
Another ethical issue to consider is the way of approaching this individual. It would be improper to approach or contact him at work, or through work channels (e.g., his work phone or e-mail). This would be adding insult to the injury suffered by his current employer. And it goes without saying that you shouldn't take advantage of any private information the worker obtained in his current workplace.
SOURCES: (1) Babylonian Talmud, Kiddushin 59a (2) Tosafos commentary, there
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JWR contributor Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir, formerly of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Reagan
administration, is Research Director of the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem, Jerusalem College of Technology.
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