Powered By Blogger

Monday, September 17, 2018

My Cleaning Lady Just Sued Me – YOU’VE BEEN WARNED!


The following appeared in the YeshivaWorld Blog:
Added some of the comments on this post:
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
Many in the community currently use the services of Spanish-speaking cleaning-ladies who hail from South or Central America, most of whom are in the country illegally.
I would like to bring to the unsuspecting public’s attention a story that is currently taking place, so that others can protect themselves when employing the above-mentioned people:
I employed one of these women full-time, for over eight years, paying her $10, then $11, and subsequently $12 per hour.
Before this past Pesach, she asked for $13 per hour, which I agreed to give her on condition that she would be willing to come for the next two Sundays before Pesach. Although she would work on Sundays when she needed extra money, this time she refused, and left the house with me being furious that she had turned me down.
She never returned, and I figured that she must have found a better paying job.
I must make it very clear that I was an extremely kind, lenient employer.
• I gave her $10 every day so that she could buy her own kosher food, plus she had a free lunch hour that she got paid for.
• Although, she damaged many clothing items, I never expected her to reimburse me.
• If she worked very late, I would feed her supper and send her home with an Uber, at a fare of approximately $30.
• When she complained that the workload was too heavy for her, (I live in a duplex with my husband and young daughter), I brought in a second lady to assist her.
• She would chat on the phone while working, even though it impeded her speed and distracted her, but I never told her to turn her iPhone off.
• I kept quiet when she would stay late because she wanted to make up her missed hours, even though I knew she was taking advantage of me.
• I gave her many items of used clothing when she hinted that she desired them, plus I bought her teenage daughter a new winter coat when she asked me to.
• Lastly, I tipped her very generously before the Jewish holidays.
This week I got a court summons.
This very woman, whom I wined and dined, and with whom I tried to make a “Kiddush Hashem”, treating her with utmost respect, is suing me!!! For the hefty sum of $75,000 dollars!!! She claims that she should have been paid time and a half for each of her hours of overtime. (She never, ever, mentioned time and a half in all her years of working at my home).
After consulting with three different lawyers, it is apparent that the law is on her side. (Ironically, she revealed to me recently that she has a deportation notice…). Sadly, there is little I can do but make a settlement with her. I do not know how much this joke will cost me in the end, but I am heartbroken to have to give my hard-earned money to such a disloyal, ungrateful person.
Moreover, I now know that I am not the first gullible “heimishe” woman who has taken in a Mexican housekeeper, and then been sent a summons. This trend is becoming increasingly popular. There are Spanish speaking lawyers who offer these workers their services, free of charge, on condition that they get a share of the settlement money. The complaints against employees can vary, but the motive is the same.
I know some might ask why I kept her all these years if I had complaints against her. The truth is that I trusted her. She may have lied occasionally, but she never touched my valuables though she had enough opportunities to snitch. Plus, she was a reliable worker overall, who arrived when she said she would. She knew the running of my home, and she took off many of my responsibilities.
I sincerely regret being so gracious to her, and I feel that she has punched me in the face.


Ladies! Please don’t make the same mistakes as me!
• Never trust these chevra even if you think they are truly loyal to you.
• Never employ the same person for 40 hours a week or longer, unless she is prepared to be paid on the books, by check, and then have to pay her taxes. I wish I had insisted on this, but it is almost impossible to get a housekeeper under these conditions.
• Keep a record of her hours and have her sign it. Thus, in the future, she won’t be able to claim that she worked longer. You must have proof. If not, it’s her word against yours. Overtime is considered eight or more hours a day, and/or forty hours a week or longer.
Remember: even if you only employ her once a week, she can sue you if she worked eight hours or more in a single day.
• Never let them think you have spare money; they will simply take advantage of you.
I hope this report iy”H helps prevent others from experiencing these scenarios.
Anonymous in Brooklyn
To the author of this article:
Being part of the heimeshe tzibur doesn’t equate to stupidity or ignorance of widely known and publicized federal and state labor laws governing minimum wages, overtime, sick leave, benefits and other rules which vary across jurisdictions and the tax/SS/disability withholding obligations that also may apply. These obligations have been reported in the secular and frum media over and over again so there is zero likelihood anyone could legitimately claim “I did not know”. I’m not endorsing being in the U.S. without documentation but that is no reason to exploit such workers. And yes, even if you think you are treating them like royalty and doing more than your neighbor does for her cleaning lady, you are exploiting them and violating the law if you fail to provide all the required benefits, fail to withhold taxes and fail to submit reports. If you are in doubt, you should contract with one of the many reputable cleaning services owned an operate by other members of the frum tzibur who will take care of all these details and are also screen their employees and are insured and bonded so you are protected. Yes, they are more expensive than hiring your own cleaning lady but that extra cost will protect you against these incidents.

  1. “After consulting with three different lawyers, it is apparent that the law is on her side. (Ironically, she revealed to me recently that she has a deportation notice…). Sadly, there is little I can do but make a settlement with her.”
    NO!!!! I’m not a lawyer – Get yourself a GOOD lawyer and sue her in Federal Court to stop the State Lawsuit.
    The libs in this country are going NUTS!
  2. I feel quite sorry for you but this is a very unusual story. Additionally, details seem to be missing since if she was here illegally, I assume you paid her in cash. If so, I don’t understand how she is suing you since their is presumably no proof that she ever worked for you. I would also consult with lawyer if I were you.
  3. Hire legal help from an insured and bonded cleaning company and you wont have regrets.
    I got rembursed from the company after I proved that one of the workers broke a shelf in my fridge.
  4. Illegals have taken control of our country! They own our land! We actually gave it to them! When you call an office number you’re often told to press Sinca for Spanish and 1 or 2 for English- but Spanish is usually first! We gave them our land!
  5. ” Keep a record of her hours and have her sign it. Thus, in the future, she won’t be able to claim that she worked longer. You must have proof. If not, it’s her word against yours. Overtime is considered eight or more hours a day, and/or forty hours a week or longer”
    While I’m not a lawyer, but this does not make any sense, as she doesn’t even have any record that she was employed by you. Technically, you can deny she even worked for you. The same way one can sue for ‘overtime’, you can sue that you worked for 100’s of hrs more…
  6. Why not counter-sue for the damages she caused? Perfect time to present a bill for all the goods you gave her, for which there was no contract – from your story it does sound like you have offsets. Also, check your homeowners policy, if the policy covers the lawsuit the insurance company will have her in court longer than she can last in the country. Don’t settle!
  7. It’s IMPOSSIBLE that there’s nothing you can do.
    Go to the feds: 1) She’s here illegally. 2) Counter sue for all the damages she did and all the advantage-taking. 3) All the things you bought here in good faith and the costly rids etc. must be returned! – Get a shark of a lawyer – not the CPA type…
  8. Yes. This story is REAL. It happened to me as well. I gave my cleaning lady tons of food, she was part of the family for years and years (12 years). We always gave her an extra few hundred during Yom Tov. A weeks salary for Christmas, Sent her home in Ubers in bad weather. And then one day she paid us back with a labor lawsuit.
    Yes. It happened.
    #MeToo
  9. Gadolhadorah, your liberalism makes you a mean person to the victim and the defendent of a criminal. It is so nausciating. This frum lady has abosolutely NOT exploited anyone, certainly not that ungrateful witch of a worker. Firstly, the cleaning lady was NOT forced to work for someone when the terms we’re clearly agreed upon by both parties beforehand, so there’s no exploitation involved whatsoever to begin with. If she didn’t like the terms she could LEAVE. Secondly, the employer paid her nicely as well as gave her bonuses with clothing and free taxi which she was not in any way obligated to do so. You call that exploitation?! And that criminal suing her employer for “overtime” which was not in the original terms of employment which was clearly agreed upon beforehand of 12$ an hour, is not exploitation?! Have you lost your mind?! Not for nothing do they say like liberalism is a mental disorder…
  10. Nothing you can do? Just say, lo hadam. She never worked for me, I don’t know who she is.
    If she can prove she worked for you, then you are in trouble anyway for not withholding, providing benefits etc.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey - you have an off the books illegal working for you. You are not withholding payroll taxes. You are violating labor laws and tax codes.
I can't imagine how you wouldn't know this.