It’s a biblical mitzvah to pay our workers on time, so employers need to pay day workers by sunset of the day they finish their work and night workers by dawn following their shift.
Although some people tend to be more relaxed about paying minors promptly, this mitzvah applies equally to paying minors.
So make sure to pay your babysitters as soon as they complete their job.
There are, however, several exceptions to this rule:
- If the babysitter is hired by the week, month, year, or for regular periods like "every Monday afternoon," the payment deadline becomes the end of the day or night of the agreed-upon pay period.
- If you lack funds to pay, you’re exempt from the mitzvah until you get the money.
Once you have funds, you need to use them to pay your employee. While not required, it’s considered praiseworthy to borrow money to fulfill this mitzvah. Additionally, if you have only part of the owed amount, you should pay that portion immediately.
If you agree before work begins that you’ll pay at a later time, you may delay payment until the agreed-up time.
Ordinarily, you would only transgress this mitzvah if the employee specifically requests payment at the due time and you don’t pay. Additionally, if they agree at that time to be paid later, you wouldn’t transgress. However, many authorities note that when dealing with minors, their silence may stem from embarrassment and should not be interpreted as consent to postponed payment.
Furthermore, according to many, a minor (defined as under bar or bat mitzvah) does not have the halachic capacity to waive their right to timely payment after the fact. So, if you anticipate being unable to pay on time, the best course of action is to inform the babysitter before they start working.
