Shlomi was entering the corporate world. He checked the Minchah directory and was happy to find out there was a minyan in a small shul right next to his work.
When he went to daven there, Shlomi learned there was also a Shacharis minyan at 8:15 each morning, ending 9 a.m., just in time for work. After consultation with his rav, he decided to avoid rush hour travel and daven at 8:15 next to his work.
After a few months of davening at the shul, Shlomi’s hours were changed and he had to begin work at 8 a.m. To accommodate the change, he began davening at a very early Shacharis minyan close to his home. Over time, though, he began to notice that work was slow during the first hour and that the other workers were usually able to handle the workload.
One day Shlomi woke up late. He decided he would daven at the shul near his work and stay an extra hour instead. He was greeted by the gabbai. “Where have you been?” the gabbai asked. “We’ve missed you recently! Sometimes we were one short for a minyan.”
“My schedule was switched,” Shlomi replied. “I have to clock in at 8.”
“Great! That means you’re here anyway,” said the gabbai. “Can’t you clock in and then join us? This way you even get paid for davening!”
“I never considered that,” said Shlomi. “The truth is, it won’t really affect work. That hour is slow and my absence will barely make a difference.”
“Think about it!” said the gabbai, slapping him on the back. “Why is it any different than Minchah?”
Shlomi walked back to his office, absorbed in thought. “Is there any difference? Or maybe I shouldn’t be leaving work for Minchah either?”
Shlomi picked up the phone and called Rabbi Dayan. “What is the rule about davening at work?” he asked. “Can I leave work to daven Minchah? Does it count as a lunch break? Can I clock in before davening Shacharis?”
“The answer to these questions varies from place to place and from circumstance to circumstance,” answered Rabbi Dayan. “It is not possible to give a single, definitive answer.”
“Why is that?” asked Shlomi.
“The guiding principle regarding work terms is: hakol keminhag hamidina – everything in accordance with the common practice,” replied Rabbi Dayan. “A contract, as detailed as it is, cannot cover every single aspect of the agreement. Nor is there an interest to draft detailed contracts for each and every employee.
“Therefore, for anything not explicitly addressed in the contract, the rule is: hakol keminhag hamedina. The default assumption is that the employer and employee agree to the customary practices of that time and place. This applies to hours, working conditions, vacations, benefits, etc., whenever the terms are not explicitly stipulated in the contract.” (C.M. 331:1)
“An employee also has to realize his work time is precious and the employer is paying him for his work,” continued Rabbi Dayan. “Our Sages even exempted workers from reciting the fourth blessing of bentching so as not to waste time. Although this is no longer the practice, since employers nowadays are not particular about the additional minute and hire with this understanding, it underscores the need to work with integrity and not waste the employer’s time.” (O.C. 191:1-2)
“The Rambam,” Rabbi Dayan noted, “sets forth the required work ethic at the end of Hilchos Sechirus (13:6-7), cited by the Shulchan Aruch [C.M. 337:19-20]:
“ ‘Just as the employer is warned not to steal the wages of a poor laborer and should not withhold them, so too, the poor [employee] is warned not to steal the work of the employer and waste time a little here and a little there, spending the whole day unproductively, but must be meticulous with his time.