My Housecleaner Is Sick a Lot. Can I Fire Her?

The Ethicist responds. [View in browser](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP4Q1AWh0dHBzOi8vbWVzc2FnaW5nLWN1c3RvbS1uZXdzbGV0dGVycy5ueXRpbWVzLmNvbS90ZW1wbGF0ZS9vYWt2Mj9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD01MiZlbWM9ZWRpdF9tYV8yMDIyMDIxMiZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD01MjkyMiZubD10aGUtbmV3LXlvcmstdGltZXMtbWFnYXppbmUmcHJvZHVjdENvZGU9TUEmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTgyNTE5JnRlPTEmdXJpPW55dCUzQSUyRiUyRm5ld3NsZXR0ZXIlMkZkNDI2NmNhNi03ZmE2LTViZGUtOGIwNC0yZmIxOGFhMTQzYWEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpiBZihB2I_A6WbUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~)|[nytimes.com](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0S9aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTUyJmVtYz1lZGl0X21hXzIwMjIwMjEyJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTUyOTIyJm5sPXRoZS1uZXcteW9yay10aW1lcy1tYWdhemluZSZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9ODI1MTkmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmIFmKEHYj8DpZtSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~)[Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-ad-marquee) ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9MTYxOTY2JmxpPU1BJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1NQV8yMDIyMDIxMlcDbnl0QgpiBZihB2I_A6WbUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ [The New York Times Magazine](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0TNaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vc2VjdGlvbi9tYWdhemluZT9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD01MiZlbWM9ZWRpdF9tYV8yMDIyMDIxMiZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD01MjkyMiZubD10aGUtbmV3LXlvcmstdGltZXMtbWFnYXppbmUmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTgyNTE5JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpiBZihB2I_A6WbUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) February 12, 2022 [[Article Image] Illustration by Tomi Um](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wMi8wOC9tYWdhemluZS9ob3VzZS1jbGVhbmluZy1jbGVhbmVyLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTImZW1jPWVkaXRfbWFfMjAyMjAyMTImaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NTI5MjImbmw9dGhlLW5ldy15b3JrLXRpbWVzLW1hZ2F6aW5lJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD04MjUxOSZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYgWYoQdiPwOlm1IbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [The Ethicist My Housecleaner Is Sick a Lot. Do I Have to Stick With Her? The magazine’s Ethicist columnist on what people owe long-term domestic workers. By Kwame Anthony Appiah](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wMi8wOC9tYWdhemluZS9ob3VzZS1jbGVhbmluZy1jbGVhbmVyLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTImZW1jPWVkaXRfbWFfMjAyMjAyMTImaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NTI5MjImbmw9dGhlLW5ldy15b3JrLXRpbWVzLW1hZ2F6aW5lJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD04MjUxOSZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYgWYoQdiPwOlm1IbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) I have had the same woman come once a week to clean my house for the past 10 years. Several times a year — amounting to between 10 to 15 percent of her scheduled days — she gets a migraine and cancels for the week, always at the last minute. She is a one-woman operation, so there is no one else to come in her place. I realize not having someone come to clean your house is not the world’s biggest tragedy, but it does leave me in the lurch with either cleaning projects left undone or a scramble to get done things I had not planned on having to do. I don’t believe she is lying to me about feeling unwell. And it is, of course, reasonable to expect people to be ill once in a while, but is there such a thing as too often — i.e., can I let her go and find someone else that would be more reliable because she gets sick too often? [Read the Ethicist’s response here](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wMi8wOC9tYWdhemluZS9ob3VzZS1jbGVhbmluZy1jbGVhbmVyLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTImZW1jPWVkaXRfbWFfMjAyMjAyMTImaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NTI5MjImbmw9dGhlLW5ldy15b3JrLXRpbWVzLW1hZ2F6aW5lJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD04MjUxOSZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYgWYoQdiPwOlm1IbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA). 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By Polina Barskova and Victoria Chang](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0T4aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wMi8xMC9tYWdhemluZS9wb2VtLWEtc3VubnktbW9ybmluZy1pbi10aGUtc3F1YXJlLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTImZW1jPWVkaXRfbWFfMjAyMjAyMTImaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NTI5MjImbmw9dGhlLW5ldy15b3JrLXRpbWVzLW1hZ2F6aW5lJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD04MjUxOSZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYgWYoQdiPwOlm1IbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [[Article Image] Illustration by Radio](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRj6iaYP0TdaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wMi8wOC9tYWdhemluZS9zbWlsaW5nLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTImZW1jPWVkaXRfbWFfMjAyMjAyMTImaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NTI5MjImbmw9dGhlLW5ldy15b3JrLXRpbWVzLW1hZ2F6aW5lJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD04MjUxOSZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYgWYoQdiPwOlm1IbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [Tip How to Smile Dominantly It should be asymmetrical. Try leaning back. Just remember, being aggressive isn’t the same as actual power. 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