Rabbis,
I am going through the daf yomi and am current through page 54 in Berachos. I tell my brother what I am studying when we talk. He put 2 pieces together and asked this question. Although it seems odd, he asked it serious and you are the only ones I can go to for an answer.
Here's the A couple of weeks ago the Gemara said that after a meal a Torah scholar would wipe his hands on the waiter's head before leaving so his hands would not be soiled. Later it said that a waiter can sit down with you without your permission if there are 2 of you so you can do zimun. His question to me is, once the waiter sits down and is part of your zimun, 1) can you still wipe your hands on his head, or 2) does he lose his waiter status and you must find some other waiter? I appreciate your response to this question.
Barry Epstein
When the Gemara says that a Torah scholar wipes his hands on the waiters head, it was not saying that he wipes the dirt on the waiter's head, but rather the oil which the scholar rubbed on his hands to give them a nice smell. Consequently, when he wipes them on the waiter's head, he is doing the waiter a favor (free cologne, in a sense). Therefore, if the waiter sits down and joins the meal, one may still wipe his hands on him, and he does not lose his status of waiter, because that is his job.
Kollel Iyun Hadaf