Fatwa No : 82771
Ruling on Deducting from an Announced Bonus for Employees as a Form of Punishment

Ruling on Deducting from an Announced Bonus for Employees as a Form of Punishment

Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh!
I would like to ask about a matter concerning our factory. In the factory where we work, workers are given a bonus (in addition to their salary) for good production. Apart from regular duty, the factory also operates on Sundays as overtime.
1. If a worker does not come on duty on Sunday, we impose a penalty, which is deducted from the bonus amount, not the salary. If no penalty is imposed, most workers tend to take leave, causing the machines to stop. Is it permissible to impose such a penalty? Please note that the deducted amount is later used on the workers themselves — for example, if someone gets injured, etc.
2. Similarly, if a worker makes a mistake that damages fabric or leads to incorrect dyeing — which can sometimes cause losses in the thousands or even lakhs — we also impose a penalty. That penalty too is spent on workers' welfare. Is this permissible? If both of the above penalties are not permissible in Shari‘ah, can we instead implement a one-day gate stop as a form of punishment? This is a strict penalty, but it may bring discipline among the workers, and we would no longer need to impose financial penalties.

الجوابُ حامِدا ًو مُصلیِّا ً

If the factory has a policy that employees will be rewarded for punctuality and good performance — and Sunday attendance is included as part of that performance and time commitment — then in such a case, withholding the bonus from an employee who takes leave on Sunday is undoubtedly permissible. However, deducting money from the employee's salary as a penalty falls under the category of monetary punishment (taʿzir mali), which is not permissible in Islamic law and must be avoided. In the case of damage or loss caused by an employee, it is not permissible to recover the cost of that damage from the employee unless the damage was caused deliberately, or due to clear negligence or carelessness on the part of the employee. In such a case, recovering the amount equivalent to the loss is permissible. Likewise, stopping a salaried employee from work for a day and deducting their wage on that basis is also not permissible, and should be avoided.

مأخَذُ الفَتوی

كما في الدر المختار: (لا بأخذ مال في المذهب) بحر. وفيه عن البزازية: وقيل يجوز، ومعناه أن يمسكه مدة لينزجر ثم يعيده له، فإن أيس من توبته صرفه إلى ما يرى. وفي المجتبى أنه كان في ابتداء الإسلام ثم نسخ. (4/ 61)۔
وفي حاشية ابن عابدين: مطلب في التعزير بأخذ المال (قوله لا بأخذ مال في المذهب) قال في الفتح: وعن أبي يوسف يجوز التعزير للسلطان بأخذ المال. وعندهما وباقي الأئمة لا يجوز. اهـ. ومثله في المعراج، وظاهره أن ذلك رواية ضعيفة عن أبي يوسف. قال في الشرنبلالية: ولا يفتى بهذا لما فيه من تسليط الظلمة على أخذ مال الناس فيأكلونه اهـ ومثله في شرح الوهبانية عن ابن وهبان (قوله وفيه إلخ) أي في البحر، حيث قال: وأفاد في البزازية أن معنى التعزير بأخذ المال على القول به إمساك شيء من ماله عنه مدة لينزجر ثم يعيده الحاكم إليه، لا أن يأخذه الحاكم لنفسه أو لبيت المال كما يتوهمه الظلمة إذ لا يجوز لأحد من المسلمين أخذ مال أحد بغير سبب شرعي. وفي المجتبى لم يذكر كيفية الأخذ وأرى أن يأخذها فيمسكها، فإن أيس من توبته يصرفها إلى ما يرى. وفي شرح الآثار: التعزير بالمال كان في ابتداء الإسلام ثم نسخ. اهـ. (4/ 61)۔