The miller taking his wages in wheat for himself

What do the scholars of Islam say regarding the following issue that in our village, when wheat or maize grains are given to be ground, the mill owner either separates a specific quantity of the grains as his wage before grinding, or he sets aside a specific amount of the flour after grinding. Is this permissible according to Shari‘ah or not? This wage is given with the owner’s consent.
The second issue is that, in our village, after the crops are harvested or grass is cut and bundled, the owner usually transports it from one place to another using a camel. The camel owner then, based on a customary estimate, separates a certain number of bundles for himself as payment. If this is done with the owner’s permission, is it considered permissible and acceptable in Shari‘ah or not?

الجوابُ حامِدا ًو مُصلیِّا ً

In both of the mentioned cases, taking a fixed and specified quantity from the same commodity (e.g., wheat or bundles) as payment(ujrat) before performing the work is undoubtedly permissible(jaiz) and valid in Shari‘ah. However, taking the wage after the work has been done from the same processed goods, such as flour after milling, falls under the prohibited practice known as "Qafīz al-Ṭaḥḥān" (the miller’s scoop), and is therefore impermissible and unlawful. Thus, such a practice must be avoided. That said, a lawful method is also possible in this context. For instance, the grinding wage may be fixed as a specific weight of wheat or flour in general terms, and similarly, in the case of transportation, a certain number of bundles may be predetermined as compensation. If this agreement is made in advance, even if the actual payment is made from the goods after processing, it will not be considered impermissible. In fact, such a transaction is valid and acceptable, and it is how these dealings should ideally be conducted.

مأخَذُ الفَتوی

کمافی الدر المختار: (أو استأجر بغلا ليحمل طعامه ببعضه أو ثورا ليطحن بره ببعض دقيقه) فسدت في الكل؛ لأنه استأجره بجزء من عمله والأصل في ذلك نهيه - صلى الله عليه وسلم - عن قفيز الطحان وقدمناه في بيع الوفاء.والحيلة أن يفرز الأجر أولا أو يسمي قفيزا بلا تعيين ثم يعطيه قفيزا منه فيجوز اھ(6/56)۔