Paying a Domestic Worker Below the Statutory Minimum Wage

Question:

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Respected Mufti Sahib,

I request a ruling according to the Hanafi madhhab regarding the following situation.

A Muslim employer residing in South Africa employs domestic workers for approximately eight hours per working day and pays them R100–R120 per day, equivalent to approximately R12.50–R15 per hour.

From 1 March 2026, South African law requires domestic workers to be paid at least R30.23 per hour. This minimum cannot legally be waived by the worker or reduced by agreement between the employer and employee. Thus, the agreed wage in the above case is substantially below the statutory minimum.

The workers know the wage beforehand and willingly agree to work for it. They have not complained or demanded a higher wage. However, unemployment is high and they may have limited alternative employment opportunities.

Some of the workers are foreign nationals from neighbouring countries, and some may not have valid work permits.

South African law also provides an exemption procedure where an employer genuinely cannot afford the minimum wage. However, even an approved exemption may not reduce a domestic worker’s wage below 90% of the national minimum. In the case under consideration, no such exemption has been obtained.

Questions

1. Is it permissible according to the Hanafi madhhab to pay the above agreed wage when the worker knows the amount and willingly accepts it, despite it being below the legally prescribed minimum? If the ijārah and stipulated wage (ujrah musammā) are valid, can the employer nevertheless be sinful or guilty of ẓulm for paying this amount?
2. Is a Muslim residing in a non-Muslim country such as South Africa Sharʿan obliged to comply with a minimum-wage law of this nature by virtue of his residence or citizenship and the protection and rights he receives from the state?
3. If Sharīʿah requires the employer to have paid more, is the difference a debt (dayn) owed to the workers for the past? If so, should it be calculated according to the statutory minimum wage, ujrat al-mithl, or some other standard? What should be done if a former worker can no longer be traced?
4. Do either of the following affect the ruling:
   (a) the worker being a foreign national or not having a valid work permit; or
   (b) the employer genuinely being unable to afford the statutory minimum?

Kindly also advise what such an employer should do from now onwards.

If possible, please provide the ruling with references from the relied-upon books of the Hanafi madhhab.

جزاكم الله خيراً

والسلام

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-Salāmu ‘Alaykum Wa-Rahmatullāhi Wa-Barakātuh.

According to the Shari’ah, the wage in an ijārah (employment) contract is determined by the mutual agreement of the two contracting parties. The wage is in consideration of the work performed, irrespective of the employee’s qualifications or nationality. Therefore, the employer is only liable to pay the wage agreed upon in the employment contract and is not liable to pay anything beyond it.

However, the Shari’ah recognizes that it is the employer’s moral responsibility to take the genuine needs and circumstances of his employees into consideration when determining their wages. Therefore, if, due to unemployment, financial constraints, lack of qualifications, or the absence of a valid work permit, an employer deliberately exploits a worker’s circumstances and deprives him of what he is reasonably entitled to, despite having the financial ability to pay him adequately, such conduct is entirely inappropriate, morally reprehensible, contrary to the spirit of Islam, and not free from blame.[1]

As for the minimum-wage law, if the government enforces compliance and failure to comply may result in humiliation, disgrace, or legal repercussions, while the employer has the financial ability to pay the prescribed minimum wage, then he should comply with it in order to protect himself from such consequences and preserve his dignity. Nabi ﷺ said:

‏”‏لاَ يَنْبَغِي لِلْمُؤْمِنِ أَنْ يُذِلَّ نَفْسَهُ‏”‏. قَالُوا وَكَيْفَ يُذِلُّ نَفْسَهُ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏”‏ يَتَعَرَّضُ مِنَ الْبَلاَءِ لِمَا لاَ يُطِيقُ ‏”‏‏.‏

“It is not fitting for the believer to humiliate himself” They said: “How does he humiliate himself?” He said: “By taking on a trial which he cannot bear.”

[Sunan Ibn Majah: 4016, Jami` at-Tirmidhi: 2254][2]

And Allah Ta’ala Knows Best.

Checked and Approved by,

Mufti Muhammad Zakariyya Desai.