-
Meaning and Importance as Factor of Production
-
Dignity of Labour
-
Lawful and Unlawful Wages
-
Rights of Labour
-
Obligations of Labour
-
Determination of Wages
-
Contract of Service
I- Meaning and
Importance as Factor of Production
The term labour in
Economics is used in a very wide sense. Any work whether manual or
mental which is undertaken for a monetary consideration is called
labour. Any work done for the sake of pleasure and pastime only
having no consideration of any reward or compensation is not
labour. According to Marshall, “any exertion of mind and body
undergone partly or wholly with a view to some good other than the
pleasure derived directly from work, is called labour. Labour in
this sense includes the very highest professional skill of all
kinds as well as the labour of a mass of unskilled workers. Thus
it includes labour of highly educated professionals like
scientists, engineers, doctors, economists, professors, lawyers,
judges, accountants, diplomats, administrators, as well as that of
ordinary workers in factories, agricultural farms, government
departments, private sector, etc.
Some economists
divide the labour into productive and non-productive labour. It is
productive if it adds some material value like labour in the
agricultural sector and manufacture. If it does not result in some
material value then it is unproductive. According to Adam Smith,
labour of menial servants as well as of the most respectable
orders in society such as sovereign with all its officers in civil
administration, justice and armed forces, is unproductive.
However, according to modern conception all labour is called
productive provided it is done to earn an income.
Labour is
synonymous with man and is by far the most important factor of
production. Even the natural wealth of a country is of no use if
it is not properly exploited by its men. Nature may be very
generous to a country in providing unlimited natural resources but
without human endeavour, they remain unused. “Pakistan”, it is
said, “is a rich country inhabited by poor people.” On the other
hand, Japan is a country blessed with little natural wealth but it
is an economic power of the first order because of its hard
working, diligent and intelligent people. Thus human resource
comprising committed, hardworking and patriotic labour, manual as
well as intellectual, is a must for economic development of a
nation.
In view of its
importance in the production of wealth, Islam has laid great
emphasis on human labour. Al-Qur’an, the revealed book of Islam,
promulgates the fundamental principle regarding role of labour
when it says: “There is nothing for man but what he strives for”-
(53:39). According to this verse, there is no royal road or easy
way to success. The way to progress and success in the world is
through struggle and effort. The harder a man or a people work.,
the higher reward they are likely to get. According to Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH), “God loves those who work and strive for their
livelihood” and “to search lawful earning is obligatory after the
compulsory things (like prayer, fasting, belief in God).
Both physical and
intellectual labour have been emphasised in Islam. The Qur’an
refers to manual labour when it talks of construction of boat by
Prophet Noah, manufacture of coats of mail by Prophet David,
tending of sheep by Prophet Moses and building of wall by
Zul-Qarnain. The Holy Book also refers to intellectual labour when
it relates the story of Prophet Joseph who was appointed incharge
of treasures of Egypt by its king.
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II- Dignity of
Labour
Dignity and honour
is attached to labour and work in Islam while the sources of
unearned income and easy gains like usury, games of chance, etc.
are despised and forbidden. Work is so much dignified and
honourable that the Prophets who are the noblest of the human
beings had engaged themselves in labour and hard work for earning
their livelihood. The Qur’an mentions the example of Prophet David
and Prophet Moses who respectively worked as ironsmith and
shepherd. Prophet of Islam himself pastured sheep. He did not
consider any work as menial or below dignity. In Ghazwah Ahzab
(Battle of Allies), the Prophet was seen working and lifting
stones alongwith his companions to dig a ditch to defend Madinah
from the enemy. Let us glance through some verses of the Qur’an
and Ahadith of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to highlight the honour in
which labour, both manual and intellectual, is held by Islam.
Verses of Holy
Qur’an :
1. And he was building the ship and every time the
chieftains of his people passed him, they made mock of him. He
said: Though ye make mock of us, yet we mock at you even as ye
mock.
-(11:38)
2.
So they twain journeyed on till, when they came
unto the folk of a certain township, they asked its folk for food,
but they refused to make them guests. And they found therein a
wall upon the point of falling into ruin, and he repaired it.
(Moses) said: If thou hadst wished, thou couldst have taken
payment for it.
-(18:77)
3.
One of the two women said: O my father! Hire him!
For the best (man) that thou canst hire is the strong, the
trustworthy. He said: Lo! I fain would marry thee to one of these
two daughters of mine on condition that thou hirest thyself to me
for (the term of) eight pilgrimages. Then if thou completest ten
it will be of thine own accord, for I would not make it hard for
thee. Allah willing, thou will find me of the righteous.
-(28:26-27)
4.
And assuredly We gave David grace from us, (saying)
: O ye hills and birds, echo his psalms of praise! And We made the
iron supple unto him. Saying: Make thou long coats of mail and
measure the links (thereof). And do ye right. Lo! I am Seer of
what ye do.
-(34:10-11)
Ahadith of
Muhammad (PBUH) :
1. Abu Hurairah
reported from the Holy Prophet who said: Allah did not raise up
any Prophet who did not graze goats. His companions asked: you
too? ‘yes’ said he, I used to tend goats for the inhabitants of
Makkah for some qirats.
-(Bukhari)
2.
Ayesha reported that the Holy Prophet used to mend
his shoes, sew his clothes and work in his household just as one
of you works in his own house. She also reported that he was a man
among men who used to patch his clothes, milk his goats and engage
himself in work.
-(Tirmizi)
3.
Zubari-b-Awam reported that the Messenger of Allah
said: That one of you takes his rope and then comes with a load of
wood upon his back and sells it, and that thereby Allah guards his
face, is better for him than that he should beg of men whether
they give him or refuse him.
-(Bukhari)
4.
Meqdam-b-Ma’de Yakrab reported that the Messenger
of Allah said: Never has any one eaten a better food than what he
has eaten out of the labour of his own hands; and David, the
Prophet of Allah, used to eat out of the labour of his own hands.
-(Bukhari)
5.
Utbah-b-Munzir reported. We were near the Messenger
of Allah when he recited – ‘Twa, Sin, Mim’, till he reached the
story of Moses. He said: verily Moses engaged himself as a
labourer for nine or ten years on condition of keeping his private
parts chaste and of food for his belly.
-(Ahmad, Ibn
Majah)
6.
Ayesha reported that the Holy Prophet said: The
purest of what you eat come from your own earnings, and your
children come from your own earnings.
-(Trimizi, Nisai,
Ibn Majah)
7.
Abu Zarr reported that the Messenger of Allah said;
O Abu Zarr! There is no wisdom like efforts, no piety like
self-denial and no goodness like good conduct.
-(Bukhari)
8.
Refe-b-Khudaiz reported that it was questioned: O
Messenger of Allah, which earning is purest? He said: The earning
of a man with his own hand, and every honest transaction.
-(Ahmad)
9.
Abdullah-b-Masud reported that the Messenger of
Allah said: To search after lawful earning is compulsory after the
compulsory things.
-(Baihaqi)
10.
Once the hands of a companion of the Holy Prophet
became black by working with a hammer. The Holy Prophet, seeing
his hands, enquired as to what had happened? He replied that it
was because he had worked with a hammer on a very hard ground to
earn livelihood for his family. Hearing this the Holy Prophet
kissed his hands (and was pleased to know that he was earning an
honest living by hard work).
11.
Ali the fourth Caliph, used to say (with pride)
that one day he came to know that the Holy Prophet was hungry. He
went in search of work so that he might earn something for the
Holy Prophet. He saw a Jew in a garden outside Madinah who had a
heap of mud and wanted some-one to put water into it. He struck a
bargain with him at one date for a bucket of water and earned
seventeen dates in wages for seventeen buckets of water and came
home. Then he went to the Holy Prophet and informed him about the
bargain and then both ate them.
12.
Abu Hurairah
reported : “Once
the Ansars asked the Holy Prophet to divide the date trees between
the Muhajirin and themselves. The Holy Prophet did not allow this.
But when the Ansars asked the Muhajirin to work in the gardens and
share the produce with them, they readily accepted the offer (and
the Holy Prophet was very pleased with this arrangement).”
13.
Abdur Rahman bin Auf
said: “When we came
to Madinah, the Holy Prophet (created brotherly relations between
the Ansar and Muhajirin and) created this relationship between
Saad bin Rabee and myself. Saad was the richest of all the Ansar
and wanted to give me half of his wealth and one of his two wives.
I refused to accept his offer but asked him to tell me of a trade
centre. He told me of a Qainuqa bazar, I went there next morning
and bought some curd and ghee (for sale) and then I went there
every day (to do this kind of business).”
14.
It is reported that once an unemployed Ansar
asked the Holy Prophet for some charity. The Holy Prophet enquired
from him if he had any property. He replied that he had a blanket
to cover his body and a cup to drink. The Holy Prophet asked him
to bring these things. When he brought them, the Holy
Traditions No 10 to
14 quoted by Afzal-ur-Rahman in Economic Doctrines of Islam.
Prophet took them
in his hand and auctioned them among the people. One of the
present offered one dirham. The Holy Prophet requested him to
raise the bid. Another man offered two dirhams and bought these
things. The Holy Prophet gave two dirhams to that man and advised
him to purchase an axe with one dirham. When he bought the axe,
the Holy Prophet fixed the handle in it with his own hands and,
giving it over to that man, said, “go to the jungle and cut wood
and don’t see me before fifteen days”. After a fortnight, when he
came back, the Holy Prophet enquired how he was. He replied that
he earned twelve dirhams during that period and purchased some
cloth and grain. The Holy Prophet remarked, “this is better than
begging and disgracing yourself on the Day of Judgement”.
Above mentioned
verses of the Holy Qur’an and traditions of the Prophet of Islam
establish beyond any doubt that work is to be honoured and
respected and the worker who earns his livelihood by his own hands
is very much respectable. In Islam there is no work which is lowly
or menial. Lowly or mean is the person who divides the work into
high or low.
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III- Lawful and
Unlawful Wages
Wages are lawful
when the work to be done is lawful. But when the work to be done
is unlawful, then its wages would be unlawful. For example, if one
is employed to commit theft or murder, wages received for the work
shall be unlawful because the work is abinitio unlawful. Similarly
wages are unlawful when the work to be done is your religious or
social obligation (farz) for example, wages cannot be received for
offering prayer or visiting sick. But wages for medically treating
a person are lawful. Work which is done to please Allah, e.g.
recitation of Holy Qur’an or teaching Qur’an to children, is not
entitled for wages. However, a person engaged in the profession of
teaching Qur’an as a source of his livelihood can charge wages for
teaching the Qur’an. According to opinion of jurists, wages can be
charged for washing dead, burying dead, digging graves, leading
tarawih prayers and for guiding the pilgrims by those who are
engaged in such professions. Wages for participation in Jehad or
wages for preaching of Islam are not lawful unless the persons
participating in these activities are professional soldiers and
preachers.
Ibn Abbas reported
that a party of the Prophet’s companions passed by a place of
water. There was man among them who was beaten by a scorpion or
snake. A man from among the owners of the place of water came
before them and said: Is there any charmer among you? Verily in
the place of water there is a man bitten by a scorpion or snake. A
man from them advanced and read the Opening of the Book for wages
of a goat and then he was cured. He came with the goat to his
companions who disliked that and said: “You have taken wages for
the Book of Allah!” Then they came to Madinah and enquired: O
Messenger of Allah, he has taken wages for the Book of Allah. The
Messenger of Allah said: The book of Allah has got more right for
wages than what you have taken for. Bukhari narrated it. And in
a narration: You have done well! Divide it and set up a share
for me with you.
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IV- Rights of
Labour
Islam recognises
the fact that wealth is jointly produced by labour and capital.
Since labour is in a comparatively weaker position, Islam has
taken many measure to protect its rights. Rights of labour are in
fact duties of the employer and vice versa. In this section we
shall study rights of labour while in the next section we shall
discuss the obligations of labour.
Rights of a
labourer and a worker include: that a labourer should be treated
as a human being and not as a beast of burden; that dignity and
respect should be attached to labour and work; that reasonable
wages should be fixed at the time of employment, and that wages
should be promptly paid. All these rights were given by Islam to
the labour some fourteen hundred years ago when there was no
concept of such rights, there were no labour unions, there were no
charters of demand, there was no labour movement and there was no
concept of collective bargaining.
1.
In the sight of Islam all men and women are equal.
Islam has established brotherhood, fraternity and equality among
the Muslims and has abolished all distinctions between man and man
based on race, colour, language, nationality or wealth. In Islam
rich or poor, white or black, employer or employee, Arab or non –
Arab, wealthy or worker, are all equal as all the human beings
hail from the same stock and belong to the same parents.
The Prophet of
Islam treated his servants as members of his family. It has been
reported by Anas that he served the Prophet (PBUH) for a long time
and the Prophet treated him well and never said ‘oof’ (an
expression of condemnation) to him.
2. Before the
times of Prophet of Islam, labour was mainly provided by the
slaves. The slaves worked in commerce, agricultural sector and in
household while the fruits of their labour were enjoyed by their
masters. The treatment given to the slaves was very inhuman and
cruel. They were ill-clad, ill-fed and mal-treated. The Prophet of
Islam not only restored their human dignity but also raised their
status to the level of brothers and colleagues. The Holy Qur’an
says: “And serve Allah and ascribe nothing as partner unto Him.
(Show) kindness unto parents, and unto near kindred, and orphans,
and the needy, and unto the neighbour who is of kin and the
neighbour who is not of kin, and the fellow traveller and the
wayfarer and (the slaves) whom your right hands possess”. (4:36).
It is reported on the authority of Abu Zarr that the Messenger of
Allah instructed his followers regarding slaves as follows: “Your
brethren – Allah has placed them under your hands; whosoever’s
brother Allah has placed under his hands, let him feed him out of
what he himself eats, let him clothe him out of what he clothes
himself with; and let him not be entrusted with a work which will
overcome him. If he entrusts him with what will overcome him, let
him assist him therein.”
-(Bukhari and
Muslim)
3.
Besides ensuring human treatment and dignity and
respect to labour, Islam provided for fixation and prompt payment
of wages. Following measures were recommended by Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH) in this behalf :-
(a)
The employers are required to fix the wages before
the workers are employed. It was declared unlawful to employ any
labourer at work without fixing his wages. It is reported by Abu
Saeed Khudri that the Holy Prophet had forbidden to employ any
labourer or worker without first fixing his wages.
(b)
Following traditions of the Prophet enjoin the
believers to pay the wages without any delay:-
Abu Hurairah
reported that the Messenger of Allah said: The Almighty Allah said
: There will be three persons whose opponent I shall become on the
Resurrection Day: A man who gave in My name and then broke trust,
and a man who sold a free man and enjoyed his price, and a man who
engaged a labourer and enjoyed full labour from him but did not
pay him his wages.
-(Bukhari)
Abdullah-b-Umar
reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Pay the labourer his
wages before his sweat dries up.
-(Ibn Majah)
4.
About the prompt payment of wages, the Holy Qur’an
in the following verse refers to the story of Moses when he fled
from Egypt and went to Madain where he helped two women in
watering their fleet of sheep and was paid his wages promptly by
their father. The verse reads:
Then there came
unto him one of the two women, walking shyly. She said: Lo! my
father biddeth thee, that he may reward thee with a payment for
that thou didst water (the flock) for us. Then, when he came unto
him and told him the (whole) story, he said: Fear not! Thou hast
escaped from the wrong folk. -(28:25)
5.
The Prophet of Islam also enjoined upon his
followers not to burden their employees with heavy work which is
beyond the physical strength of the latter to do. If the work is
heavy and the employee cannot do it, the employer should help him
in doing that. Hadith reported by Abu Zarr in Bukhari and Muslim
which has been reproduced at serial No. 2 above can be cited in
this connection.
6.
The Holy Prophet was so kind to his servants that
if any of them was sick, he would visit him and enquire about his
health. Caliph Umar is reported to have made it one of the duties
of government officers to look after the sick particularly slaves
and servants. From this it has been deduced by the jurists that
employers should make adequate provision for medical treatment of
their employees.
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V- Obligations of
Labour
The obligations of
labour are in fact the rights ofthe employer. It is the basic
obligation of the worker to fulfil the terms of his part of the
contract of service. He should discharge all of his duties in
accordance with terms and conditions of his service efficiently
and honestly. He should be devoted and committed to his job. If he
is provided some in-service training to improve his skills and
qualifications, he should whole heartedly benefit from the
training facility and should leave no stone unturned to improve
his knowledge and skill. He is morally bound to remain loyal and
sincere to his employer and no temptation or bribe should induce
him to work against the interest of his master. In case he is
entrusted with the property of his employer, he should prove
trustworthy and should neither embezzle nor damage such property.
Traditions of the
Prophet of Islam which highlight the responsibilities and duties
of an employee are related below:
1.
‘Abdullah reported that the Apostle of Allah (may
peace be upon him) said: “When a slave sincerely works for his
master, and worships (his God) well there is for him double
reward.”
-(Bukhari)
2.
Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him)
reported that the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) said:
“How excellent is (the slave) which one of you has? He worships
his Lord well and is a well-wisher of his master.”
-(Bukhari)
Physical fitness is
very essential for efficiency of labour. A strong and healthy
worker would be more productive and efficient than a weak and
sickly one. Similarly a trustworthy and honest worker who realised
his duties will be more committed and responsible than a dishonest
one. These qualities have been prescribed by the Qur’an for an
ordinary labour in the story of Moses in the following verse: One
of the two women said: O my father ! Hire him! For the best (man)
that thou canst hire is the strong, the trustworthy.
-(28:26)
Thus a worker
should be both physically strong and trustworthy and should serve
his employer diligently, efficiently and honestly.
For a mental
worker, it is essential that he should have knowledge and skill
and thus he should be able to serve in a position of
responsibility to the satisfaction of his employer. These
qualities have been stressed when the Qur’an relates the story of
Joseph who was appointed incharge of storehouses of Egyptian
empire. The relevant verse of the Holy Book reads : “He said: Set
me over the storehouses of the land. Lo! I am a skilled
custodian.” -(12:55)
Thus qualifications
of skill and trustworthiness would enable the worker to discharge
the duties of his office with professional competence and
integrity.
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VI- Determination
of Wages
Labour, as we have
already submitted, is very important factor of production and its
remuneration is called wages. The term ‘wages’ may be used in a
narrow or a wide sense. In the wide sense, it means payment made
for the services of labour. In the narrow sense, “a wage may be
defined as a sum of money paid under contract by an employer to a
worker for services rendered.” But generally in Economics the term
‘wage’ is used in a wide sense and it means the share of the
national dividend which goes to those who work with their hands or
brains, whether independently or for an employer.
The problem of
wages is very important as it effects the whole society. If the
workers do not get fair and reasonable wages, it will not only
affect their subsistence but also their purchasing power. And if a
large portion of population like labourers have no purchasing
power, it would adversely effect all those industries which are
supplying consumer goods to the working class. Moreover, injustice
to working class would lead to discontentment, frustration,
agitation and strikes. Thus if the labourers are deprived of their
just share from the national income, it would be in the long run
an economic suicide’ for a country.
Various theories
have been propounded by modern economists for determination of
wages. According to Subsistence Theory, wages tend to settle a
level just sufficient to maintain the worker and his family at
minimum subsistence. ‘Wages Fund Theory’ explains that ‘wages’
depend upon the demand and supply of labour. Residual Claimant
Theory states that wages are the residue left over after the other
factors of production have been paid. According to Marginal
Productivity Theory, under condition of perfect competition every
worker of same skill and efficiency in a given category will
receive a wage equal to the value of the marginal product of that
type of labour. Thus there is no agreement among the economists
about the problem how the wages are to be determined.
Islam offers a very
reasonable solution of wage problem which is based on justice and
fairness and protects the interests of both the employer and the
employee. Wages, according to Islam, are to be determined in
equitable manner, without harming the interests of any party,
keeping in view the following Islamic teachings:
(1)
Wrong not, and ye shall not be wronged.
-(Al-Qur’an
2:279)
(2)
Lo! Allah enjoineth justice and kindness……….
-(Al-Qur’an
16:90)
(3)
Abu Dhar reports that the Holy Prophet said: “They
(your slaves or servants) are your brethren, God has placed them
under your control; so whoever has his brother under his control
should feed him from what he (himself) eats and give him clothes
the like of which he (himself) wears; and do not impose on them
task which should be too hard for them, and if you impose on them
such a task, then help them (in doing it).”
-(Bukhari,
Muslim)
Thus the employer
and the employee should treat one another as brothers and not as
master and servant. They should not wrong each other and show
justice and kindness in their relationship. The employer should
not forget that contribution of the labour in his produce is
considerable. He should, therefore, pay reasonable wages to an
employee to enable him to enjoy a reasonably decent living.
The minimum wage
rate in an Islamic society will be determined keeping in view the
basic human needs which include food, clothing and house. A worker
shall be paid adequate wages so that he can meet expenses on his
and his family’s food, clothing and house. He should also be
provided for his children’s education and medical treatment of his
ownself and his family. It is reported that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)
used to prescribe minimum wages of a person engaged for some
government job with a view to provide him decent living. He used
to say:
“For a Government
servant, if he is not married, he should get married; if he has no
servant, he may have one; if he has no house to live, he may build
one’ and any one who exceeds this limit is either a usurper or a
thief.”
This yardstick
fixed by the Prophet of Islam should be kept in view while fixing
minimum wages in an Islamic state.
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VII- Contract of
Service
Employment of
labour by a capitalist is a civil contract and it is recommended
by Islam that all contracts should be reduced into black and
white. Stressing the importance of writing down of contract,
al-Qur’an, the revealed book of Islam, states: “………..Be not averse
to writing down (the contract) whether it be small or great, with
(record of) the term thereof. That is more equitable in the sight
of Allah and more sure for testimony, and the best way of avoiding
doubt between you……..” (2:282) Although the instructions of the
Qur’an in this verse pertain to business transactions and
contracts of debt, but in fact they are applicable to every type
of contract. Thus it would be most appropriate if contract of
service between an employer and an employee is also reduced in
writing and all the terms settled between the parties are recorded
in this contract. It is equitable in the sight of Allah and it
would help resolving differences or disputes which may arise in
future between the employer and the employee.
The Holy Qur’an
itself talks of a contract of service in the story of Prophet
Moses in its chapter 28. After leaving Egypt when Moses reached
Midian and helped daughters of Shuaib, Shuaib called him and
offered him employment which was accepted by Moses. The relevant
verses of the Qur’an throw light on this contract of service and
terms thereof as follows:
He said: Lo! I fain
would marry thee to one of these two daughters of mine on
condition that thou hirest thyself to me for (the term of) eight
pilgrimages. Then if thou completest ten it will be of thine own
accord, for I would not make it hard for thee. Allah willing, thou
will find me of the righteous. He said: That (is settled) between
thee and me. Which-ever of the two terms I fulfil, there will be
no injustice to me, and Allah is Surety over what we say.
-(28:27-28)
In the above
mentioned verses the Holy Qur’an not only makes mention of the
terms of service settled between two righteous men of God but also
points out that both the parties to the contract resolved to
fulfil its terms and made God surety over it. The employers and
the employee of today should follow this example and should not
only write down the terms and conditions of service but should
also express their determination to fulfil the same. It would help
them in resolving their mutual disputes and thus make their life
peaceful and prosperous.
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