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Fatwa CenterWorking for a tobacco company temporarily
Question
I will leave my country to join my wife in another country. After a wait of 4 months. During this time I received a very good job offer from a tobacco company. If I take the job, I will work for 4 months then I will move to join my wife. I also received another offer from an Arabic industrial company, but I don't want to join them and leave them after only 4 months they will have invested on me. So is it Halal for me to join the tobacco company and not the Arabic company? I think that it's good because I will damage the American company and not the Arabic. Can I have your point of view?
Answer
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the World; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.
Working in a tobacco company is not permissible since the rulings of tobacco are the similar to the rulings of smoking as for as the matter of Halal and Haram is concerned. It is proved that smoking causes much financial, social and physical harm. As for the financial harms, smoking leads humanity to destruction, and the human being constitutes one of the pillars of economy. As for physical harm, it causes many dangerous diseases, such as cancer and the like. As for social problems, it harms many people who do not smoke. Even if there are a few benefits the harms are great. So, according to Shari'a, protecting from harm is more important than getting benefits. This rule is induced from the verse: {They ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning alcoholic drink and gambling. Say: "In them is a great sin, and (some) benefit for men, but the sin of them is greater than their benefit." …} [2: 219].
The gambling and wine are made forbidden for their many harms regardless of their few benefits. Smoking is forbidden on the basis of harm; that is why working in a tobacco company is also forbidden.
Fear that leaving your job will cause loss of the Arabic company does not warrant your need to continue working there. The company will not face any loss as long as your work is in return for production and you have informed them that you will leave the work after a certain period.
Know that the ruling about working at the tobacco company does not change even if there is loss at the Arabic company.
Allah knows best.
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