Ruling on working in a company that offers services to riba-based banks

Praise
be to Allah

What we have found out about J P Morgan is that it is a
multi-national American bank that offers financial services. 

If that is the case, then working in riba-based banks is
haraam, even if it is in a department that does not directly deal with riba,
as stated previously in the answer to question no.
125512. 

But if it so happens that what is asked about is a company
with permissible activities, then it is not permissible for it to offer
services to riba-based banks in any way, such as supplying or maintaining or
moving equipment, or acting as an intermediary between the bank and its
customers, or other services that are used by the riba-based bank, because
that comes under the heading of helping it in sin, and Allah, may He be
exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Help you one
another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do
not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allah. Verily, Allah
is Severe in punishment”

[al-Maa’idah 5:2]. 

If your work in the company is connected to offering services
to riba-based banks, even if that is only data entry, then your job is
haraam.

If it is not connected to that – rather it is limited to that
which is permissible – then there is nothing wrong with it in that case.
See: question no. 193420. 

Dr Yoosuf ash-Shubayli (may Allah preserve him) was asked
about working in a company that produces large-scale computer equipment and
high-powered programs, and most of the users of the products of this company
are highly sensitive centres in Muslim lands, such as ministries,
universities, hospitals, and major local companies, whose capital surpasses
hundreds of millions of dollars. The problem is that this equipment in these
programs is used by riba-based banks in this country, and working in this
company is not limited only to sales; rather it also includes offering
after-sales services such as maintenance and follow-up. There are many jobs
that require going to these banks and meeting the people in charge, and
doing a lot of work in the bank itself, and troubleshooting. 

He replied:

The ruling on working in this company is no different from
the ruling on working in any company where some of the users of its services
may be organisations that are involved in sinful activities; for example,
electricity and communications companies and the like are subject to
reservations such as those mentioned in your question… What I think is that
it is permissible to work in these companies, subject to the following
guidelines: 

1.    

If the basic activities of the company are haraam – as in
the case of riba-based banks, commercial insurance companies and the like –
then it is haraam to work in such companies at all, even if the individual
is in a job that has no connection to the haraam work itself, because his
work in the company is helping in the sin. 

But if the purpose of the company’s
activities is permissible, but it may be involved in some haraam activities,
as is the case with many commercial and industrial companies, restaurants,
and so on, then it is permissible to work in such companies in principle,
even if some of their activities are haraam, subject to the following
guidelines. 

2.    

The products offered by the company should not be
specifically for something haraam, or usually used for haraam purposes. But
if the products are suitable for that and for other purposes, then there is
nothing wrong with it. For example, if the programs that the company
produces are specifically for working out interest rates in banks, then it
is haraam. But if they are programs for human resources that may be used by
a bank or may be used by other organisations, then there is nothing wrong
with designing them. 

3.    

The employee should not be directly involved with the
haraam work himself. So offering services or doing maintenance work for riba-based
banks – for example – is haraam work, no matter what kind of service or
maintenance is offered, because that comes under the heading of helping in
sin, so it is haraam for a person to do such work himself. However if his
work in the company does not require him to deal directly with the haraam
work, then there is nothing wrong – in sha Allah – with him remaining there. 

Based on that, if you do not think it most likely that the
job in this company will require you to deal directly with any haraam work,
because that rarely happens, or because you are able to refuse to do it if
you are asked to do any such work, then there is nothing wrong with you
moving to that company. And Allah knows best. 

End quote from Fataawa Mawqi‘ Islam al-Yawm (islamtoday.com) 

And Allah knows best.