The Ruling on the Wages of a Missing Worker

The questioner:
I had a boy working for me in the past. When he completed his term with me, he left without receiving his wages. He went and I did not know where he was, and his wages remained in my possession. What should I do with them?

The Shaykh:
If you do not know his room, his family, or his identity, and the time has passed, then giving it in charity is sufficient, if Allah wills. You may distribute it in charitable projects or to some of the poor who are entitled to it, intending it on behalf of its owner. This is what you should do, if Allah wills. It remains a guarantee on you; if he comes, you give it to him. If he does not come, the wages have been spent in its path. If he says, "Give me the equivalent of it," you give him the equivalent, and you receive the reward. This is the way to handle this issue. If you fear that and are concerned about guaranteeing it, you must present it to the court and register it with the court, depositing it in the court's funds, and write down his name, if you know his name, so that he may come and accept it. And you write down the details of the follow-up.

The questioner:
He says it has been thirty years since he finished working for me, meaning in the old days, perhaps.

The Shaykh:
That he does not return like this. If he gave it in charity, if Allah wills, he is free of it.