Ruling on one who says: “I swear by divorce that I will not work for a certain company,” and then works

Your Eminence, this message reached us from its presenter, Saleh Ali Ghalib, from al-Khudhr in Saudi Arabia. He asks about swearing an oath by divorce, saying: “One day I swore an oath and said: ‘I swear by divorce from my wife that I will not work for the company I work for.’ But afterwards, I did work. Is this oath counted as a divorce, or is the oath considered vain? I ask for your guidance, may Allah guide you.”
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance.
As for what follows:
Swearing by divorce is a conditional statement intended to urge the swearer to do something or prevent him from doing something, or to urge the listeners to believe or disbelieve him. This is an oath by divorce: a conditional statement whose purpose is urging, prevention, belief, or disbelief. This is called an oath by divorce, unlike a pure conditional statement, which is not called an oath. For example, if one says, “If the sun rises, my wife is divorced,” or “If Ramadan enters, my wife is divorced,” this is not called an oath; it is a pure conditional statement. When the condition is met, the divorce takes place. So if one says, for example, “If Ramadan enters, my wife is divorced,” she is divorced when Ramadan enters. And if one says, for example, “If the sun rises, my wife is divorced,” she is divorced when the sun rises, because this is called a pure conditional statement and a pure condition.
However, if one says, “I swear by divorce that I will not work in such-and-such company,” or “I swear by divorce that I will not talk to so-and-so,” or “I swear by divorce that you will eat my sacrificial animal,” or something similar, this is called an oath, because it contains urging and prevention. This is called an oath. The majority of scholars hold that the divorce takes place if the condition is violated. If one says, “I swear by divorce that I will not talk to so-and-so,” and then talks to him, the divorce takes place according to the majority. Likewise, if one says, “I swear by divorce that I will not work in such-and-such company,” and then works, the divorce takes place according to the majority. Some scholars have held that the divorce does not take place and that its ruling is the ruling of an oath, if its purpose is urging, prevention, belief, or disbelief, and not the divorce of his wife. This is the common intention of people in such cases: they intend to urge themselves to do something or prevent themselves from doing something, or to affirm or deny something. So if one says, “I swear by divorce that I will not work in such-and-such company,” and his intention is to prevent himself from working, not to separate from his family, but rather to prevent himself from working in the company, the correct view is that the divorce does not take place. Instead, he owes the expiation for an oath, which is feeding ten poor people, giving each poor person half a sa' of the local staple food, such as dates, rice, or something else. The amount is approximately one and a half kilograms. This is the expiation. Or he may clothe them, giving each one a shirt, or a lower garment and an upper garment. Or he may free a slave. This is the expiation for an oath, because Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Ma'idah: 89]. Some people may think that fasting is sufficient, even if they are wealthy. This is a mistake. Fasting is only for the one who is unable to afford it, who cannot provide clothing, food, or freeing a slave. This is the one who is incapable. If he is unable to do the three things, he fasts for three consecutive days, as Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said. This is the known expiation that came in the Book of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. The divorce that is conditioned on a purpose of prevention, urging, belief, or disbelief has the ruling of an oath according to the most correct of the scholars' opinions. Likewise, if some people say, “I swear by divorce that you will eat the sacrificial animal,” or “I swear by divorce that you will eat the sacrificial animal,” or “I swear by divorce that you will eat your honor,” and then he neglects it and does not honor him, leaving him alone, he owes the expiation for an oath, and the divorce does not take place, if his intention was to honor the person and not to separate from his wife or drive her away if she does not sit for the honor. So its ruling is the ruling of an oath. Likewise, if one says, “I swear by divorce that I will not talk to so-and-so” or “I will not visit so-and-so,” and then the need arises to talk to him and visit him, and his only intention was to prevent himself, not to separate from his family, then he owes the expiation for an oath. These examples and their like are what are called an oath in divorce. But if there is no urging or prevention, but only a pure condition, this is a pure conditional statement, and the divorce takes place by it, as mentioned earlier. For example, if one says, “If Ramadan enters, you are divorced,” this is a pure condition. If this occurs, the divorce takes place, because what is conditioned on conditions takes place when the conditions occur. This is the principle. Yes.