Beware of pilfering office stationery

A mufti (religious scholar) in Dubai reiterated on Sunday that employees who abuse benefits or take their company’s stationery home with them are violating the teachings of Islam and might land in court facing serious charges.

Legal advisors told Gulf News that company owners had the right to walk into police stations to lodge theft complaints against employees who take stationery home with them.

“Employees, who intentionally or unintentionally, take from their workplace pencils, pens, erasers, rulers, tape, pencil sharpeners, papers or any other cheap or petty stationery materials without permission from their employers can be taken to court,” according to one legal advisor, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The issue surfaced recently on social media networks when an employee asked a mufti at the Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department in Dubai (IACAD) whether it was permissible to take office stationery home.

A news website on Sunday quoted Dr Ali Ahmad Mashael, Mufti at Dubai Fatwa Section of the IACAD, stating that personal use of employer’s stationery by government or private sector employees is not allowed without permission.

Dr Mashael said official stationery is the property of the employer and it is not appropriate for employees to use it for their personal use.