Ibn al-Mundhir said: Every scholar we preserve knowledge from has reached a consensus that a dhimmi (free non-Muslim subject of an Islamic state) is not given anything from the zakat of wealth. This is because the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to Mu‘adh: "Inform them that they have a sadaqah (charity/zakat) that is taken from their rich and returned to their poor." Thus, he designated it for their poor, just as he designated its obligation upon their rich. As for the slave, he does not possess it upon its being given to him, and what is given to him belongs to his master, so it is as if he had given it to his master. Furthermore, the servant’s maintenance is incumbent upon his master, so he is wealthy due to his [master’s] wealth.

427 - Issue: He said: "Except if they are among those employed to collect it, then they are given according to the value of what they have worked for."

The summary of this is that it is permissible for the worker to take his commission from the zakat, whether he is a free man or a slave. The apparent meaning of al-Khiraqi’s words is that it is permissible for him to be a disbeliever, and this is one of two narrations from Ahmad. This is because Allah Almighty said: "And those employed to collect them [the zakat]." This is a general expression that includes every worker, regardless of his status. Additionally, what he takes as a commission is a wage for his labor, so he is not prevented from taking it, like other types of hiring. The other narration states that it is not permissible for the worker to be a disbeliever, because one of the conditions of the worker is that he must be trustworthy, and disbelief contradicts trustworthiness. It is permissible for him to be wealthy, or a relative of the property owner. His statement: "according to the value of what they have worked for" means he gives them the equivalent of their wages. The Imam is given a choice when he sends a worker: if he wishes, he may hire him through a valid hiring contract and pay him what he stipulated for him; and if he wishes, he may send him without a contract and pay him the standard wage. This was what was known during the era of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), for it has not reached us that he made a fixed-wage agreement with any of the workers. Abu Dawood has narrated with his chain of authority from Ibn al-Sa‘idi, who said: Umar employed me for the sadaqah.