According to a fatwa on the website IslamOnline (which is overseen by the respected Egyptian scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi), it is permitted for Muslim women to work outside the home. Below are some points from the fatwa. A link to the full (Arabic) fatwa is at the end of this article.
- Muslim women are permitted to work outside the home because she is a full human and enjoys all the rights that come with that, and because there is no clear text in the Quran or hadith that forbids this.
- Working outside the home for a woman is not only permitted, it can also be a religiously desired thing based on her circumstances.
- Asma, the daughter of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, used to help her husband with taking care of his horses.
- Muslim society as a whole has a need for certain types of female professionals, such as female doctors and teachers. Society is therefore strongly encouraged by Islam to produce at least some female doctors and teachers.
- A married woman’s career should not conflict with her duties toward her children and husband.
Source:
- IslamOnline fatwa (Arabic PDF)
And God knows best.
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