Is it permissible for a man to take the value of his lunch in cash without informing his employer, knowing that the agreement stipulates that lunch is at the employer's expense?

If the worker and the employer agree that the employer will pay the value of the worker's lunch as part of his wage, there are two scenarios:

1. If the value of the lunch is specified and known: This is permissible and there is no issue with it. 2. If the value of the lunch is not specified: If the uncertainty is minor and does not lead to dispute, then it is permissible. Otherwise, the contract is void due to uncertainty that leads to dispute, and the contract must be corrected. In this case, the worker is entitled to a fair wage (Ajr al-Mithl).

As for taking the value of lunch and not spending it on food, this depends on the agreement between the two parties:

If the agreement is that the employer pays the value of the food to the worker, whether he eats or not, then the worker is permitted to take it and save it. If the agreement is that the employer pays the value of what the worker actually ate, then it is not permissible for the worker to take the value of lunch he did not eat in order to save it.