Is the money you received from the employee for his help in obtaining the retirement grant—which was delayed in coming to you while you were unemployed—considered rightfully yours and permissible, or is it a bribe and unlawful gain?

If the grant is rightfully yours according to laws and regulations, and it can only be obtained by paying money to an employee, then it is permissible for you to pay the money, and it is forbidden for the employee to take it. This is known as bribery to repel injustice or to obtain a right. However, if the grant is not rightfully due to you, then it is not permissible to take it, nor is it permissible to pay a bribe for it, because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) cursed the briber and the bribed.