Whose responsibility is food provided to a hired laborer that is stolen or ruined before consumption?

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If food is presented to a hired laborer (*ajeer*) but is stolen or ruined before they eat it, the liability depends on the manner of presentation. If the food was placed on a general table where the laborer does not have exclusive right to it, the loss falls under the responsibility of the employer (*musta'jir*), because the food was never fully delivered to the laborer. If the employer specifically allocated that food to the laborer and delivered it to them, the loss falls under the responsibility of the laborer. This is because such delivery constitutes a transfer of ownership in exchange for compensation, analogous to a sale.