Article 1The purpose of this Act is to improve the working conditions of low-paid workers by guaranteeing a minimum level of wages for them, thereby contributing to securing the worker's livelihoods, the improvement of the quality of the labor force, and ensuring fair business competition as well as to the sound development of the national economy.

Article 2In this Act, the meanings of the terms set forth in the following items are to be as prescribed respectively in those items:

Article 20A Central Minimum Wages Council is to be established in the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and Regional Minimum Wages Councils are be established in the Prefectural Labor Bureaus.

Article 21A Minimum Wages Council is to take charge of matters under their authority pursuant to the provisions of this Act and in addition, the Regional Minimum Wages Councils may study and deliberate on important matters concerning minimum wages in response to consultations from the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau, and may propose the matters found to be necessary for the study and deliberation of minimum wages to the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau.

Article 22A Minimum Wages Council is to be composed of equal number of members representing workers, members representing employers, and members representing public interest, as provided for by Cabinet Order.

Article 23(1)Council members are to be appointed by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare or the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau as provided for by Cabinet Order.

(2)The term of office of a council member is to be two years; provided, however, that the term of office of a council member appointed to fill a vacancy is to be the remaining term of the council member's predecessor.

(3)A council member whose term of office has expired is to continue to perform duties until a successor is appointed.

(4)A council member is to serve on a part-time basis.

Article 24(1)A Minimum Wages Council is to have a chairperson.

(2)The chairperson of a Minimum Wages Council is elected by council members from among members who represent public interest.

(3)The chairperson of a Minimum Wages Council presides over its affairs.

(4)When the chairperson of a Minimum Wages Council is unavailable, a person elected in advance in accordance with the same procedure as the procedure set forth in paragraph (2) acts on behalf of the chairperson.

Article 25(1)A Minimum Wages Council may set up an expert committee for the study and deliberation of technical matters concerning a certain type of business or occupation as necessary.

(2)A Minimum Wages Council must set up an expert committee when requested to study and deliberate on a decision to establish minimum wages or a decision to revise the minimum wages.

(3)An expert committee is to be composed of equal number of members representing relevant workers, members representing relevant employers, and members representing public interest, as provided for by Cabinet Order.

(4)The provisions of Article 23, paragraph (1) and paragraph (4), and the preceding Article apply mutatis mutandis to expert committees.

(5)A Minimum Wages Council is to hear the opinions of the relevant workers and relevant employers when it studies and deliberates on a decision to establish minimum wages or a decision to revise or abolish the minimum wages, as provided for by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

(6)Beyond what is provided for in the preceding paragraph, a Minimum Wages Council is to hear the opinions of the relevant workers, the relevant employers, and other persons concerned when found necessary for deliberation.

Article 26Beyond what is provided for in this Act, necessary matters for the Minimum Wages Councils are prescribed by Cabinet Order.

Article 27The government must endeavor to provide employers and workers with the relevant materials and other necessary support for the smooth implementation of the minimum wages system.

Article 28The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare must endeavor to ensure the smooth implementation of the minimum wages system by conducting necessary surveys on wages and other actualities of workers.

Article 29The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau may order employers or workers to report matters concerning wages within the extent necessary to achieve the purpose of this Act, as provided for by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

Article 30(1)The authority of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare or the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau prescribed in Article 10, paragraph (1), Article 12, Article 15, paragraph (2), and Article 17 is to be exercised by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare for cases related to the jurisdiction districts of two or more Prefectural Labor Bureaus and those related only to the jurisdiction district of one Prefectural Labor Bureau designated by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare as cases relevant to the whole country pursuant to the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and with regard to cases related only to the jurisdiction district of one Prefectural Labor Bureau (excluding those under the authority of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare), is to be exercised by the Director of the Prefectural Labor Bureau.

(2)The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may order the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau to decide to revise or abolish the minimum wages decided by the Director in cases where the Minister finds that the minimum wages are extremely inappropriate.

(3)The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare must hear the opinions of the Central Minimum Wages Council in advance when issuing an order pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

(4)The provisions of Article 10, paragraph (2) apply mutatis mutandis to cases where the Central Minimum Wages Council submits its opinions pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 31The heads of Labor Standards Inspection Offices and labor standards inspectors take charge of affairs related to the enforcement of this Act as provided for by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

Article 32(1)Labor standards inspectors may enter the workplace of employers to inspect books and documents, and other objects, or question the persons concerned within the extent necessary to achieve the purpose of this Act.

(2)Labor standards inspectors who conduct an on-site inspection pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must carry an identification card and present it to the persons concerned.

(3)The authority to conduct on-site inspections pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) must not be construed as being granted for criminal investigation purposes.

Article 33Labor standards inspectors are to perform the duties of judicial police personnel under the Code of Criminal Procedure (Act No. 131 of 1948) for offenses concerning violation of the provisions of this Act.

Article 34(1)When there is violation of the provisions of this Act or orders based on this Act at the workplace, workers may report the fact to the Director of a Prefectural Labor Bureau, the head of a Labor Standards Inspection Office, or a labor standards inspector, and request that appropriate measures for rectification be taken.

(2)An employer may not dismiss a worker or give a worker other disadvantageous treatment on the grounds that the worker has made a report set forth in the preceding paragraph.

Article 35(1)The provisions of Article 6, paragraph (2), Section 2, Chapter II, Article 16, and Article 17 do not apply to mariners subject to the Mariners Act (Act No. 100 of 1947) (hereinafter referred to as "mariners ").

(2)With regard to mariners, all matters that fall under the authority of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Directors of Prefectural Labor Bureaus, or heads of Labor Standards Inspection Offices, or labor standards inspectors prescribed in this Act are to be performed by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Directors of District Transport Bureaus (including Directors of Transport Supervision Departments), or officers in charge of the labor affairs of mariners, and the term "Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare" in this Act is deemed to be replaced with "Order of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism"; the term "hour" in Article 3 is deemed to be replaced with "hour, day, week, or month"; the phrase "workers engaged in light work" in Article 7, item (iv) is deemed to be replaced with "workers whose prescribed working hours are particularly short and workers engaged in light work"; the terms "Article 15, paragraph (2)" and "paragraph (2) of the same Article and Article 17" in Article 19, paragraph (2) are deemed to be replaced with "Article 15, paragraph (2) and Article 35, paragraph (3) and paragraph (7)" and "Article 15, paragraph (2) and Article 35, paragraph (7)" respectively; and the phrases "Article 10, paragraph (1), Article 12, Article 15, paragraph (2), and Article 17," and "the jurisdiction district of Prefectural Labor Bureau" in Article 30, paragraph (1) are be deemed to be replaced with "Article 15, paragraph (2) and Article 35, paragraph (3) and paragraph (7)" and "the jurisdiction districts of District Transport Bureaus or the Transport Supervision Departments (for the District Transport Bureaus specified by Cabinet Order, excluding the jurisdiction district of the Transport Supervision Departments)," respectively.

(3)When the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism or the Director of a District Transport Bureau (including the Director of the Transport Supervision Department) finds it necessary taking into account of the living expenses of mariners , the wages of similar mariners , and the ordinary enterprises' ability to pay wages in order to improve the working conditions of low-paid mariners, the Minister or the Director may request study and deliberation by the Council of Transport Policy or a council specified by Cabinet Order established in the District Transport Bureau (hereinafter referred to as the "Council of Transport Policy, etc.") and establish specified minimum wages applicable to mariners based on its opinions.

(4)The provisions of Article 10, paragraph (2) and Article 11 apply mutatis mutandis to cases where the Council of Transport Policy, etc. submits its opinions pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph. In this case, the term "region" in Article 11, paragraph (2) is deemed to be replaced with "business or occupation".

(5)When the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism or the Director of a District Transport Bureau (including the Director of the Transport Supervision Department) makes a decision pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (3), if a request is made pursuant to the provisions of Article 11, paragraph (2) as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to the preceding paragraph, the Minister or the Director may suspend the application of the specified minimum wages for a certain field of business for a limited period of time, or decide a different rate of specified minimum wages, based on the opinions of the Council of Transport Policy, etc. under the provisions of Article 11, paragraph (3) as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to the preceding paragraph.

(6)The provisions of Article 10, paragraph (2) apply mutatis mutandis to cases where the Council of Transport Policy, etc. submits its opinions pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

(7)The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism or the Director of a District Transport Bureau (including the Director of the Transport Supervision Department) may decide either to revise or abolish the specified minimum wages applicable to mariners decided pursuant to the provisions of Article 15, paragraph (2), or paragraph (3) of this Article in accordance with the procedure to decide the specified minimum wages, when the Minister or the Director finds this necessary taking into account of the living expenses of mariners, the wages of similar mariners, and the ordinary enterprises' ability to pay the wages .

(8)With regard to a dispatched mariner boarding a vessel prescribed in Article 89, paragraph (1) of the Mariners' Employment Security Act (Act No. 130 of 1948), if the specified minimum wages apply to the business of the person receiving the services of the dispatched mariner or to the occupation of the same type of mariners employed by the person receiving the services of the dispatched mariner, the provisions of Article 4 apply on the basis of the amount of the minimum wages established for the specified minimum wages.

Article 36With regard to mariners, matters that fall under the authority of the Minimum Wages Council prescribed in this Act are to be performed by the Council of Transport Policy, etc.

Article 37(1)The Council of Transport Policy, etc. may set up an expert committee for minimum wages as necessary, to have the committee study and deliberate on technical matters concerning a certain type of business or occupation.

(2)The Council of Transport Policy, etc. must set up an expert committee for minimum wages when requested to study and deliberate on a decision to establish minimum wages or a decision to revise the minimum wages.

(3)The provisions of Article 25, paragraph (5) and paragraph (6) apply mutatis mutandis to the Council of Transport Policy, etc.

Article 38Beyond what is provided for in this Act, the necessary matters for the enforcement of this Act are prescribed by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

Article 39A person who violates the provisions of Article 34, paragraph (2) is punished by imprisonment with work for not more than six months or a fine of not more than 300,000 yen.

Article 40A person who violates the provisions of Article 4, paragraph (1) (limited to those related to regional minimum wages and specified minimum wages applicable to mariners) is punished by a fine of not more than 500,000 yen.

Article 41A person who falls under one of the following items is punished by a fine of not more than 300,000 yen:

Article 42If the representative of a corporation, or an agent, employee, or other worker of a corporation or an individual, commits a violation set forth in the preceding three Articles with regard to the business of the corporation or the individual, not only the offender is punished but also the corporation or the individual is punished by the fine prescribed in the respective Articles.