Industrial Safety and Health Act

The principal employer with a business undertaking (excluding specified undertakings) categorized as the manufacturing industry or in any other industry specified by Cabinet Order must take measures for liaison and coordination between related work and other necessary measures, in order to prevent industrial injuries from occurring as a result of work being carried out at the same site by the persons engaged in work who are its workers (including, if there are persons engaged in work associated with the principal employer who are not workers in addition to the persons engaged in work who are its workers, those persons) and the persons engaged in work associated with related contractors.

The provisions of paragraph (2) of the preceding Article apply mutatis mutandis to the original orderer of a job involved in a business undertaking prescribed in the preceding paragraph. In this case, the term "the specified principal employer", "a job involved in a specified undertaking", "in the preceding paragraph", and "all of the jobs involved in a specified undertaking", each in paragraph (2) of that Article, are deemed to be replaced with "the principal employer", "a job", "paragraph (1) of the following Article", and "all jobs", respectively.

If a designation under the provisions of paragraph (2) of the preceding Article as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to the preceding paragraph is not made, the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices makes the designation referred to in that paragraph.

When a designation under the provisions of paragraph (2) of the preceding Article as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to paragraph (2), or under the provisions of the preceding paragraph has been made, the designated employer must take the measures specified in paragraph (1) for all persons engaged in work on the jobs at that site. In such a case, the provisions of that paragraph do not apply to the designated employer and employers other than that designated employer.

If a job as prescribed in paragraph (1) of Article 25-2 is carried out based on multiple levels of contracts (other than in a case as referred to in paragraph (4)), the principal employer must take the measures set forth in each item of paragraph (1) of that Article for all persons engaged in work on that job at the relevant site; in this case, the provisions of that paragraph do not apply to the principal employer and employers other than the principal employer.

The provisions of paragraph (2) of the Article 30 apply mutatis mutandis to the original orderer of a job prescribed in paragraph (1) of Article 25-2. In such a case, the phrases "the specified principal employer", "a job involved in a specified undertaking", "the measures provided for in the preceding paragraph", and "all of the jobs involved in a specified undertaking", each in paragraph (2) of the Article 30, are deemed to be replaced with "the principal employer", "a job", "the measures provided for in each item of paragraph (1) of Article 25-2", and "all of the jobs", respectively.

If a designation under the provisions of paragraph (2) of Article 30 as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to the preceding paragraph is not made, the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices makes the designation referred to in that paragraph.

When a designation under the provisions of paragraph (2) of Article 30 as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to paragraph (2) or under the preceding paragraph is made, the designated employer must take the measures set forth in the items of paragraph (1) of Article 25-2 for all persons engaged in work on the jobs at that site; in such a case, the provisions of that paragraph do not apply to the designated employer and employers other than the designated employer.

The provisions of paragraph (2) of Article 25-2 apply mutatis mutandis to the principal employer prescribed by paragraph (1) and to the designated employer referred to in the preceding paragraph. In such a case, the provisions of paragraph (2) of that Article do not apply to the principal employer and the designated employer, and employers other than those employers.

An orderer that directly carries out a job involved in a specified undertaking must, when having persons engaged in work (limited to workers and to persons engaged in work, other than workers, who are engaged in work on a job at the same site as workers) associated with the contractor of this orderer (including the parties to all contracts for work subsequent to the one with that contractor, if the job is carried out based on multiple levels of contracts) use a construction, equipment, or raw material (hereinafter referred to as the "construction, equipment, or raw material") at the site where it carries out that job, take the necessary measures in respect of the relevant construction, equipment, or raw material to prevent industrial injuries.

If there are two or more orderers required to take the measures under the preceding paragraph in respect of the same construction, equipment, or raw material, owing to the jobs involved in the relevant undertaking being carried out based on multiple levels of contracts, the provisions of the preceding paragraph do not apply to the orderers of the subsequent contracts.

The orderer of work a job involving for works specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, such as the alteration of equipment that is used to facilities for the manufactureing or handle aing of substance such as chemical substances, or a preparations containing a chemicals substance, or any other material, and that is specified by Cabinet Order, or of a job involving any other work as specified by Ordinance of Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, must take the necessary measures, concerning in respect of that substance, or materialsubstances to prevent workers of contractors of the work froman industrial accident among the workers of contractors involved in the relevant jobs.

When persons engaged in work (limited to workers and to persons engaged in work, other than workers, who are engaged in work on a job at the same site as workers) associated with two or more employers or individual business operators (meaning persons conducting a business who do not employ workers; the same applies hereinafter) who are carrying out jobs involved in business undertakings categorized as the construction industry are doing work at one site involving machinery which is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (hereinafter referred to as "specified work" in this Article), an original orderer that directly carries out a job associated with the specified work or a person that has been contracted for all of that job, that contracts out a part of the job at that site must take the necessary measures to prevent industrial injuries among all of the workers engaged in the specified work at that site pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

In a case as referred to in the preceding paragraph, if there is no person that, pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph, is required to take the measures prescribed in that paragraph, the principal employer with a business undertaking categorized as the construction industry that has contracted out all of the jobs associated with specified operation at that site to contractors or the employer specified pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (2) or (3) of Article 30 that is carrying out an undertaking categorized as the construction industry must give the necessary consideration for preventing industrial accidents among all of the workers who are engaged in the specified operation at the site, such as nominating a person to carry out the measures designated in the preceding paragraph.

An orderer must not give its contractor (including the parties to all contracts for work subsequent to the one with that contractor, if a job is carried out based on multiple levels of contracts) an instruction in connection with the relevant job that would result in a violation of the provisions of this Act or an order issued under this Act if the persons engaged in work associated with that contractor did work in accordance with the instruction.

In a case as referred to in paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30, a contractor that does not constitute an employer obliged to take the measures provided for in paragraph (1) of that Article, and that directly carries out the relevant job must take the necessary measures based on the measures that are taken pursuant to those provisions.

In a case as referred to in paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-2, a contractor that does not constitute an employer obliged to take measures provided for in paragraph (1) of that Article, and that directly carries out the job must take the necessary measures, based on the measures that are taken pursuant to those provisions.

In a case as referred to in paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-3, a contractor that does not constitute an employer obliged to take measures in each item of paragraph (1) of Article 25-2, and that directly carries out the job must take the necessary measures, based on the measures that are taken pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-3.

In a case as referred to in paragraph (1) of Article 31, a contractor associated with the persons engaged in work who are using the relevant construction, equipment, or raw material must take the necessary measures, based on the measures that are taken pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph.

In a case as referred to in Article 31-2, a contractor involved in a job as provided for in this Article must take the necessary measures, based on the measures taken pursuant to the provisions of that Article.

In a case as referred to in paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-2, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-3, paragraph (1) of Article 31, or Article 31-2, persons engaged in work must observe the necessary rules in accordance with the measures taken pursuant to these provisions or the provisions of each of the preceding paragraphs.

A contractor as referred to in paragraphs (1) through (5) and a person engaged in work as referred to in the preceding paragraph must follow the instructions given by the specified principal employer, etc. referred to in paragraph (1) of Article 30, the principal employer, etc. referred to in paragraph (1) of Article 30-2 or paragraph (1) of Article 30-3, the orderer referred to in paragraph (1) of Article 31 or Article 31-2, or the contractor referred to in paragraphs (1) through (5), for ensuring the implementation of the measures under the provisions of paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-2, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-3, paragraph (1) of Article 31, Article 31-2, or paragraphs (1) through (5).

A person that leases out the machinery or other such equipment that is specified by Cabinet Order to a person conducting a business, and that is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (hereinafter referred to as a "lessor of machinery or other such equipment") must take the necessary measures to prevent industrial injuries due to leased machinery or other such equipment at the workplace of the person conducting a business that rents that machinery or other such equipment.

A person that rents machinery or other such equipment from a lessor of machinery or other such equipment must take the necessary measures to prevent industrial injuries due to the operation of the machinery or other such equipment, if the operator of the machinery or other such equipment is not a worker employed thereby.

A worker that operates machinery or other such equipment as referred to in the preceding paragraph must observe the necessary rules in accordance with the measures that the person renting the machinery or other such equipment takes pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph.

A person that leases out a building that is as specified by Cabinet Order to persons conducting a business (hereinafter referred to as a "building lessor") must take the necessary measures to prevent industrial injuries due to the leased building in relation to the business of the persons renting it; provided, however, that this does not apply if all of the building is leased out to one employer or individual business operator, or if it is leased out only to two or more individual business operators.

A person seeking to forward a piece of cargo which weighs one ton or more must label the cargo with its weight in a way that is easy to see and not easily erasable; provided, however, that this does not apply if a person is forwarding unpackaged cargo the weight of which is clear at a glance.

The measures to be taken pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-2, paragraph (1) or (4) of Article 30-3, paragraph (1) of Article 31, Article 31-2, paragraphs (1) through (5) of Article 32, paragraph (1) or (2) of Article 33, or Article 34, by the parties mentioned in these provisions, and the matters to be observed pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (6) of Article 32 or paragraph (3) of Article 33 by the parties mentioned in these provisions are prescribed by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.