Industrial Safety and Health Act

Before seeking to install or move machinery or other such equipment that necessitates dangerous or hazardous work operations is used in a dangerous place, or is used to prevent the endangerment of a person or impairment of a person's health, and that is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, or before seeking to alter the main structural part of such machinery or other such equipment, an employer must file a notification of the plan with the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, no later than 30 days prior to the date of commencement of that work; provided, however, that this does not apply to an employer that the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices certifies, pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, as one that has taken the measures, such as the measure provided for in paragraph (1) of Article 28-2, specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

When seeking to commence a large-scale job involved in a business undertaking categorized as the construction industry that could cause a serious industrial injury and that is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, an employer must file a notification of the plan with the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, as prescribed by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, no later than 30 days prior to the date of commencement of the job.

When seeking to commence a job of a business belonging to the construction industry or another industry specified by Cabinet Order (in the case of a business belonging to the construction industry, excluding the jobs specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in the preceding paragraph) that is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, an employer must file a notification of the plan with the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices, as prescribed by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, no later than 14 days prior to the date of commencement of the job.

When drawing up the construction work plan specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare among the construction work requiring notification under the provisions of paragraph (1), a job plan specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare provided for in paragraph (2) or a job plan specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare among the jobs requiring the filing of a notification under the provisions of the preceding paragraph, an employer must have persons who have the qualifications specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare participate in the planning in order to prevent industrial injuries from arising due to constructions, machineries or other such equipments relating to that construction work or that job.

In a case that a proposed job is to be carried out based on multiple levels of contracts, the provisions of the preceding three paragraphs (excluding the part concerning the notification under the provisions of paragraph (1) among the provisions of the preceding paragraphs) do not apply to employers other than the original orderer that directly carries out the job if there is such an original orderer, and they do not apply to employers other than the principal contractor if there is no original orderer directly carrying out the job.

If the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices, in respect of a notification under the provisions of paragraph (1) or (3) that has been filed therewith, or if the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, in respect of a notification under the provisions of paragraph (2) that has been filed therewith, finds that a particular to which the relevant notification pertains violates this Act or an order under this Act, the chief or minister with which the notification has been filed may issue an injunction against the employer that filed the notification to stop the employer from commencing the construction or job to which the notification pertains, or may order the employer filing the notification to alter the relevant plan.

Having issued an order under the provisions of the preceding paragraph (limited to an order issued to an employer that has filed a notification under the provisions of paragraph (2) or (3)), the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare or the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices, on finding it to be necessary to do so, may issue the necessary recommendations or requests regarding particulars that concern the prevention of industrial injuries to the original orderer (other than an original orderer that directly carries out the job) of the job to which that order pertains..

The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may carry out an investigation for a plan of which the Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices or the minister has received notification under the provisions of paragraphs (1) through (3) of the preceding Article (except in the following Article, hereinafter referred to as "notification") if it requires an advanced technical examination.

In carrying out an investigation as referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare must hear the opinions of persons with relevant knowledge and experience pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

On finding it to be necessary as a result of an investigation as referred to in paragraph (1), the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may make the necessary recommendations or requests to the employer that submitted the notification regarding particulars that concern the prevention of industrial injuries.

The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare must hear the opinion of the employer that has submitted the relevant notification, in advance, in the making of a recommendation or request as referred to in the preceding paragraph.

A person with relevant knowledge and experience who has been asked for an opinion on the plan referred to in paragraph (1) pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (2) must not divulge any secret learned in connection with the plan.

The Director of the Prefectural Labour Bureau may investigate a plan regarding which a notification under the provisions of paragraph (1) or (3) of Article 88 has been filed and which, in consideration of a construction, the machinery or other such equipment, the scale of the job, or any other particular, is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as fairly closeto a plan requiring an advanced technical examination as referred to in paragraph (1) of preceding Article; provided, however, that such an investigation is not to be undertaken for any such plan that is specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as one for which a technical examination of an equivalent level to such an investigation is found to have been undertaken

The provisions of paragraphs (2) through (5) of the preceding Article apply mutatis mutandis to the investigations provided for in the preceding paragraph.

The Chief of the Labour Standard Inspection Offices and the labor standards inspector is in charge of administrative functions related to the entry into effect of this Act, pursuant to Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

On finding it to be necessary to do so in order to bring this Act into effect, a labor standards inspector may enter a workplace, question persons concerned, inspect books, documents, and other articles, conduct work environment monitoring, and, within the limits of what is necessary for an inspection, collect without compensation samples of products, raw materials, and implements.

A labor standards inspector who is a physician may conduct medical screenings on workers who seem to have contracted a disease referred to in Article 68.

In a case referred to in the preceding two paragraphs, the labor standards inspector must carry an identification card and show it to persons concerned.

The right to conduct on-site inspections under the provisions of paragraph (1) must not be interpreted as authorization for the purpose of a criminal investigation.

The labor standards inspector is authorized to perform the duties of judicial police officers under the Code of Criminal Procedure (Act No. 131 of 1948) with regard to a crime that violates this Act.

Senior industrial safety specialists and senior industrial health specialists are stationed in the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Prefectural Labour Bureaus and Labor Standards Offices.

In addition to being responsible for the safety-related administrative functions involved in permissions as referred to in Article 37, paragraph (1), special safety and health improvement plans, safety and health improvement plans, and notifications; and for investigations into the causes of industrial accidents and other administrative functions for which specialized knowledge is particularly needed, senior industrial safety specialists give guidance and assistance to employers, workers, and other relevant persons on the things that are necessary for preventing endangerment of workers..

In addition to being responsible for the health-related administrative functions involved in permissions as referred to in Article 56, paragraph (1), recommendations under the provisions of Article 57-4, paragraph (4), instructions under the provisions of Article 57-5, paragraph (1), specialized technical issues in respect of work environment monitoring under the provisions of Article 65, special safety and health improvement plans, safety and health improvement plans, and notifications; and for investigations into the causes of industrial accidents and other administrative functions for which specialized knowledge is particularly needed, senior industrial health specialists give guidance and assistance to employers, workers, and other relevant persons on the things that are necessary for preventing the impairment of workers' health and for helping to maintain and improve the health of workers.

Beyond what is provided for in the preceding three paragraphs, Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare prescribes the necessary particulars concerning senior industrial safety specialists and senior industrial health specialists.

On finding it to be necessary to do so in order to undertake a function under the provisions of paragraph (2) or (3) of the preceding Article, a senior industrial safety specialist or senior industrial health specialist may enter workplaces, question persons concerned, inspect books, documents, and other articles, conduct work environment monitoring, and, within the limits of what is necessary for an inspection, collect without compensation samples of the products, raw materials, and implements.

The provisions of paragraphs (3) and (4) of Article 91 apply mutatis mutandis pursuant to respect to on-site inspections under the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Senior industrial health physicians are stationed in the Prefectural Labour Bureaus.

A senior industrial health physician participates in administrative functions involved in the instruction under the provisions of paragraph (5) of Article 65 or paragraph (4) of Article 66 and other administrative functions involving the health of workers.

Senior industrial health physicians are appointed by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare from among physicians with knowledge and experience in industrial health.

Senior industrial health physician is a non-regular employment position.