The 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.

The 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.

The 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.

①The 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.

②The 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.

③The 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.

④The 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.

The 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.

①Labor 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.

②Labor 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.

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

Labor 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.

①When 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.

②An 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.

①The 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 ").

②With 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.

③When 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.

④The 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".

⑤When 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.

⑥The 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.

⑦The 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 .

⑧With 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.

With 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.

①The 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.

②The 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.

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

Beyond 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.