Concerning public works projects planned and conducted in the specified areas (referring to public-oriented construction and restoration projects planned and conducted directly by the national government or by corporations established by a special act of incorporation pursuant to a special act (limited to corporations specified by Cabinet Order for which all or most of the stated capital comes from investment by the national government, or for which the primary source of funds for expenses necessary to conduct the projects comes from grants or subsidies from the national government) (referred to as the "national government and specified corporations" in the following paragraph), or by local governments and other entities to which a contribution or subsidy from the national treasury has been provided; the same applies hereinafter), when the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare deems it to be necessary based on the employment conditions of middle-aged and elderly unemployed persons and other persons in specified areas, the Minister may prescribe the percentage of the total number of workers employed in these projects that are middle-aged and elderly unemployed persons and other persons (hereinafter referred to as the "absorption ratio of unemployed persons") by occupation or area, according to the type of project.
厚生労働大臣は、特定地域における中高年齢失業者等の就職の状況等からみて必要があると認めるときは、当該特定地域において計画実施される公共事業（国及び特別の法律により特別の設立行為をもつて設立された法人（その資本金の全部若しくは大部分が国からの出資による法人又はその事業の運営のために必要な経費の主たる財源を国からの交付金若しくは補助金によつて得ている法人であつて、政令で定めるものに限る。）（次項において「国等」という。）自ら又は国の負担金の交付を受け、若しくは国庫の補助により地方公共団体等が計画実施する公共的な建設又は復旧の事業をいう。以下同じ。）について、その事業種別に従い、職種別又は地域別に、当該事業に使用される労働者の数とそのうちの中高年齢失業者等の数との比率（以下「失業者吸収率」という。）を定めることができる。
The national government and specified corporations or local governments and other entities which plan and conduct public works projects for which the absorption ratio of unemployed persons has been prescribed (including persons that conduct these projects based on a subcontract or other contract with the national government and specified corporations or local governments and other entities; hereinafter referred to as the "project operator for a public works project") must employ middle-aged and elderly unemployed persons and other persons in the number corresponding to the absorption ratio of unemployed persons at all times, through referrals of the unemployed persons by public employment security offices.
If it is difficult for the project operator for a public works project to employ middle-aged and elderly unemployed persons and other persons in the number required by the provisions of the preceding paragraph through referrals of unemployed persons by public employment security offices, the project operator for a public works project may directly employ the number of difficult-to-hire workers upon receiving written consent from public employment security offices.
公共事業の事業主体等は、前項の規定により雇入れを必要とする数の中高年齢失業者等を公共職業安定所の紹介により雇い入れることが困難な場合には、その困難な数の労働者を、公共職業安定所の書面による承諾を得て、直接雇い入れることができる。