Companies are required to provide employees with health examinations at the time of hiring and at least once in a year. In addition to this regular checkup, companies have to offer health checks or dental checks to employees engaged in specific duties.
[1] Health check for employees engaged in specified duties
The Ordinance on Industrial Safety and Health requires employers to offer health assessments to workers engaged in specific duties. Applicable types of work include the following;
-Work handling a large quantity or high-temperature substances or in extremely hot places
-Work handling a large quantity of low-temperature substances or in extremely cold places
-Work in which workers are exposed to radium rays, X-rays and other harmful radiation
-Work in which workers are exposed to loud noises, such as in boiler manufacturing
-Night work
Companies must provide employees who regularly perform such duties with a health check at least once in six months.
[2] Health check for workers
A specific checklist must be used in a health check for workers regularly engaged in the following work;
-Work handling organic solvents
-Work handling lead
-Work handling tetraalkyl lead
-Work handling specified chemical substances
-Work under high pressure
-Work involving radiation exposure
-Decontamination work
-Work handling asbestos
As a general rule, employers have to provide a health check at the time of hiring or assignment and at least once in six months thereafter. Workers handling some of the specified chemical substances or asbestos have to receive health assessments even after they are released from the assignment.
[3] Dental check
Companies are also required to provide dental checks to employees regularly engaged in hazardous work (work involving exposure to hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, sulfuric acid, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen fluoride, yellow phosphorus or other gases, vapors or particulates harmful to teeth or dental tissues) at the time of hiring or assignment and at least once in six months thereafter.
From October 2022, companies are required, regardless of size, to submit a dental check report to the labor standards office, using the latest format.
Please be sure to provide health checks to applicable employees as required.
[Reference]
Labour Ministry
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-11200000-Roudoukijunkyoku/0000103900.pdf
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000978579.pdf
The content is based on laws and regulations as of the date of this article.
