When the Labor Standards Office conducts inspection, officials examine various documents, including payroll ledgers. Recently, an increasing number of companies keep payroll records in digital data, rather than paper, as part of efforts to improve operation efficiency by promoting digitalization. This article looks at what must be included in payroll ledgers and explain about the obligation to keep pay records.
[1] Necessary items of payroll ledger
Companies are legally required to include the items below in a payroll ledger.
1. Worker’s name
2. Sex
3. Pay calculation period
4. Working days
5. Working hours
6. Hours of overtime work, holiday work and late-night work
7. Amounts of base salary and allowances
8. Amounts deducted from salary in line with labor-management agreement, if applicable
Many firms fail to indicate “3. Pay calculation period” and “6. Hours of overtime work, holiday work and late-night work.” Please check all necessary items are included in the payroll ledgers.
[2] Obligation to keep the data
Payroll ledgers must be kept at each workplace. Even if payroll calculation for branches or sales offices is done by the headquarter, each workplace needs to have its payroll ledgers in the office. It is one of the common problems pointed out by labor standards inspectors.
Since many companies nowadays keep data in a computer system of payroll calculation, the government has issued an official notice to call attention to the two points below;
1. Companies must have payroll ledgers containing necessary information for each workplace in a form that can be easily displayed on screen or printed.
2. Companies need to produce necessary data, such as a workers’ roster or payroll ledger, and submit copies swiftly whenever required during official inspections, etc.
While promoting paperless of payroll data, companies need to implement a method to manage information as described above.
[Reference]
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, “May companies manage payroll ledgers digitally on computer?”
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/bunya/roudoukijun/faq_kijyunhou_32.html
