The Labor Ministry has disclosed a report on cases of unpaid wages. They include the results of labor standards inspectors’ supervision and instruction on companies suspected of unpaid wages between January to December 2025. This article reviews the report.
[1] Labor standards inspectors’ supervision and instruction
Following is the overview of cases handled by the Labor Standards Inspection Offices in 2025.
Number of cases: 22,605 (up 251 from the previous year)
Number of affected workers: 173,016 (down 12,181, y-o-y)
Total sum: 12,857,820,000 yen (down 4.35 billion yen, y-o-y)
Among the cases, the commerce industry accounts for 20.8% with 4,701 cases, followed by manufacturing with 4,370 cases, the health and hygiene industry with 3,620 cases, hospitality and entertainment businesses with 2,813 cases, and the construction sector with 2,290 cases. By the number of affected workers, the health and hygiene industry tops the list with 47,033 workers, accounting for 27.2%, followed by manufacturing with 43,028 workers and the commerce industry with 20,568 workers.
[2] Case examples of supervision and inspection
The report shows examples of companies that received supervision and instruction. The information is helpful for other firms to review work hour management, such as appropriate payment of overtime or accurate understanding of working hours.
<Outline>
The Labor Standards Inspection Office received a report that a company is not paying wages for work done in 15 minutes immediately before or after scheduled work hours. Inspectors have found the following;
- The company was using an IC card attendance system, but failed to count work done in the 15-minute period right before or after scheduled hours.
- The procedure had become a customary practice, with the company ignoring the possibility that some employees were working during the 15-minute period.
<Labor Standards Inspection Office’s instruction>
The authority ordered the company to conduct a survey by interviewing employees to understand actual hours worked and pay the difference in overtime wages if necessary. The company was also instructed to consider specific measures to understand work hours accurately.
<Company action>
The company conducted a retrospective survey and found multiple records of work in the 15-minute period before or after scheduled work hours. It paid additional wages for the overtime work and revised the work hour management system to ensure that wages will be paid for work done before or after scheduled hours in the future.
Companies are required to pay wages work done outside the regular working hours. Such incidents often occur when workers start work before the opening time. Please set rules regarding overtime work before regular hours for appropriate workhour management.
■Reference
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, “FY2025 report on supervision and instruction on companies suspected of unpaid wages”
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/newpage_75588.html
