Effective June 1, 2025 — employers must act for hot-environment work, with penalties
Under the revised Industrial Safety and Health Regulation, employers must now take heatstroke measures at the workplace. It applies to work expected to last over 1 continuous hour, or more than 4 hours a day, in environments of WBGT (heat index) 28°C+ or air temperature 31°C+. Employers have two main duties: (1) build a system so a worker feeling symptoms — or anyone who notices — can promptly report and consult; and (2) set out procedures in advance to prevent symptoms from worsening (leaving the task, cooling the body, and transport to a medical facility if needed), and make them known to relevant workers.
Construction and manufacturing make up about 40% of workplace heatstroke casualties — fields employing many foreign workers. This reform protects workers: the law now backs a system where you may report feeling unwell instead of enduring it. It especially helps those who find it hard to speak up because of the language barrier. Employers who neglect measures face penalties. If your worksite shows no reporting system or rest/cooling procedures, you have every right to ask about them.
Japan's Immigration Services Agency published an 80-item Q&A on Ikusei Shuro, the work status starting April 1, 2027: three years of training toward Specified Skilled Worker (i) level, conditional worker-initiated transfers, and pre-launch filings from 2026.
Japan's Ikusei Shuro system starts April 1, 2027: A1-level Japanese before work and A2 within three years. The Immigration Services Agency has published a June 2026 list of institutions offering the required courses.
OTIT has published the sector operational guidelines for logistics and warehousing under Japan's Employment for Skill Development system, due to start in April 2027 with extra standards for supervisors.