The labor inspector system was introduced to protect vulnerable workers and reduce poverty under labor law, as the spread of temporary and other vulnerable work, the dual structure of the labor market and widening income gaps became social problems. A labor inspector is a state authority empowered to encourage better working conditions; inspectors must check whether employers and workers are faithfully complying with the law, and their role is expanding beyond enforcing current law to identifying and correcting abuses. Problems in labor inspection arise easily at small workplaces, because sluggish construction and weak domestic demand worsen conditions for temporary workers and others at small businesses. At companies that outsource heavily, illegal dispatch and discrimination against temporary workers are serious, and dismissals and the transfer of employment in restructuring and mergers frequently cause problems.

Note: Article 101 of the Labor Standards Act places labor inspectors in the Ministry of Employment and Labor and its agencies to secure labor standards, and Article 102(5) provides that inspectors act as judicial police officers for crimes under the Act and other labor laws. Their specific scope of duties is set by Article 6-2 of the Act on the Persons Performing the Duties of Judicial Police Officers. The problems and reforms in the paper reflect discussions at the time of writing, and staffing and operations may have changed since.