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The determination of wage amounts is principally decided autonomously by workers and employers. In most cases where there is a labor union, it is determined through collective bargaining between the company and the labor union, and in companies without a union, it is determined by the company's payroll regulations or agreement between the parties. However, the government sets the minimum level of wages, and even if the parties autonomously decide wages, if it falls short of this minimum standard, it forces payment of the minimum level set by the government, thereby ensuring workers' living stability and qualitative improvement of the labor force, contributing to the sound development of the national economy. The minimum level of wages set by the government in this way is called the minimum wage, and employers cannot pay workers wages below the minimum wage. Violating this results in punishment. The minimum wage is decided and announced annually by the Minister of Employment and Labor and applies from September 1 of that year to August 31 of the following year. The minimum wage system is one where the state directly intervenes in the wage determination process between employers and workers to guarantee the minimum living costs of low-wage workers that are socially unacceptable, sets the minimum wage level, and legally compels employers to pay wages above this level. Article 32 of the Constitution stipulates the implementation of the minimum wage system as prescribed by law.