02 Aug Michigan Law Alert: Michigan Court Revives Original Minimum Wage and Sick Leave Laws
A Michigan court has ruled that the 2018 amendments the state legislature made to the citizen initiatives for increased minimum wage and paid sick leave were unconstitutional. As a result, the laws as adopted by the citizen initiatives are technically in effect. However, the court has stayed its order through February 19, 2023. That means that the citizen initiatives can’t be enforced yet, and the earliest employers will need to comply with an increased minimum wage and more generous sick leave requirements is February 20, 2023.
The issue continues to be litigated, and the ultimate result might be reinstating the citizens’ versions of these laws, the legislature’s versions, or some Frankenstein-like mix of the two. We are continuing to monitor this case and will alert you regarding significant updates.
As a refresher, and possibly a look at what’s to come, the unamended citizen initiatives did the following (this is not an exhaustive list of differences):
- Increased the minimum wage to $12 by January 1, 2022, and tied it to inflation each year after that.
- Phased out the tip credit. In 2022, employers would need to provide tipped employees with a base pay of 80% of the state’s minimum wage. This would increase to 90% in 2023, and 100% in 2024.
- Entitled all but federal employees to earn and use paid sick leave.
- Required almost all employers to provide paid sick leave, not just those with 50 or more employees.
- Required that employees earn sick leave at a rate of 1 hour per 30 worked, instead of 1 per 35.
- Required that employees be able to use up to 40 hours of paid sick leave and 32 hours of unpaid sick leave per year if they work for an employer with 9 or fewer employees.
- Required that employees be able to use up to 72 hours of paid sick leave per year if they work for an employer with 10 or more employees.
- Prohibited retaliation against employees for using sick leave.
From HR Support Center