Michigan Supreme Court Decision Puts New Mandates On Employers

Special Edition: Small Business Briefing Today with Brian Calley

The long-awaited decision by the Michigan Supreme Court regarding the commonly referred to 'adopt and amend' case was released. It did not go in favor of small business.

The MSC decision creates complex new mandates for small business owners regarding paid sick leave, increases the minimum wage, and phases out the tipped wage system.

Read SBAM President & CEO Brian Calley's statement.

Barring a legislative solution, beginning on February 21, 2025, all employers in the state of Michigan will be subject to the following rules:

Minimum wage increase

• This decision sets a new schedule for increases in the minimum wage, but the calculation set forth is very complex. While we will pursue estimates in the coming days, we will have to wait for the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity to know exactly what those increases will amount to.

Elimination of the tipped wage

• Michigan law allows employers to pay tipped employees 38% of the minimum wage as long as they earn at least the standard minimum wage with tips included. Most end up earning far more than minimum wage, which is why recent surveys show that 83% of servers do not want the system to change. Under this decision, the tipped wage will be phased out and service workers will fall under the regular minimum wage system.
  

New accrual based sick leave requirements

• This decision from the Court requires all employers, including those with fewer than 50 employees, to offer accrual-based paid sick leave to all employees, including part-time. It will require nearly every employer to make changes to the way they accrue sick time.

SBAM is hard at work to try and roll back some of these radical changes. Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Visit SBAM's website to understand the new requirements and to tell your legislators to demand action to mitigate the negative impact of this decision on consumers, workers, and small businesses.your text here ...