Michigan revises paid sick leave, minimum wage laws
Michigan sick leave and minimum wage bills passed to address concerns of small businesses and tipped workers.
Published: February 21, 2025 | by Michael Cardman, Senior Legal Editor at Brightmine
Michigan’s paid sick leave and minimum wage laws are changing once again.
Last summer, the Michigan Supreme Court made employee-friendly changes to the laws and ordered that they go into effect today, February 21, 2025.
But just as those changes were set to take hold, Michigan’s legislature passed a pair of compromise bills intended to respond to the concerns of small businesses and tipped workers. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the bills into law, and they take effect immediately.
Paid Sick Leave Changes
The paid sick leave bill, HB 4002, amends Michigan’s Earned Sick Time Act to:
- Delay paid sick leave requirements for small employers (those with 10 or fewer employees) from February 21 to October 1.
- Repeal the requirement that small employers provide 32 hours of unpaid leave in addition to 40 hours of paid leave.
- Allow small employers to cap carryover leave at 40 hours per year rather than 72 hours per year.
- Exempt certain employees who are allowed to schedule their own working hours; unpaid trainees and interns or trainees; and minors employed in accordance with the state child labor laws.
- More.
“We saved small businesses tonight,” said one of the bill’s sponsors, State Rep. Greg Markkanen.
Minimum Wage Changes
Notable changes to the minimum wage law made by SB 8 include:
- A more aggressive timeline for increasing the minimum wage.
- Preservation of the tip credit, which would have been eliminated by 2031 under the previous law.
The table below provides a more detailed view of what’s changing:
“When I sat down with workers and small business owners to discuss the importance of Michigan’s tipped wage system, our political differences didn’t matter – what mattered was finding a solution that allows small businesses to thrive and keep their doors open,” said the sponsor of the bill, State Sen. Kevin Hertel. “Crafted with those perspectives in mind, this legislation protects and improves Michigan’s tipped wage, so workers earn a good living while small businesses have the stability they need to continue serving our communities.”
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About the author
Michael Cardman
Senior Legal Editor, Brightmine
Michael Cardman has more than 20 years of experience in publishing and has specialized in employment law for more than 15 years. As a member of the Brightmine editorial team, he focuses on wage and hour compliance, including minimum wage, overtime, employee classification, hours worked, independent contractors and child labor.
Michael holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Virginia. Prior to joining Brightmine, he was the managing editor for Thompson Publishing Group’s library of HR publications. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing books, manuals and online tools covering a variety of topics such as wage and hour, employee leaves, employee benefits and compensation.
Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.