In 2012, Michigan enacted a right-to-work statute that prevented employees from being forced to join or financially support a labor union as a condition of employment. On Friday, March 24, 2023, Michigan became the first state in 58 years to repeal its right-to-work statute. The repeal will take effect
Articles About Michigan Labor and Employment Law.
Governor Whitmer Signs Legislation Repealing Michigan’s Right-to-Work Law
On March 24, 2023, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed into law legislation repealing Michigan’s right-to-work law for private-sector employees. The legislation had previously passed the Michigan House of Representatives on March 14, 2023, and the Michigan Senate on March 21, 2023. Both bills passed along party lines.
Michigan Senate Passes Bill to Repeal Right-to-Work Law Governing Private-Sector Employers
On March 21, 2023, the Michigan Senate passed Senate Bill No. 34 in the final step of the legislative process to repeal Michigan’s right-to-work law governing private-sector employers. The Senate’s action comes on the heels of the Michigan House of Representatives’ passage of a similar bill, House Bill 4005, on
Michigan Legislature Passes Amendment to Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to Protect LGBTQ Rights
On March 8, 2023, the Michigan House of Representatives passed a bill (S.B. 4) expanding the language of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA)’s protected categories to include sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as prohibited categories for discrimination. The state senate approved S.B. 4 on March 1,
Michigan House Passes Bills to Repeal State’s Right-to-Work Law, Debate Moves to Michigan Senate
On March 8, 2023, the Michigan House of Representatives passed two bills that would repeal Michigan’s current right-to-work law. The two bills, House Bill (HB) 4004 and HB 4005, passed 56–53 along party lines. HB 4004 relates specifically to right to work in the public sector; HB 4005 relates to
(Mothering) Justice Denied: Legislative Amendments to Minimum Wage and Paid Sick Leave Upheld
The Michigan legislature was within its authority to amend two ballot initiatives in 2018, one to significantly raise the minimum wage and the other to greatly expand the availability of paid sick leave to employees, the Michigan Court of Appeals has held. Mothering Justice v. Attorney General, 2023 Mich. App. LEXIS 625 (Mich. Ct. App. Jan. 26, 2023).
Michigan Appeals Court “Undoes” Lower Court’s “Undoing” of What Legislature “Undid” Concerning Minimum Wage, Tip, and Paid Leave Standards
On January 26, 2023, a three-judge panel of the Michigan Court of Appeals issued a ruling regarding Michigan’s minimum wage, tip, and paid sick and safe time laws. In 2018 the Michigan state legislature overhauled revisions to Michigan’s minimum wage and tip law and its newly created paid sick
Michigan Court of Appeals Maintains Status Quo Regarding Paid Medical Leave
On January 26, 2023, in the long-awaited opinion in Mothering Justice v. Attorney General, a three-judge panel of the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled, in a 3–0 opinion, that the Michigan Paid Medical Leave Act (PMLA) and Michigan Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act, as implemented in March 2019, will remain
Michigan Minimum Wage and Paid Leave Update: Agency Guidance and the Mothering Justice Appeal
The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) has provided guidance on the upcoming changes to the state’s minimum wage rates in light of the Michigan Court of Claims decision in Mothering Justice v. Nessel, No. 21-000095-MM (July 19, 2022).
MIOSHA Issues Agency Instruction, Clarifying Procedures for Conducting Interviews During Enforcement Investigations
On October 17, 2022, the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) issued an agency instruction, the subject of which is “Interviews in Health and Safety Investigations.” The stated purpose of that agency instruction is to provide “clarification on proper procedures when conducting interviews for enforcement investigations under Section 29(1)
Order Issuing Changes to Michigan Minimum Wage and Paid Sick Leave Law Stayed Until February 2023
On July 19, 2022, the Michigan Court of Claims held that, in 2018, the state legislature violated the Michigan Constitution when it enacted, and within the same legislative session amended, two ballot initiatives, one to raise the minimum wage and the other to require employers to provide paid sick leave.
Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation Unlawful, Michigan High Court Holds, Overruling Precedent
Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA), MCL 37.2101 et seq., prohibition of sex-based discrimination also prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation, the Michigan Supreme Court has held.
2022 Changes to Michigan’s Paid Medical Leave: ‘Back to the Future’? Well, Not So Fast!
Earlier today, the Michigan Court of Claims issued a stay of its July 19, 2022, decision in Mothering Justice v. Nessel that had reinstated ballot initiatives that would have drastically changed the state’s paid medical leave and minimum wage laws. The stay is in place until February 19, 2023. This
Michigan Court Voids State’s Minimum Wage and Paid Medical Leave Acts, Creating Compliance Limbo
Citing legislative “sleight of hand,” the Michigan Court of Claims has held that the Michigan legislature violated the state’s Constitution when, in 2018, it adopted and then immediately amended ballot initiatives to increase the state’s minimum wage and to require employer-paid sick leave.
2022 Changes to Michigan’s Paid Medical Leave: Back to the Future
On July 19, 2022, the Michigan Court of Claims reinstated Michigan’s original (2018) voter-initiated versions of the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act (IWOWA) and the Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA). This reversion immediately increases Michigan’s minimum wage rate to $12 per hour and significantly expands the paid sick leave employers
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