Over the past five months, the Public Policy and Business Advocacy team at the Detroit Regional Chamber has had the Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA) and minimum wage reform at the top of the to-do list. As Michigan’s 103rd legislature got underway this week, the Michigan House of Representatives and Senate introduced legislation to make some much-needed changes to ESTA and minimum wage.
Earned Sick Time Solutions Introduced
January 9, 2025
“Fixing the Earned Sick Time Act and minimum wage promptly is the business community’s top priority in 2025. Employers need certainty to operate and time to understand what’s required of them with these impending changes. The Chamber is encouraged that both the House and the Senate agree and look forward to continued progress and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s signature.”
– Brad Williams, Vice President of Political Affairs, Detroit Regional Chamber
Between these two packages and the debate that will commence next week in the House Select Committee on Protecting Michigan Employees and Small Business, the Chamber has five priorities that the legislature needs to enact to prevent the most major impacts of the law:
Allow existing paid time off banks to cover sick time instead of requiring employers to maintain two separate banks of time off.
- Senate Version: Allows for one PTO/ESTA bank as long as the full bank meets the ESTA requirements
- House Version: Allows for a PTO/ESTA bank, strikes language about meeting ESTA requirements
Carve out exceptions for small businesses that cannot afford the ESTA requirements.
- Senate Bill: Defines small businesses as less than 25 employees.
- House Bill: Defines small businesses as less than 50 employees.
Require employees to notify employers in a reasonable timeframe for expected ESTA usage, allowing employers to require documentation for sick time, and allow for exemptions for staffing ratios.
- Senate Bill: Adds an exemption for employers that have mandated staffing ratios.
- House Bill: Allows employers to set procedures and documentation regarding how to handle their sick time.
Remove the automatic assumption for the employee’s side for unfavorable personnel actions, which no other state has in the form of a rebuttable presumption and private right of action.
- Senate Bill: Removes rebuttable presumption.
- House Bill: Removes rebuttable presumption.
Allow for PTO frontloading, which currently is not allowed.
- Senate Bill: Allows for frontloading.
- House Bill: Allows for frontloading.
While the legislature seems poised to take action before Feb. 21, it is unlikely that this will happen in the next 40 days. Therefore, your business needs to be taking steps today to comply with the current ESTA requirements as they stand.