Michigan Paid Sick Leave Law

On September 5, 2018, the Michigan Legislature enacted the initiative called the “Earned Sick Time Act,” which generally required employers to provide paid sick leave to employees. The newly enacted “Paid Medical Leave Act” replaces and greatly alters the “Earned Sick Time Act” passed in September. Michigan’s new Paid Medical Leave Act (“Act”) will go into effect on March 29, 2019. 

Exemptions

This new legislation only applies to employers who employ 50 or more employees. Exempts employees exempt from FLSA overtime requirements, private sector employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement, temporary workers, employees who work in other states, independent contractors, variable hour employees, certain part-time and seasonal employees and flight deck, cabin crew and railroad workers.

(Note: Part-time is defined as an individual who has worked, on average, fewer than 25 hours/week during the preceding calendar year. A seasonal employee is defined as an individual employed by an employer for 25 weeks or less in a calendar year for a job scheduled for 25 weeks or fewer.)

Accrual and Leave Carry Overs

• The law specifies employees would accrue 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year. This will allow an employer to limit accrual to 1 hour per week. An employer is not required to allow an eligible employee to use more than 40 hours of paid sick leave in a single benefit year or to carry over more than 40 hours of time from one benefit year to another.
• The time begins to accrue on the effective date or date of hire, but the employer may allow new employees to wait 90 days before using their time.
• Employers may provide all employees 40 hours at the start of a benefit year to avoid carry-over. Employers can also pro-rate time for new employees.

The law creates a rebuttable presumption that an employer is in compliance with the law if the employer provides the requisite hours annually. This time can include, paid vacation days, personal days and paid time off.  The law specifies time may be used in 1-hour increments unless the employer has a different increment policy and that policy is in writing in an employee handbook. The law requires the employer to pay at a pay rate equal to the greater of either the normal hourly wage, the base wage or the applicable minimum wage rate.

Documentation and Notification

• The law allows the employer to require the employee to comply with the employer’s usual and customary notification, procedural and documentation requirements. An employer must give the employee 3 days to produce any required documentation.
• Employers must display a poster at the employer’s place of business that includes information on the amount of paid medical leave required under the Act, the terms under which paid medical leave may be used.