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MiMfg Magazine
March 2020
One Year Later: Michigan’s
Paid Medical Leave Act
Over the last two years, MMA and member
companies have worked to mitigate efforts to saddle
Michigan with the nation’s most extreme, anti-
competitive paid sick leave law. Thanks to strategic
industry advocacy in the fall of 2018, the Legislature
adopted vital changes to a voter-initiated ballot
proposal funded entirely by out-of-state dark money
interests. After removing the most damaging
provisions, then-Governor Rick Snyder signed the
new Paid Medical Leave Act (PMLA) into law,
effective 3/29/19.
One year later, the Act’s constitutionality
remains in question and a new ballot proposal
threatens to propose onerous and costly mandates.
Here’s a brief update on what you need to know:
Current Status
The proponents of the original initiative, MI
Time to Care, publicly argued that the Legislature
did not have the constitutional authority to amend
the adopted initiative within the same legislative
session. Soon after the PMLA was signed, Attorney
General Dana Nessel was asked to opine on its
constitutionality. The Legislature, confident in its
actions, filed a request to the Michigan Supreme
Court (MSC) to eliminate any uncertainty, effectively
barring the Attorney General from issuing an
opinion while the court deliberated. Following
oral arguments in the summer of 2019, the MSC
decided on 12/18/19 to not issue an advisory opinion
on the constitutionality of the Act’s passage.
As a result, Michigan’s PMLA remains the
current law of the land. Manufacturers should
continue to do everything they can to properly
comply with the Act while remaining engaged
with MMA to stay up-to-date on developments
which may impact employer policies.
“While certain Michigan employers must now
provide paid sick leave to some employees, Michigan’s
Paid Medical Leave Act is something that aligns
with federal law, allows for flexibility, respects
the employer/employee relationship and keeps
Michigan employers competitive,” said Delaney
McKinley, MMA senior director of government
affairs and membership. “Unfortunately, while
December’s court ruling was more favorable to
manufacturers than some of the alternatives, the
debate isn’t over.”
Understand the Essentials of PMLA Compliance
Covered Employer: Companies employing 50 or more
Eligible Employee: An individual for whom the Covered
Employer withholds for federal income tax purposes
and who is not specifically exempted from the Act
Leave Benefit: Covered employers must provide
40 hours of Paid Medical Leave to eligible employees
within a benefit year.
Waiting Period: An employer may require new hires to
wait 90 days to use Paid Medical Leave.
Method of Provision: Employers can provide required
Paid Medical Leave either through Accrual (one hour
for every 35 hours) or Frontload (all 40 hours at the
beginning of a Benefit Year).
Time Increments: Paid Medical Leave must be used in
one-hour increments unless the employer has a different
policy in writing.
Violations: Eligible employees have 6 months to file
a complaint with the Michigan Wage & Hour Division.
If a violation is found, employer will have to pay Paid
Medical Leave improperly withheld and an administrative
fine of up to $1,000.
Rebuttable Presumption: A covered employer that
provides 40 hours of paid leave of any type to Eligible
Employees is presumed to be in compliance with the Act.
Potential Next Steps
It is possible that Attorney General Nessel
could opine that the PMLA is unconstitutional
which, while only being binding on state
government, would create significant disruption
for Michigan employers and likely result in a long,
arduous and costly court battle.
The proponents of the original initiative have
already filed a new petition with Michigan’s Bureau
of Elections but it remains to be seen if this out-of-
state effort will commit the resources necessary to
move forward on their ballot effort in November.
“Taking a step backward on paid sick leave and
reverting back to the original 2018 ballot language
would all but guarantee Michigan the status of most
uncompetitive in the nation,” said McKinley. “Our
state’s largest job creating sector would be overrun