LANSING (WWJ) – A judge has ruled a pair of voter-initiated laws from 2018 were illegally amended by the Michigan Legislature and should be in effect. The ruling could potentially bump the state’s minimum wage to $12 per hour and alter paid sick time laws.
Michigan Court of Claims Judge Douglas Shapiro ruled Tuesday the Legislature can’t adopt and amend a petition initiative in the same legislative session, which the Republican-controlled Legislature did in 2018.
While the ruling could be appealed, Shapiro’s decision would void two state laws, which would instead be reverted to how they were initially proposed by voters.
Back in 2018 a petition circulated by Michigan One Fair Wage was headed to the ballot on Nov. 6, until lawmakers stepped in. It would have raised the state’s minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2022, increasing from $9.25 over a four-year span.
It also would have removed the lower minimum wage restriction for tipped workers.
The other initiative, originally circulated by MI Time to Care, would have required employers with fewer than 10 employees to allow workers to accrue up to 40 hours of paid sick time per year, while those with more than 10 employees would get up to 72 hours of paid sick leave.
Voters were set to decide on the initiatives, until lawmakers adopted them two months before the election. Later that year, during a lame-duck session ahead of the end of then-Gov. Rick Snyder’s term, lawmakers amended the measures and Snyder signed them into law.
The Republicans’ strategy created the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act, but the amendments slowed the institution of a higher minimum wage, calling for it to gradually increase to $12.05 per hour by 2030 – eight years later than the original proposal.
The Earned Sick Time Act, meanwhile, was amended to remove requirements for employers with fewer than 50 workers.
Shapiro’s ruling on Tuesday declared the amended laws should be “voided” and the original initiatives shall “remain in effect.”
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Though she was named a defendant in Tuesday’s case, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel called the ruling “a victory for Michiganders and for democracy.
“The initiated law process is intended as a tool for the people. The actions undertaken by the legislature in 2018 denied the will of the people and distorted the purpose of Michigan’s citizens initiative process,” Nessel said in a tweet.
Wendy Block, the vice president of business advocacy and member engagement for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce said the ruling could exacerbate staffing issues for many Michigan businesses, according to a Detroit Free Press report.
"The talent shortage has employers already paying historic wages and benefits – all while facing rising inflation and supply chain chaos – just to keep the doors open," Block said, per the Freep. "Employees should be equally concerned about the cost pressures this decision will place on businesses and the impact it could have on employee hours and benefits."