By: Sean Egan
Michigan Dept. of Labor and Economic Opportunity
Wage and Hour Division
Michigan’s Wage and Hour Division has regulatory responsibility for the Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA) and the Minimum Wage and Overtime Laws.
A few key points on ESTA, all Michigan employers are covered except the United States Government and railway employers and employees covered by the Railway Unemployment Insurance Act.
Unless you are a business with 10 or fewer employees, your employees began accruing (or were frontloaded time) on Feb. 21, 2025. For employers covered on Feb. 21, 2025 the notice provision was extended 30 days from Feb. 21, 2025.
Some employees are exempted from ESTA benefits. The common exemption question is about employees who schedule their own hours and are not subject to adverse personnel action for not scheduling a minimum number of hours.
This does not exempt employees whose workplaces have flexible scheduling practices or policies. If the employer maintains the schedule, even though employees may choose their own shifts, these employees are covered by ESTA.
Minimum Wage, also effective Feb. 21, 2025, is $12.48 for 2025, and the tipped employee minimum is 38% of the full minimum wage or $4.74 for 2025.
For employees earning the tipped minimum wage, employers cannot require tip pooling or tip sharing for purposes of employment or continued employment. Employees may voluntarily share tips with other employees except management or supervisors.
We know these are significant changes and we are working to ensure that employers and employees have the information they need to comply with these changes. We work hard to keep our website up to date with the latest information, so please check Michigan.gov/wagehour for posters, FAQs, contact info, and other information.
