Fix Paid Leave and the Tipped Wage!

Save small businesses and Michigan jobs. Email your legislator!

Fix paid leave and the tipped wage!

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Dear Lawmaker

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I urge you to support House Bills 4001 and 4002 to reform the tipped wage and paid leave laws before they go into effect in late February.The laws enacted by the Michigan Supreme Court will unnecessarily cause tens of thousands of job losses across all businesses in Michigan, and hit restaurant workers especially hard. Costs for virtually all companies will skyrocket, causing them to have to raise customer prices or lay off Michigan workers. Restaurant workers will lose their tips and jobs, as has happened in other states where the tipped wage was eliminated. And company cultures will be&nbsp;eroded, forcing some employees to carry the load for others that "no call, no show" for a shift.Bills that have been introduced in the Senate unfortunately fall short. They fail to protect small businesses from major cost increases and continue the elimination of the tipped wage over time, which will only slow - not stop - job losses in restaurants.I urge you to support HB 4001 and 4002 to save jobs, protect our small businesses, and keep consumer costs down for Michiganders.

Sincerely

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In 2018, a ballot measure was approved in Michigan that would require mandatory paid leave and elimination of the tipped wage for restaurant workers. Lawmakers opted to adopt the measure before it went to the ballot, but also amended it to moderate the negative economic effects of the paid leave and wage provisions.

In 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the legislature's reform of those laws was unconstitutional, and unilaterally rewrote the original laws to take effect on February 21, 2025.

Without action by the legislature, these laws will have disastrous consequences for Michigan's economy. As many as 60,000 restaurant jobs are likely to be lost because of the elimination of the tipped wage, which ensures waitstaff are well paid, but keeps costs down for restaurants and their customers. One in five restaurants have stated they will have to close.

Every single business in Michigan will be affected by paid leave provisions that force employers give up to 9 paid leave days per year per employee. This is a massive cost that companies will have to make up with lower employee wages, job losses, or higher customer prices. It also legalizes "no call, no show" - eroding workplace culture with employees having to carry the workload for coworkers who do not show up or call in sick for their shifts.

House Bills 4001 and 4002 would correct these problems, maintaining the tipped wage for restaurant employees and establishing a workable paid leave policy in Michigan. Most notably, they would exempt small businesses from costly paid leave requirements and prevent "no call, no show" problems from destroying company culture.

Write your lawmakers and tell them to scale these laws back today!