MICD on House Bills 4001 and 4002

Lansing, MI — The Michigan College Democrats stands in opposition to House Bills 4001 and 4002, which seek to reduce improved standards and higher wages for workers that would otherwise take effect on February 21st, 2025.

In July of 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court struck down the “adopt and amend” rule, an anti-democratic tactic utilized by the state legislature to “adopt” citizen ballot initiatives and then “amend” them to their liking. Two measures affected by this strategy were the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act and the Earned Sick Time Act, a pair of proposals from 2018 which would have gradually raised the minimum wage to about $15 per hour by 2028, raised the wage for tipped workers to the same level as the minimum wage, and raised the minimum amount of paid sick days workers can take to 72 hours. When the Republican Legislature and  the Governor adopted and amended these proposals, they drastically reduced the minimum wage increases, kept the original tipped wage, and lowered the paid sick day minimum to 40 hours. 

If HB 4001 and 4002 are adopted, the original benefits set to take effect on the 21st will get rolled back once again, albeit not as severely as in 2018. Still, the minimum wage would increase at a slightly lower rate, the tipped wage would remain at its current level, and nearly 1.5 million fewer workers would be eligible for expanded paid sick leave. Because of this, MICD proposes that the legislature take no action and let the original package of benefits go into effect.

HB 4001-4002 represent a renewed Republican effort to roll-back pro-worker policies while betraying the will of the public. Polling conducted by Progress Michigan shows that a bipartisan majority of Michiganders, including 51% of Republicans, support the original pre-AA law set to take effect in February. It is also worth noting that in a state where nearly three quarters of tipped workers are women, abolishing the tipped wage and raising the minimum wage would help in closing the wage gap while providing a more stable source of income for workers in the restaurant industry.

Michigan was built by workers, and history shows that when we raise standards for the working class, everyone is better off. In order to continue the promise of building a better Michigan, it is imperative that our legislators follow a vision that places workers first.