Michigan Paid Time Off (PTO) law for employers is essential for legal compliance and fosters a fair work environment. PTO laws in the state encompass a range of leave categories, and employers must know laws regarding these leaves to protect the rights of employees.
This article elaborates on various Michigan PTO laws and provides a comprehensive overview of different leave types, rollover policies, and other relevant employer considerations.
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What are Michigan PTO Laws related to various kinds of leaves?
Michigan recognizes the rights of employees to have different types of leaves, but employers should know which leaves are mandatory. They should have clear policies and procedures to manage every kind of leave effectively.
Here are details of state and federal laws that you should know to ensure compliance and a supportive work environment for employees.
1. Sick Leave
Michigan follows the federal Family and Medical Leave Act that all employers must follow to ensure employees get time off to attend to medical emergencies. Additionally, Michigan’s Paid Medical Leave Act (MPMLA) was implemented in 2019, which requires eligible employers to offer paid sick leave for employees.
Under FMLA, employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide sick leave to eligible employees. Eligibility includes part-time, full-time, and temporary workers who have worked an average of 25 hours per week or 1250 hours in the preceding calendar year. It allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid sick leave for approved reasons.
Eligible employees can use sick time for various reasons, including the employee’s illness or injury, the disease or injury of a family member, medical appointments, and issues related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Under the MPMLA, employees are entitled to paid leave, and they accrue one hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, up to a maximum of 40 hours per year. Michigan PTO law allows employees to carry over unused paid sick leave from one year to the next.
Employers can also frontload 40 hours at the start of each benefit year. Also, employers can require reasonable notice from employees for foreseeable sick leave and documentation for absences exceeding three consecutive days.
2. Maternity, Paternity, & FMLA
Maternity and paternity leave in Michigan is primarily governed by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Employers with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius of the worksite must offer maternity and paternity leaves to all employees who have worked for the employer for at least 12 months, with at least 1,250 hours worked during the previous year.
FMLA allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in 12 months for the birth or adoption of a child. Therefore, employers in Michigan should allow paternity/maternity unpaid leave for up to 12 weeks. Employers should include all the information about the medical leave policies in their employee contracts and handbooks.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) is another federal law that Michigan employers must follow to ensure that all eligible employees can take maternity/paternity leave for the birth or adoption of a child.
PDA ensures that both mothers and fathers have the opportunity to bond with their newborn or adopted child without facing any discrimination from employers. It provides job protection, allowing employees to return to their previous or equivalent position.
Michigan’s Civil Rights Act is yet another law that protects employees on paternity/maternity/FMLA leave from discrimination at work. The act is there “to prohibit discriminatory practices, policies, and customs in the exercise of those rights based upon religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status.
To preserve the confidentiality of records regarding arrest, detention, or other disposition in which a conviction does not result; to prescribe the powers and duties of the civil rights commission and the department of civil rights; to provide remedies and penalties; to provide for fees; and to repeal certain acts and parts of acts.”
3. Bereavement Leave
Employers in Michigan are not required to provide bereavement leave to employees. However, most employers provide leave for bereavement on compassionate grounds by employers. As bereavement leave in Michigan is not governed by specific state laws, employers can establish their policies regarding the amount of leave and whether it is paid or unpaid.
While there is no law, employers must adhere to the agreed-upon policies if bereavement leave is included in benefits in an employee contract.
4. Jury Duty Leave
Jury duty leave in Michigan is governed by federal law, as in every other state. Employers must provide time off to employees summoned to serve on a jury.
Employers should grant unpaid leave to employees called to serve on a jury. Employees should not face negative consequences, such as termination or demotion, solely because they fulfill their jury duty obligations.
The length of the jury trial determines the duration of jury duty leave. Employees can take time off from work for jury duty as long as their jury duty is scheduled. Employers are not required to pay employees for compensation during jury duty leave.
However, while jury duty leave in Michigan is unpaid by employers, jurors receive compensation directly from the court for their service. In Michigan, jurors are paid $12.50 a day for jury duty. They also receive mileage reimbursement for travel.
5. Military Leave
Michigan has laws to provide job protection and leave rights to employees who are National Guard or Reserves members. Such employees can join active military duty without facing any discrimination or consequences.
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) is a federal law that provides protection, reinstatement rights, and unlimited leave for active duty. In addition to USERRA, Michigan local law requires employers to grant unpaid military leave to employees called to active duty, such as training or deployments.
It mandates that such employees must be reinstated to their former or equivalent positions upon their return from duty. The length of military leave for an employee can vary depending on the nature and duration of the military service.
6. Voting Leave
Unlike most U.S. states, Michigan has not made it mandatory for employers to provide time off for voting. No federal or state law specifies whether this leave should be paid or unpaid. It may vary depending on the employer’s policies. Employees who do not have sufficient time to vote outside of working hours can request their employers to take voting leave to take time off to vote.
7. Leave for Victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Michigan requires employers to provide unpaid leave to employees who are victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. Eligible employees must be victims of domestic violence or sexual assault or have a family or household member who is a victim.
Affected employees can utilize this leave for various purposes, including seeking medical treatment, legal assistance, counseling, or relocation to a safer location.
Leave for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault provides employees time to recover from the trauma and take necessary actions without the risk of losing their jobs or other employment rights.
8. Emergency Response Leave
To provide job protection to employees who are volunteer emergency responders, classified as state civil service members or certified American Red Cross volunteers, and need to respond to emergencies with emergency response leave.
Employees are eligible for this leave during times of disasters and other emergencies. Emergency response leave can be paid depending on the company policies or rules laid down by the governor or the civil service commission.
What happens to rollover or carry-over paid time-off as per Michigan PTO law?
Michigan is one state that allows use-it-or-lose-it policy, making it possible for employers to enforce policies requiring employees to use their paid time off within the calendar year or lose them. However, there are specific rules for sick leave.
As per the Michigan Paid Medical Leave Act, employees can roll over up to 40 hours of unused sick leave from one year to the next. Alternatively, employers in Michigan can also front load the entire 40 hours of sick leave at the beginning of the benefit year. Therefore, they are not required to allow employees to roll over unused sick leave hours at the end of the year.
Are Use It or Lose It Policies Legal in Michigan?
Yes, use-it-or-lose-it is legal in Michigan, and employers are not required to allow accrual of PTO for carry-over to the following year. Additionally, employers can pay accrued, unused vacation on termination only if the company’s policy or contract requires it.
Payment of Accrued, Unused Vacation on Termination
In Michigan, handling accrued, unused vacation pay upon an employee’s termination is not governed by specific laws and solely depends on employer policies. Employers are not required to provide a payout for unused Paid Time Off (PTO) when an employee leaves the company unless it is agreed in company policies.
If an employer’s policy or employment contract explicitly requires the payout of accrued vacation upon termination, then the employer is legally bound to do so. Also, if there are no company policies on PTO payment on termination, employees can receive compensation for unused vacation time upon leaving the company.
This default rule ensures that, without clear guidelines, employees are entitled to compensation for their unused vacation time.
On the other hand, employers in Michigan have the legal right to establish company policies that deny payment for accrued vacation leave upon an employee’s termination. However, such policies must be communicated and agreed to in writing by the employees.
It should include conditions where payment can be withheld, such as if the employee fails to provide adequate notice before leaving or is not employed as of a specific date in the year.
Furthermore, employers may legally stipulate circumstances under which employees would be disqualified from receiving payment for accrued vacation upon separation. Again, such conditions and terms are clearly stated in a written policy or contract and agreed to by the employee.
Michigan State Holidays in 2024
Michigan PTO law does not require employers to provide holiday leave to employees. Private employers can provide paid or unpaid holidays depending on their company policies. The majority of employers chose to offer time off for observed holidays.
Here is a list of 14 state holidays in Michigan. Holidays falling on Saturdays are observed on Fridays, and holidays that fall on Sundays are observed on Mondays.
Holiday | Date in 2024 | General Date |
New Year’s Day 2024 | Monday, January 1 | January 1 |
Martin Luther King, Jr. | Monday, January 15 | 3rd Monday in January |
Washington’s Birthday | Monday, February 19 | 3rd Monday in February |
Memorial Day | Monday, May 27 | Last Monday in May |
Juneteenth | Wednesday, June 19 | June 19 |
Independence Day | Thursday, July 4 | July 4 |
Labor Day | Monday, September 2 | 1st Monday in September |
General Election Day | Tuesday, November 5 | November 2 to 8 (*) |
Veterans Day | Monday, November 11 | November 11 |
Thanksgiving Day | Thursday, November 28 | 4th Thursday of November |
Thanksgiving Friday | Friday, November 29 | Day after Thanksgiving |
Christmas Eve | Tuesday, Dec. 24 | December 24 |
Christmas Day | Wednesday, Dec. 25 | December 25 |
New Year’s Eve 2025 | Tuesday, Dec. 31 | December 31 |
How does Truein help with paid time-off management?
Truein is a comprehensive face recognition-based time and attendance software with features for managing paid time off (PTO). From automated workflows to handling employee time-off requests to leave approval management, our cloud-based software can assist employers with complete PTO management.
Truein comes with complete time-off management system that helps manage various types of leave, including casual, medical, and other paid and unpaid time off.
Employers can easily set up PTO policies and automatically track accruals based on predefined rules. This helps ensure accurate calculation and allocation of PTO for each employee. With over 70 customizable policy templates, employers can tailor PTO policies within Truein to match their specific company rules and guidelines.
Employees and managers can view PTO balances in real-time for efficient PTO management, reducing the need for manual calculations and inquiries to HR. This transparency fosters trust and employee engagement.
Truein is helping companies across industries comply with state and federal PTO laws and regulations. It can automatically apply the relevant rules and ensure that PTO policies adhere to legal requirements.
Furthermore, Truein generates detailed reports on PTO usage, accruals, and other relevant data to assist informed decision-making.
Truein is a comprehensive leave and PTO management system that ensures all PTO-related actions are done with transparency and accountability. Learn more about Truein’s PTO management features.
Conclusion
Employers must understand and adhere to Michigan PTO laws to maintain legal compliance. To ensure a fair workplace environment and protect employees’ rights, employers should familiarize themselves with various leave categories, rollover policies, and other relevant considerations.
Employers can simplify their PTO management with Truein while ensuring compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Its features help streamline processes, reduce administrative burdens, and provide a user-friendly experience for employees and HR personnel.
