Michigan Minimum Wage
Michigan’s current minimum wage is $9.87. All non-exempt workers who are not tip workers are eligible to receive the minimum wage.
On the first of each calendar year, beginning in 2023, the minimum wage in Michigan will increase. It will increase to $10.10 in 2023, $10.33 in 2024, $10.56 in 2025, $10.80 in 2026, and so on. By January 1st, 2031, the minimum wage in Michigan will be $12.05 per hour. For employees who receive tips, the minimum wage is $3.75.
For more information on Michigan’s minimum wage laws, visit our Michigan Minimum Wage Laws page, which includes topics such as minimum wage, tip minimum wage, tip sharing and pooling, and subminimum wages.
Michigan Overtime
Michigan labor laws require employers to pay their workers overtime at a rate of one and a half times their regular rate when they work more than 40 hours in a given work week, unless they are exempt. MI Statute 408:934a.
Federal labor laws may impose additional requirements on employers. See FLSA: Overtime for more information regarding overtime requirements.
Michigan Prevailing Wages
Some states specify a prevailing wage for workers employed by the government. However, Michigan does not have a prevailing wage law that controls wage rates on government project or service contracts.
Under certain circumstances, employers in Michigan may be required to pay residents wage rates established by federal prevailing wage rates and rules. The prevailing wage rates may be different from standard minimum wage rates. Employees may be eligible for prevailing wages if they work on government or government-funded construction projects or perform certain government services.
See the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), and Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act (PCA) for more information about prevailing wages.
Michigan Meals and Breaks
Employees in Michigan are guaranteed different rights to meals and breaks depending on their age.
Minors have the right to unpaid break time under Michigan law. Michigan labor laws require employers to provide employees under eighteen (18) years of age with a thirty (30) minute uninterrupted rest period if scheduled to work more than five (5) continuous hours. MI Statute 409.112.
However, Michigan does not require employers to provide breaks, including lunch breaks, for workers eighteen (18) years old or older. That being said, any employer who chooses to provide a meal, lunch, or break period must completely relieve employees of their work duties for the break period to be considered unpaid. Otherwise, the employer is required to provide compensation for the break. MI Dept. of Labor and Economic – Wage & Hour FAQ.
Michigan Nursing Mother Breaks
Michigan labor laws do not require employers to provide nursing mothers with paid or unpaid breaks to express breast milk. However, employers are still subject to federal laws that protect breastfeeding mothers after childbirth. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires certain employers to provide non-exempt nursing mothers with reasonable rest breaks to express milk and private spaces, other than a bathroom, to express breast milk. These requirements apply up to one year after the birth of a child.
Michigan Equal Pay
The state of Michigan does not have a specific policy protecting workers from wage discrimination on the basis of sex, race, age, sexual orientation, or other personal characteristics. However, the federal Equal Pay Act of 1963 protects all employees from wage discrimination on the basis of sex. Under the Equal Pay Act, workers of different sexes who perform similar job duties, with similar experience, qualifications, and performance, cannot be paid different amounts of money. Employees can file formal complaints with the U.S. Department of Labor against employers who do not follow these regulations with regard to equal pay.
Vacation Leave
If an employer gives its workers unpaid or paid vacation time, it must comply with the employment contract or vacation policy terms.
Michigan law also allows employers to establish policies or create contracts that prohibit employees from receiving payment for accrued vacation leave upon the end of the contract or separation of employment.
If payment for accrued vacation time at the separation of employment is not specified, an employer is required to pay it.
Michigan employers are not required to provide paid or unpaid vacation time to their employees. More information about Michigan vacation leave laws may now be found on our Michigan Leave Laws page.
Michigan Sick Leave
Michigan employers are not required to provide paid or unpaid sick time to their employees. If a business provides paid or unpaid sick leave benefits, it must adhere to the employment contract or established policy at the beginning of employment.
Unless explicitly stated by the contract, employers are not required to pay employees for accrued sick leave vacation upon the end of the contract or employment.
More information about Michigan sick leave laws may now be found on our Michigan Leave Laws page.
Holiday Leave
Private employers in Michigan are not required to provide holiday leave, but public employers may be.
In Michigan, employers may require employees to work on holidays. Furthermore, a private-sector employer is not required to provide additional compensation for work during holidays unless those hours qualify for overtime hours according to federal overtime regulations.
If a business provides unpaid or paid holiday time for its employees, it must adhere to the employment contract conditions or previously established policy.
More information about Michigan holiday leave laws may now be found on our Michigan Leave Laws page.
Jury Duty Leave
While an employer in the state of Michigan is not required to provide paid jury duty leave, they cannot retaliate against an employee for serving jury duty or require them to work additional hours past their usual quitting time on the days they serve jury duty. More information about Michigan jury duty leave laws may now be found on our Michigan Leave Laws page
Voting Leave
Michigan law does not require employers to provide paid or unpaid time off from work for employees to vote in elections. More information about Michigan voting leave laws may now be found on our Michigan Leave Laws page.
Severance Pay
Michigan labor laws do not require employers to provide employees with severance pay when they are terminated. MI Dept. of Labor and Economic Opportunity – Wage & Hour Div FAQ
Even so, some Michigan employers may still choose to provide severance under the terms of an employee’s contract or their workplace policies. If an employer chooses to provide severance benefits, it must comply with the terms of its established policy or employment contract.
Unemployment
Under certain circumstances, Michigan residents may be eligible for unemployment benefits while they search for another job. In the state of Michigan, you are required to certify that you are unemployed on a weekly basis to receive these benefits.
Workers in Michigan are eligible for unemployment benefits. The worker must be out of work but able and available to work to qualify for benefits. They must continuously look for full-time employment. Unemployed workers seeking benefits must register for work at the Michigan Works Agency.
A standard base period will determine if the worker’s wages qualify for unemployment benefits. This base period includes four of the last five completed calendar quarters before filing a claim.
Moreover, the worker must have earned wages in at least two of those quarters. There are also minimum wage requirements to be met to receive unemployment benefits in Michigan.
See Michigan State Unemployment Benefits for more information about these laws.