State Rep. Cam Cavitt on Wednesday issued the following statement after a Michigan Supreme Court ruling raised the minimum wage, including the elimination of the tip credit for servers, bartenders, and other workers who frequently make more with tips than they would with a higher minimum wage. The changes go into effect Feb. 21, 2025.

“The Supreme Court got this wrong, plain and simple,” said Cavitt, R-Cheboygan. “Judicial activists on the court disagreed with the common-sense solutions the people’s representatives developed, so they took it upon themselves to jam through a radical liberal agenda anyway. This decision will close family restaurants that have been around for generations. The food service ‘first jobs’ we all relied on in high school will disappear. People will suffer because a few stuffy judges decided they wanted to play politician for a day.”

During the 2018 session, the Legislature adopted two citizen-initiated laws that increased the minimum wage and created a new paid sick leave rule. During the same legislative session, the Legislature then amended those laws to ensure they reflected the purpose of the initiatives and would not result in mass layoffs and shutdowns throughout Michigan small businesses. Later, a collection of progressive groups sued the state, arguing that the “adopt and amend” practice was unconstitutional.

A recent survey by the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association illustrates the dire consequences we’ll see if the radical changes in the 2018 proposals are allowed to stand:

• 66% of restaurant owners say they would be forced to lay off employees.
  • 20% would be forced to shut their doors.
  • 42% would be forced to cut operating hours.
  • More than 92% of restaurants would be forced to hike prices, with many anticipating increases of 20% to 25% by early 2025.

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