State Rep. Karl Bohnak on Thursday cast a key vote to save small businesses and tipped workers from devastating mandates set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Friday. In a bipartisan vote, the House passed a common-sense plan – House Bill 4002 – to protect small businesses from unrealistic sick time rules while ensuring workers have access to leave time when they need it.

“The forecast for U.P. restaurants and small businesses is looking a whole lot sunnier,” said Bohnak, R-Deerton. “Today’s vote was a much-needed win for tipped workers and business owners who have been staring down the barrel of radical rule changes for far too long. I’m glad that House and Senate Republicans could join with Democrats to secure a deal that works for all of Michigan.”

HB 4002 guarantees all workers have access to sick time while clarifying the strict, complex rules that were originally set to take effect. The plan allows employers of all sizes to choose the sick time plan that works best for their businesses and create unique policies regarding “no call, no show” incidents. The legislation also safeguards businesses from baseless lawsuits.

A plan to protect tipped workers, Senate Bill 8, passed the House Wednesday, maintains the tip credit at 38% through 2025 while implementing annual wage increases, eventually capping at 50% of the minimum wage in 2031.

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