Attorneys for the state asked a judge to push the pause button on the enforcement of his ruling that increased minimum wage and new paid sick-leave requirements while the state appeals.
Deputy Solicitor General B. Eric Restuccia’s Wednesday filing said without the stay, the Tuesday Court of Claims judgment becomes enforceable on Aug. 9 and the state hopes for a ruling before Aug. 2.
“Any effort to give this ruling immediate effect would be chaotic,” Restuccia wrote.
Michigan One Fair Wage circulated petitions to raise the state’s minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2022 and tied it to the rate of inflation while MI Time to Care’s petition required employers to allow for accrued paid sick time for employees.
The Legislature adopted both in 2018, which meant neither went to voters, and then after the election that year, the Legislature amended both, weakening the advocates’ original intent.
However, Court of Claims Judge Douglas Shapiro, who was appointed by Democrat Gov. Jennifer Granholm, ruled Tuesday that the Republican-led Legislature could not adopt and amend in a single legislative session because it “thwarted the intent of the people and denied them the opportunity to vote on whether they preferred the voter-initiated proposal or the Legislature’s suggested modifications.”
Shapiro’s order said 2018 Public Acts 367 and 368 were voided and the Legislature’s original initiatives, Public Acts 337 and 388, “remain in effect.”
Attorney General Dana Nessel, who took no position on the motion to stay, touted Shapiro’s ruling. She instituted a conflict wall between her and the attorneys arguing the opposite side of the case.
Restuccia noted that an eventual appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court is likely.