Roughly one year since the Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA) came into effect, employers are acclimating to its requirements and developing best practices for compliance. On February 21, 2025, an amended version of ESTA came into effect, while also allowing employers a 30-day grace period for finalizing policies. This article provides an overview of ESTA, including some of its features and a discussion of the first legal challenge to ESTA since its effective date.
1. ESTA’s Basic Requirements
ESTA requires all Michigan employers with at least one employee to provide most employees with paid sick time, either accrued at a rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked or frontloaded at the start of the benefit year. ESTA covers a wide range of reasons for leave, including an employee’s or family member’s illness, medical care, issues related to domestic violence or sexual assault, school meetings for a child’s health, and closures due to public health emergencies. The Act sets annual caps on
