New hiring laws in Michigan for 2027: the $15 minimum wage, tipped wage steps, health care licensure compacts and what stays the same

As of October 2026, the Michigan change that matters most for hiring in 2027 is pay: under 2025 Public Act 1, the minimum wage rose to $13.73 on January 1, 2026 and reaches $15.00 on January 1, 2027, and the tipped rate climbs from 40% to 42% of it, with a written tip credit notice and consent required at or before hire. The 2026 Legislature passed few hiring laws; those it did pass mostly ease licensing for health care workers through interstate compacts. The earned sick time notice at hire, rewritten in February 2025, still applies to every employer.

Each item below is a public act linked to the Legislature's own copy, with the effective date printed on the act. The standing checklist (Treasury and Unemployment Insurance Agency registration, Form MI-W4, new-hire reporting) is in our Michigan hiring hub; this page is the dated list of what is new.

Which Michigan hiring laws changed in 2026, and what changes in 2027?

What are Michigan's minimum and tipped wages for 2026 and 2027?

2025 Public Act 1, signed February 21, 2025, sets the schedule in the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act: "Beginning January 1, 2026, $13.73" and "Beginning January 1, 2027, $15.00." From "October, 2027," the state treasurer calculates an inflation adjustment using the Midwest CPI-U, publishes it by November 1, and it takes effect the following January 1.

For tipped employees the rate is 40% of the minimum wage from January 1, 2026 and 42% from January 1, 2027, rising two points a year to 50% in 2031. That is about $5.49 an hour in 2026 and $6.30 in 2027 (our arithmetic). The tip credit applies only if, among other conditions, "the employee's employer informed the employee of the provisions of this section, in writing, at or before the time of hire, and the employee gave written consent." Tips stay with the employee, may be shared voluntarily only with others in the chain of service whose duties are not primarily managerial or supervisory, and employers must give employees and consumers written notice of how service charges are distributed. For restaurant and hospitality hiring, the tip credit notice and consent belong in the offer packet.

What must a Michigan new hire receive at hire?

• Earned sick time notice. Under the Earned Sick Time Act as amended by 2025 Public Act 2, an employer "shall provide written notice to each employee at the time of hiring" covering the amount of earned sick time, how the employer calculates a year, the terms of use, the ban on retaliation and the right to complain to the department, in English, Spanish and any other language that is the first language of at least 10% of the workforce if the department has translated the notice. Small businesses, those with 10 or fewer workers, have had to provide paid earned sick time since October 1, 2025.
• Tip credit notice and consent for tipped employees, as described above.
• Part-time frontloading notice. An employer that frontloads sick time for a part-time employee instead of using accrual must give "a written notice of how many hours the part-time employee is expected to work for a year at the time of hire," and frontload at least a proportional amount.

The full list of hiring paperwork is in the Michigan hiring hub.

Which 2026 licensing changes help health care recruiters?

Michigan's 2026 acts lean toward letting licensed clinicians start sooner. 2026 PA 45 enters Michigan into the PA Licensure Compact effective October 20, 2026, and 2026 PA 6 updated the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact on March 26, 2026. Physical and occupational therapy compacts follow on January 22, 2028 (2026 PAs 40, 42, 43 and 44). Whether a compact privilege is available to a given candidate depends on the compact commission's own start date and the candidate's home state, so check the commission's site before promising a start date. 2026 PA 114, effective October 9, 2026, revises limited licenses for psychologists, which require a master's degree and supervision by a fully licensed psychologist.

Can Michigan cities add their own hiring rules?

Mostly not. MCL 123.1384, part of the Local Government Labor Regulatory Limitation Act (2015, amended 2018), says a local government "shall not adopt, enforce, or administer an ordinance, local policy, or local resolution regulating information an employer or potential employer must request, require, or exclude on an application for employment or during the interview process." The compiler's note says the act applies to local rules adopted after December 31, 2014. State law on arrest records and background checks is covered in Michigan background check laws. The federal EEOC rescinded its 2012 arrest and conviction records guidance on October 28, 2026 (EEOC release); Title VII itself still applies.

What did not change in Michigan in 2026?

• No pay transparency, salary history or AI hiring statute for private employers was enacted.
• E-Verify rules are unchanged; see E-Verify requirements in Michigan.
• Non-competes are still governed by MCL 445.774a; see Michigan non-compete law.
• Recording interviews: see Michigan recording consent for interviews.
• Drug testing: see Michigan drug testing laws.

Which federal changes apply to Michigan employers?

• Form I-9: the USCIS page lists the 01/20/25 edition as current, allows the 08/01/23 edition expiring 05/31/2027 until then, and required electronic systems to update to the 05/31/2027 version by 07/31/2026.
• EADs: DHS's final rule at 91 FR 65306, effective October 14, 2026, ends automatic extensions for certain renewal applicants; see I-9 and the EAD automatic extension.

What should Michigan employers and staffing agencies do before January 1, 2027?

1. Reprice offers and job ads starting in 2027 to at least $15.00 an hour, and tipped roles to at least 42% of it, with tips making up the rest.
2. Add the tip credit notice and consent form to the offer packet for every tipped hire.
3. Check the earned sick time notice in the new-hire packet, including the translated versions.
4. Update health care sourcing for the PA compact and plan for the 2028 therapy compacts.
5. Tell payroll about the organ donation leave credit if you pay that leave.
6. For agencies: pay temporary workers the new floors and give them the same notices at hire; licensing for agencies is covered in Michigan staffing agency rules, and other states' 2027 changes are in new hiring laws for 2027.