Among newly named Michigan House Speaker Rep. Matt Hall, R-Kalamazoo, first orders of business was to form the 15-member Select Committee on Protecting Michigan Employees and Small Businesses.

Hall’s House Resolution 7 aims to facilitate discussion on reforms to help Michigan workers maintain their way of life and keep small businesses open.

The Committee was formed with the sole focus of addressing tipped-wage and earned sick time legislation. The committee is set to consider House Bills 4001 and 4002, introduced Wednesday by Reps. John Roth, R-Interlochen, and Jay DeBoyer, R-Clay Township.

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The bills were introduced in response to a Democrat-led Michigan Supreme Court decision last summer that is forcing restaurants to pay employees minimum wage, effectively ending the tips on which workers frequently earned more than they would if they were paid minimum wage.

Hall appointed Representative Bill G. Schuette, R-Midland, to chair the new select committee.

“The court’s decision is effective in February,” Schuette said in a statement. “If no action is taken, a majority of restaurant operators in Michigan are going to have to start laying off staff and customers are unfortunately going to see higher prices as places try to make ends meet,” Schuette said. “That’s if places are able to stay open at all. There is simply no time to waste.”

Schuette continued: “Hard working restaurant employees and small businesses are facing a looming cliff that will rob them of their well-earned tips and could shutter many family-owned businesses,” said Schuette, adding, “House Republicans understand the significance and seriousness of this issue,” Schuette continued. “That is why the very first bills we introduced as a caucus were to restore the tip credit and fix earned sick time policy, and why our first committee action will be to immediately get working on solving this problem. It is an honor to chair this committee and I’m grateful for the opportunity entrusted to me by Speaker Hall and our caucus.”

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Following Thursday’s session, the communication advisors for House Republicans stated “House Bill 4001 to restore the tipped wage and House Bill 4002 to fix the Earned Sick Time Act will promptly be discussed and move the bills through the Legislature.”

House Democrats failed to take up legislation on the issue near the end of last term after two members of their caucus joined Republicans in boycotting the last days of session, despite pleas from service industry workers like servers, bartenders and Michigan’s small business sector.

The proposed legislation would preserve Michigan’s subminimum wage for tipped workers and current sick leave to avert the Feb. 21 deadline.

Republicans Reps. Ken Borton, Pauline Wendzel, Matthew Bierlein, Angela Rigas, Kathy Schmaltz, Jamie Thompson, Parker Fairbairn, and Ron Robinson were also selected for the committee.

“Our small businesses and tipped-wage workers are staring down the barrel of significant layoffs and potential closures without immediate legislative intervention,” Fairbairn, R-Harbor Springs, said in a statement. “For months, servers from Petoskey to Sault Ste Marie made it crystal clear, if this matter isn’t addressed quickly, it would be economically devastating to them. In fact, my chief concern coming to Lansing was figuring out how I could achieve immediate action on this issue, when things have seemed to move so slowly for the past couple of years. So, it’s great that less than 24 hours into the new session, Speaker Hall has already established this select committee and entrusted me with the responsibility of getting this done.”

Rep. Ken Borton, R-Gaylord, applauded Hall’s formation of the Committee.

“In forming this committee, House Republicans are putting a line in the sand and proving now is the time to save our tipped-wage workers and small businesses,” Borton said. “Not next month. Not next week. Now,” Borton said in a statement. “Stalling by legislative Democrats put us in this mess in the first place. We aren’t going to waste another second before we find a solution.”