Is Your Municipality Ready to Provide Paid Military Leave to First Responders?

  Where employees used to huddle around the breakroom watercooler, they now huddle around their smartphones. Recent studies report that 69% of U.S. adults use at least one social media site, a staggering 88% of adults under 30 years old use social media in some form, and 77% of employees reported using social media on…

Michigan’s Paid Medical Leave Act (the “PMLA”) establishes eligible employees’ rights to accrue and use paid leave for personal and family medical needs. The Michigan Legislature enacted the PMLA to amend and (in part) replace the prior legislation on the same topic: the Earned Sick Time Act, which we discussed in our October E-Letter in…

The Michigan Legislature adopted a proposed ballot measure, Michigan’s Earned Sick Time Act (the “Act”), as law on September 5, 2018. Under the Act, employers big and small, public and private are required to provide employees with paid and unpaid sick leave. Townships that already offer sick (or other) leave would be wise to review…

In last month’s E-letter, we tacked the preparatory steps township bargaining teams should consider and undertake before collective bargaining actually begins (Steps 1 and 2).  This month, we discuss some basic rules of that bargaining process. STEP THREE: BARGAINING Townships should keep in mind four rules through the bargaining process. Rule #1 – Bargain in…

Municipal employees are the first line of service to citizens.  They put a “face” on local government.  Managing employees—and their benefits—in a fair, uniform way is critical to not only their performance, but also to providing quality service.  It is easy to lose sight of this focus with shrinking budgets and sky-rocketing benefits costs, particularly…

Like any other employer, townships have a constant interest in maintaining an efficient operation. This relies heavily not only on fiscal management, but also effective personnel management: the ability to recruit capable employees, appropriately correct those capable employees who stray from performance expectations, and appropriate separation of those employees who are not salvageable. Stated simply,…

There are many employment issues and very few “one-size-fits-all” answers. But there certainly are a core set of employment concepts and policies that your township should consider that will enrich employment relations and, if necessary, improve your township’s defense against employment-related litigation and claims. This E-Letter explores this core set of employment concepts and policies….

Collective bargaining for townships presents unique challenges that do not exist in the private sector. As the decision makers, township officials face constant oversight by their constituents throughout the bargaining process. As a result, the process that happens behind closed doors is still subject to an overlay of politics, public opinion, and concern over the…

Retiree healthcare benefits are a massive liability that place great stress on already-stressed municipal budgets. Unpredictable changes in healthcare costs and modifications to the health insurance industry under the Affordable Care Act have rendered many existing employee benefit packages unsustainable or even unavailable, leaving townships to question what can be done to reduce cost or…

Effective township governance includes the responsibility of being an effective employer. This responsibility requires townships to face many concerns that other employers face in the management of employees. In this first part of our two-part series on effective employment practices, we look at some common employment issues that can turn into traps for townships and…

Last month, our E-Letter focused on some of the recent developments in property tax law. This month, our E-Letter addresses additional developments in property tax law, more changes at the Tax Tribunal, and an update on personal property taxes. In addition, this E-Letter includes an important update on Federal Flood Insurance reforms. Changes at the…

Michigan enacted the Right to Farm Act more than 30 years ago to protect farmers from lawsuits by neighboring property owners. The law was amended in 1999 to extend this protection to ordinance enforcement actions by local governments. Despite its long history and some general familiarity with the law, many details about the Right to…

Most Townships are familiar with the regulation of communications broadcast and cell towers and it is common for zoning ordinances to regulate the location, height and other aspects of those structures. Recently, however, we have noted that several Townships are attempting to apply similar regulations to the smaller towers typically installed on premises that are…

There are a great number of Michigan and federal anti‐discrimination laws that affect townships in their role as employers. Of course, the details of these laws fill volumes of legal treatises. This E-Letter highlights a few important points—and recent developments—for the benefit of township officials. Whistleblowers Protection Act Claims The Whistleblower statute has received a…

Michigan’s liquor licensing rules have changed significantly under the direction of a new Chairman of the Michigan Liquor Control Commission (“MLCC”). Reforming the liquor licensing system to create a more business-friendly regulatory scheme has also led to changes in the role townships play in liquor licensing. This E-Letter highlights the changing role of townships in the…