MICHIGAN HOUSE MINORITY Leader Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, addresses the media with his colleagues after Republicans walked out of the House chamber Friday to protest inaction on labor and road funding bills. (Anna Liz Nichols/Michigan Advance)

After a string of what they see as unproductive session days and facing an agenda full of progressive bills, Michigan House Republicans have left the floor and refused to vote on any bills until Democrats come to the table on changes to the state’s minimum wage laws, earned sick leave and road funding.

“The Republican caucus is here for three things. I’ve made that perfectly clear to Speaker Tate and the governor and Leader Brinks and everybody in the state,” Hall said, pointing to road funding alongside action on the tipped wage and earned sick time policies set to take effect Feb. 21 due to a Michigan Supreme Court decision.

That hasn’t stopped Democrats from continuing to pass bills but nearly half the state’s representation isn’t present.

One sticking point for Republicans is imminent changes to the state’s minimum wage law that will eventually get rid of a tipped minimum-wage.

On July 31, the Michigan Supreme Court found in 2018 the Legislature — then controlled by Republicans — had subverted the will of the people in adopting and amending two ballot initiatives addressing the state minimum wage and paid sick leave, later gutting the policies with amendments during lame duck session.

Republicans, alongside hundreds of business owners and tipped workers, warn that when the changes are allowed to take effect, they will have a cataclysmic impact on their livelihood. Seismic efforts have been made to beseech Democrats to take up a plan to save tipped wages.

“My advice to Speaker Tate is: Put those bills up today, keep those conversations alive. Commit to real conversations that’ll help Michigan workers, that’ll fix our roads and protect our small businesses and restaurants, or adjourn. Just adjourn,” Hall said.

House Republican Spokesperson Jeremiah Ward told reporters that Democrats did not necessarily need to act on a bipartisan package of bills (House Bills 6056 and 6057) introduced by Reps. Nate Shannon, D-Sterling Heights, and Graham Filler, R-Duplain Township, that address the tipped wage and earned sick time changes, but that they needed to act on something to bring Republicans back to the table.

If the House adjourns Friday without acting on Republicans demands, the bills are in jeopardy, as the Senate must have possession of any policy passed by the House for at least five days before it can become a law.

The House’s next session day is scheduled for Dec. 18 while the Senate’s final session day is scheduled for Dec. 23, five days later.

After the Republican’s press conference, House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, called their decision to walk out “unfortunate.”

When asked if he would act on the minimum wage and paid sick leave bills, Tate put the burden back on Republicans.

“We have an agenda … we said everything’s on the table, having the conversation. But we can’t do anything, I think, in a bipartisan fashion, if Republicans don’t come to work,” Tate said.

House Majority Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash slammed the maneuver, saying that if Hall was serious about a deal on road funding, he would not have walked out with all of the members of his caucus.

Republicans left the floor shortly after noon as Democrats put legislation to criminalize extortion using sexually sensitive materials on the voting board. Hall said there are policies Democrats can put forward that Republicans can support but other issues need to be addressed before work can continue.

“The first thing they put up is some bill that all 110 of us would vote for,” Hall said.

Other bills on the agenda concern sweeping criminal justice reforms, allowing undocumented Michigan residents to have driver’s licenses, removing guardrails for name changes and changing gender markers on government documents.

“These guys are crazy. They don’t understand why they just lost the election,” Hall said. “They lost the election because they focus on this stuff, these crazy, divisive social issues that only a small amount of people care about, most of which are in their far-left, radical wing of their caucus.”

However, the walkout prompted Progress Michigan Executive Director Sam Inglot to issue a statement urging Democrats to use the situation to their advantage.

“Republican state representatives have walked off the house floor. They did this to appease their corporate overlords who want them to gut higher wages and sick leave for workers. If Republican lawmakers don’t want to do their jobs, then House Democratic leadership should start to put bills up for a vote and move on without them. There are plenty of progressive, pro-worker, pro-environment, pro-freedom policies they can act on right now. Republicans have sent a message about who they work for and Democrats should use the opportunity to do the same,” Inglot said.

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