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Legislative
& Regulatory Alerts - 05/06 Archive
2006 Alerts
Archive:
MGA secures
student work-hours
deviation for the holiday season.
[OCTOBER, 2006] To help its members with holiday staffing
needs, MGA requested a deviation in the hours standard for youth
employment. The Michigan Department of Labor & Economic
Growth's' (DLEG) Wage and Hour Division approved the appeal this
month.
This year's
deviation allows 16- and 17-year old employees to work
until midnight from November 17, 2006 through January 2, 2007 if
the following conditions are met:
 Adult supervision is
provided at all times while a minor is working.
The employment is in
compliance with the provisions of Act 90, including the
requirements of work permits obtained before employment;
required rest periods; and employment that is not hazardous or
injurious to the minor's health or well-being.
Hours worked in a week
don't exceed 48 hours of work and school combined.
The hours worked in a day
may not exceed 10 hours per day, or more than a weekly average
of 8 hours per day.
A work week doesn't
exceed six days.
The written permission of
a parent or guardian must be on file at the place of employment.
Records required by Act
90 must be maintained and available for inspection by an
authorized representative of the Michigan Department of
Department of Labor & Economic Growth, including a record of
meal or rest periods provided to minors working more than a
five-hour shift.
No minor may be
discharged, demoted, or otherwise discriminated against because
of the refusal of a parent or guardian to provide written
permission to work deviated hours.
A copy of this approval
or evidence of current MGA membership is retained at the job
site where the teenager is employed.
This approval does not
apply to any member not currently in compliance with the Youth
Employment Standards Act and will be revoked for any member who
fails to comply with a corrective action notice issued by DLEG;
or is found to be in violation of any provision of Act 90 during
the approved deviation period.
"The Youth
Employment Standards Act was amended in 2001 to allow 16- and 17
year-olds to work until 11:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and
during school vacation periods without a deviation," said MGA
president Linda Gobler. "However, many of our retailers
are open until midnight. This deviation gives MGA
retailers greater scheduling flexibility during the busy holiday
shopping season." For more information, contact MGA at
1-800-947-6237.
Reminder:
WIC
Program Changing Infant Formula Companies November 1
[OCTOBER, 2006] Per
the June WIC Newsletter, the WIC Program is changing infant
formula companies starting November 1, 2006. On that date,
Mead Johnson will become the new company to provide formulas for
the Michigan WIC Program.
While this transition occurs, you will see WIC
coupons for both the current infant formulas (Ross) and
for the new brands. You must carry both the current
formulas as well as beginning to carry the new formulas, as WIC
begins the transition November 1, 2006.
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NEW
MINIMUM STOCK REQUIREMENTS BEGINNING NOVEMBER 1, 2006.
PLEASE NOTE YOU WILL HAVE UNTIL DECEMBER 1, 2006 TO HAVE ALL
MEAD JOHNSON PRODUCTS. YOU MAY HAVE A
COMBINATION OF THE CURRENT PRODUCTS ( SIMILAC WITH IRON AND
ISOMIL) AND THE NEW PRODUCTS AS LONG AS YOUR COMBINED STOCK
MEETS THE NUMBER OF CANS, UNTIL DECEMBER 1, 2006. |
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PRODUCT |
SIZES |
MINIMUM
STOCK |
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ENFAMIL
LIPIL WITH IRON |
13 OZ.
CONCENTRATE,
12.9 OZ. POWDER |
32 CANS CONCENTRATE
AND
10 CANS
POWDER |
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PROSOBEE
LIPIL IRON FORTIFIED |
13 OZ.
CONCENTRATE,
12.9 OZ. POWDER
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AS OF NOVEMBER
1, 2006, THE NEW REQUIRED INFANT FORMULAS ARE:
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ENFAMIL LIPIL WITH IRON |
PROSOBEE LIPIL IRON FORTIFIED |
Other new infant formulas
that you may see on WIC coupons, after November 1, 2006, are
for:
Enfamil Lactofree LIPIL
Enfamil Gentlease LIPIL and
Enfamil with Iron
If you have any questions, please
contact the Vendor Relations Unit at 517-335-8937.
Back to Top
Minimum Wage & Poster Requirement
Update
[September 2006] Governor Granholm signed
the minimum wage bill that creates a new youth wage. To
remind you, the new wages are as follows:
 | Beginning
October 1, 2006, the youth wage will be $5.91 and the regular
minimum wage will be $6.95. |
| Beginning
July 1, 2007, the youth wage will be $6.08 and the regular
minimum wage will be $ 7.15. |
| Beginning July 1, 2008, the youth wage will
be $6.29 and the regular minimum wage will be $ 7.40. |
NOTE: A training wage of not less than
$4.25 an hour may be paid to a
new
employee who is less than 20 years of age for the first 90 days
of that employee's employment. [Section
408.384b -
Minimum Wage Law]
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Required Posting:
[September 29, 2006] Hot off the press...the
Department of Labor and Economic Growth has just mailed out
218,000 posters outlining the requirements of the new minimum
wage and youth wage (Public
Act 375 of 2006). You will find the poster on the
reverse side of the "Michigan Employer Advisor" newsletter.
The state is NOT going to be enforcing the posting requirement
immediately.
Minimum Wage Posters are now available for download from the
Wage and Hour Division website. A summary of what
Michigan's Minimum Wage and Overtime Law covers is also
available.
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Phase Two of the Federal
Combat Meth Law Takes Effect September 30th
[September 2006] On March 9, 2006,
President Bush signed into law the USA Patriot Act
Reauthorization. Contained with the USA Patriot Act is the
Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Elimination Act (CMEEA), which
places significant restrictions on retail sales of
over-the-counter pseudoephedrine (PSE) products.
The federal law does not mirror Michigan's "Meth
Law". It is important to remember that whichever law is
the strictest is the law the prevails. The April issue of the
Michigan Food News provided a a side by side comparison of
federal and state Meth laws and their impact on Michigan
retailers. Click Here
to download a copy of this comparison.
The federal Combat Meth Act that took effect in
April 2006 requires retailers to train store personnel by
September 30, 2006. A summary of federal training &
certification requirements, federal logbook requirements and
restriction on access was printed in the August issue of the
Michigan Food News. Click
Here to download a copy of Phase Two requirements.
Back to Top
Beware of Handwashing Signs
Warning
[AUGUST 2006] According to the Michigan Department of
Agriculture, a business called “Michigan Food Service Compliance
Center” has been mailing official-looking flyers to food
establishments around the state including grocery stores,
restaurants, and even nursing homes with food preparation
facilities selling “approved handwashing posters.” The
flyers quote sections of the FDA Food Code and the Michigan Food
Law of 2000. The wording in the “Advisory” indicates that
an operator risks being closed down or fined up to $2500 unless
they have handwashing posters that meet the “exact
specifications” of the Food Code and that the posters “should
not be self-made”. This company claims their posters meet
these specifications and they are charging $19.95 plus shipping.
The Attorney General’s office has been notified about their
unscrupulous business practices. One other company is
already under a cease and desist order.
While handwashing signs
are, indeed, required by the FDA Food Code, they are a
non-critical item that would not result in such harsh penalties
as a $2500 fine or shut down. Please note that Section
6-301.14 of the Food Code did change as follows:
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FROM: Requiring
that a sign or poster notifying all food employees to wash
their hands be provided at all HANDWASHING LAVATORIES.
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TO:
Requiring that a sign or poster notifying all food employees
to wash their hands be provided at all HANDWASHING SINKS. |
The Food Code does not
specify any particular size that the sign should be, only that
it should be clearly visible to food employees. A sign
that simply states “Always wash hands with soap and warm running
water before returning to work” will meet the requirements of
the code.
Where to get handwashing signs:
MGA currently has
handwashing signs for lavatories
available free of charge to MGA members. Call Nora Hale at
800.947.6237 x 25 or email her at
nora@michigangrocers.org to order signs.
We have created a sign
that can be used at other
handwashing sinks (PDF format). The
National Food Service Management Institute NFSMI also has a
number of Food Safety posters, including handwashing posters,
that can be downloaded free from their website.
Back to Top
Mandatory
Seafood Country of Origin Labeling Enforcement Begins
[AUGUST 2006] The United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) has begun enforcing the mandatory seafood
country of origin labeling law that became effective in April of
2005.
Although the regulations have been in effect
for over a year, USDA says it will now begin in earnest to
enforce the law.
USDA negotiated enforcement programs with
local inspectors in Michigan and 13 other states. USDA officials
will conduct the audits in other states.
All retailers must ensure that covered seafood
commodities (fresh and frozen unprocessed fish and shellfish)
are labeled properly with the country of origin and method of
production (wild caught or farm-raised) and that records of such
information are maintained.
According to USDA, during the training period,
it found confusion on whether some less common products were
covered. For example:
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Not covered: turtles, fish heads, alligator,
frog legs, turtle, caviar. |
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Covered: cephalopods like squid, octopus,
eel. |
Click Here to read
guidelines to help you comply.
Back to Top
Governor Signs Legislation
to Increase Minimum Wage
[MARCH, 2006] On March 28, Governor Jennifer Granholm signed
legislation to increase the state’s $5.15 per hour minimum wage
in three steps over the next two years. Michigan’s minimum wage
will increase as follows:
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Effective October 1, 2006 - $6.95 per hour |
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Effective July 1, 2007 - $7.15 per hour |
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Effective July 1, 2008 – 7.40 per hour |
The training wage of $4.25 per
hour remains the same and may be paid to employees 16-19 years
of age for the first 90 calendar days of their employment.
The law contains no cost of
living adjustments beyond that point and does not create new
fines or penalties for employers.
The minimum wage has not been
increased since 1997. For the last nine years, Michigan Grocers
Association and other business groups have successfully stopped
repeated attempts to increase the minimum wage. However, recent
organized labor efforts to put a proposal to increase the
minimum wage on the November 2006 ballot forced the Legislature
to reconsider the issue. The ballot initiative would have
amended the Michigan Constitution and guaranteed annual
inflationary increases in the minimum wage. |
