Michigan Compiled Laws — WORKER'S DISABILITY COMPENSATION ACT OF 1969 (Act 317 of 1969)

Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the "worker's disability compensation act of 1969".

Persons subject to act.

Every employer, public and private, and every employee, unless herein otherwise specifically provided, shall be subject to the provisions of this act and shall be bound thereby.

Employers covered; private employers; agricultural employers; medical and hospital coverage.

This act shall apply to: (a) All private employers, other than agricultural employers, who regularly employ 3 or more employees at 1 time. (b) All private employers, other than agricultural employers, who regularly employ less than 3 employees if at least 1 of them has been regularly employed by that same employer for…

Domestic servants.

(1) No household domestic servant shall be considered an employee if the person is a wife, child or other member of the employer's family residing in the home, and no householder shall be deemed a statutory principal within the meaning of section 171 for the purposes of this section. (2) No private employer shall be li…

Licensed real estate salesperson or associate real estate broker as employee.

A person who is licensed as a real estate salesperson or associate real estate broker under article 25 of Act No. 299 of the Public Acts of 1980, being sections 339.2501 to 339.2515 of the Michigan Compiled Laws, shall not be considered an employee for purposes of this act if both of the following conditions have been…

Employee of franchisee as employee of franchisor.

An employee of a franchisee is not an employee of the franchisor for purposes of this act unless both of the following apply: (a) The franchisee and franchisor share in the determination of or codetermine the matters governing the essential terms and conditions of the employee's employment. (b) The franchisee and franc…

Private employers; voluntary assumption of coverage.

Any private employer not otherwise included by sections 115 and 118 may assume the liability for compensation and benefits imposed by this act upon employers. The purchase and acceptance by an employer of a valid compensation insurance policy, except in the case of domestics and agricultural employees, constitutes an a…

Consistent discharges to evade act; presumption, penalty.

Any employer otherwise subject to the provisions of this act who consistently discharges employees within the minimum time specified in this chapter and replaces such discharged employees without a work stoppage will be presumed to have discharged them to evade the provisions of this act and is guilty of a misdemeanor.

Exclusive remedy; exception; “employee” and “employer” defined.

(1) The right to the recovery of benefits as provided in this act shall be the employee's exclusive remedy against the employer for a personal injury or occupational disease. The only exception to this exclusive remedy is an intentional tort. An intentional tort shall exist only when an employee is injured as a result…

Employee; action for personal injury or death, defenses abolished.

In an action to recover damages for personal injury sustained by an employee in the course of his employment or for death resulting from personal injuries so sustained it shall not be a defense: (a) That the employee was negligent, unless it shall appear that such negligence was wilful. (b) That the injury was caused b…

Employers subject to act.

The following constitutes employers subject to this act: (a) The state; each county, city, township, incorporated village, and school district; each incorporated public board or public commission in this state authorized by law to hold property and to sue or be sued generally; and any library in a county with a populat…

Agricultural employer; definition.

(1) An agricultural employer means one who hires a person performing services: (a) On a farm, in connection with cultivating the soil, or in connection with raising or harvesting any agricultural or horticultural commodity, including the raising, shearing, feeding, caring for, training and management of livestock, bees…

“Employee” defined; exclusion from coverage of partner or spouse, child, or parent in employer's family; election by employee to be excluded; notice of election; duration of elected exclusion.

(1) As used in this act, "employee" means: (a) A person in the service of the state, a county, city, township, village, or school district, under any appointment, or contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written. A person employed by a contractor who has contracted with a county, city, township, village, school…

Employer contracting with person not subject to act; liability; applicability of section to principal and contractor; willful circumvention of provisions; employer as contractor; reimbursement agreement.

(1) If any employer subject to the provisions of this act, in this section referred to as the principal, contracts with any other person, in this section referred to as the contractor, who is not subject to this act or who has not complied with the provisions of section 611, and who does not become subject to this act…

Bureau of worker's compensation; creation; director.

The bureau of worker's compensation, herein referred to as the bureau, is created within the department of labor. The position of director of the bureau is created. The director shall possess the powers and perform the duties granted and imposed by this act. As used in this act, "director" means the director of the bur…

Director; appointment, term, salary, removal, vacancy, expenses.

The director shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, for a term of 3 years, beginning on February 1, 1967 and each 3 years thereafter. The director shall hold office until his successor is appointed and qualified. The director shall receive an annual salary as appropriated by the…

Powers and duties of director.

The director shall devote his or her entire time to and personally perform the duties of his or her office and shall engage in no other business or professional activity. He or she may make rules not inconsistent with this act for carrying out the provisions of the act in accordance with the administrative procedures a…

Position of hearing referee abolished; powers and duties of worker's compensation magistrates; hearings.

(1) The position of hearing referee under this act is abolished as of March 31, 1987. (2) Only worker's compensation magistrates shall hear cases for which an application for a hearing under section 847 has been filed after March 31, 1986 and shall have the powers and perform the duties prescribed in this act. (3) Any…

Introductory and continuing legal education courses in worker's compensation.

The chairperson of the worker's compensation board of magistrates shall consult with law schools, the state bar of Michigan, and other legal associations for the purpose of establishing introductory and continuing legal education courses in worker's compensation. Worker's compensation magistrates, as a condition of con…

Appointment of worker's compensation magistrate.

The governor shall appoint as a worker's compensation magistrate within the Michigan administrative hearing system only an individual who is a member in good standing of the state bar of Michigan and has been an attorney licensed to practice in the courts of this state for 5 years or more.

Evaluating performance of worker's compensation magistrate; frequency; criteria; report; removal; recommendations.

(1) The executive director of the Michigan administrative hearing system and the chair of the worker's compensation board of magistrates, in consultation, shall annually evaluate the performance of each worker's compensation magistrate. The evaluation shall be based upon at least the following criteria: (a) The rate of…

(1) Consistent with Executive Reorganization Order No. 2011-6, MCL 445.2032, the worker's compensation board of magistrates is established as an autonomous entity in the Michigan administrative hearing system. The board shall consist of 17 members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. All…

Blank forms; printing, cost.

The bureau shall print and furnish free of charge to any employer or employee such blank forms as the director deems requisite to facilitate or promote the efficient administration of this act.

(1) After March 31, 1986, the bureau, upon receiving a completed application for mediation or hearing from a claimant, shall forward a copy of the application to the employer and carrier. Within 30 days of receiving a completed application for mediation or hearing from the bureau, the carrier shall file a written respo…

Statistics; compiling, annual report.

The director shall cause such statistics incident to the functions of the bureau to be compiled as may be in his discretion advisable. On or before April 1 of each year the director shall make and file a report covering the year prior to the preceding January 1.