Michigan Senate Bill 962 change notification
Effective July 17, 2026, Michigan Senate Bill 962 makes several significant changes to the state’s unemployment insurance law, expanding worker eligibility while modifying administrative procedures for both claimants and employers. Most notably, the law allows individuals who voluntarily leave employment due to domestic violence to remain eligible for unemployment benefits, provided they can demonstrate that leaving work was necessary because of safety concerns, relocation, medical or legal needs, or to obtain services from a domestic violence support organization. The legislation also establishes acceptable forms of documentation to substantiate these claims and requires the Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) to keep all domestic violence-related information confidential.
The legislation also revises several unemployment insurance administration provisions, including updates to work-search requirements, shared-work program eligibility, appeals and redetermination procedures, claimant notification requirements, and overpayment recovery rules. The law expands opportunities for claimants to seek waivers of benefit overpayments caused by agency error or financial hardship, limits when the UIA may pursue recovery of improperly paid benefits, strengthens claimant appeal rights, and requires the agency to evaluate waiver eligibility before initiating collection efforts. Additionally, employers may extend temporary layoff work-search waivers for qualifying business circumstances, such as retooling, parts shortages, or production adjustments, by notifying the UIA.
Effective Date
July 16, 2026
Michigan SB 962 implication to stakeholders
Employers should expect broader unemployment benefit eligibility for former employees who resign because of documented domestic violence, reducing the likelihood that these separations will be treated as voluntary quits that disqualify claimants from benefits. Human resources professionals should recognize that employees experiencing domestic violence may qualify for unemployment benefits even when they voluntarily separate from employment. Employers should also understand that documentation supporting these claims will remain confidential and generally will not be disclosed during the unemployment process.
The administrative changes also affect employer participation in unemployment claims by revising appeal procedures, overpayment recovery rules, and temporary layoff reporting processes. Employers utilizing temporary layoffs should ensure timely notification to the UIA when extended layoffs result from qualifying operational circumstances in order to preserve available work-search waivers for affected employees. Additionally, employers should anticipate that claim determinations involving overpayments, appeals, and claimant waivers may take longer as the UIA completes expanded review requirements before pursuing collections.
Recommended action for employers
Employers should review unemployment claim administration procedures and train HR personnel on the expanded eligibility provisions for employees separating due to domestic violence. Policies governing employee separations, temporary layoffs, and responses to unemployment claims should be updated to reflect the revised law. Employers using temporary layoffs should establish procedures to timely notify the UIA when qualifying extended layoffs occur.
Organizations should also work with legal counsel or unemployment claims administrators to ensure appeal practices, documentation procedures, and communications with the UIA align with the revised statutory requirements. Because the legislation significantly changes claimant rights, appeal timelines, and overpayment recovery procedures, employers should be prepared for updates to UIA forms, guidance, and administrative processes as implementation approaches.
