BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 840 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 22, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, RETIREMENT, AND SOCIAL SECURITY Rob Bonta, Chair AB 840 (Ridley-Thomas) - As Introduced February 26, 2015 SUBJECT: Nurses and certified nurse assistants: overtime SUMMARY: Prohibits, beginning January 1, 2017, mandatory overtime for registered nurses, licensed vocational nurses (LVNs), or certified nursing assistants (CNAs) who are employed in state hospitals and facilities. Specifically, this bill: 1)Defines a "nurse" as all classifications of registered nurses represented by State Bargaining Unit (BU) 17, or the LVN classifications represented by BU 20. 2)Defines a "certified nursing assistant" as all CNA classifications represented by BU 20. 3)Defines a "facility" as a facility providing clinically related health services that is operated by specified state AB 840 Page 2 departments in which a nurse or CNA works as an employee of the state. 4)Defines "emergency situation" as an unforeseeable declared national, state, or municipal emergency or a highly unusual event that is unpredictable or unavoidable that affects the health care services, as specified. 5)Prohibits a facility from requiring a nurse or CNA to work in excess of a regularly scheduled workweek or work shift, except as provided. 6)Authorizes a nurse or CNA to volunteer to work extra hours, but the refusal by a nurse or CNA to work such hours shall not be grounds for discrimination, dismissal, discharge or other penalty or patient abandonment or neglect, as specified. 7)Provides that the overtime prohibition does not apply in the following situations: a) To any nurse or CNA participating in a surgical procedure, as specified; b) If a catastrophic event occurs in a facility where both of the following apply: AB 840 Page 3 i) The catastrophic event results in such a large number of patients in need of immediate medical treatment that the facility is incapable of providing sufficient nurses or CNAs to attend to the patients without resorting to mandatory overtime; and, ii) The catastrophic event is an unanticipated and nonrecurring event. c) If an emergency situation occurs. 8)Specifies that nothing in these provisions shall be construed to do any of the following: a) Affect the Nursing Practice Act, the Vocational Nursing Practice Act, or a registered nurse's duty under the standards of competent performance. b) Prevent the hiring of part-time or intermittent employees. c) Prevent a facility from providing more protections against mandatory overtime than the minimum protections established by this bill. EXISTING LAW: AB 840 Page 4 1)Establishes, as the general policy of the state, the workweek of state employees to be 40 hours, and the workday of state employees eight hours, except that workweeks and workdays of a different number of hours may be established in order to meet the varying needs of the different state agencies. 2)States that it is the policy of the state to avoid the necessity for overtime work whenever possible. This policy does not restrict the extension of regular working-hour schedules on an overtime basis in those activities and agencies where it is necessary to carry on the state business properly during a manpower shortage. 3)Under the provisions of the Ralph C. Dills Acts, provides a statutory framework for the State and its represented employees to collectively bargain over issues impacting wages and working conditions. FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. COMMENTS: According to the author, "Mandatory overtime is the practice of hospitals and health care institutions to maintain adequate numbers of staff nurses through forced overtime, usually with a total of 12 to 16 hours worked, and with as little as one hour's notice. This bill seeks to ban mandatory overtime for public sector RNs, LVNs, and CNAs. The use of mandatory overtime for nurses in the private sector has been banned since 2001 through wage orders from the Industrial Welfare Commission. State and public sector nurses were exempted from this order." AB 840 Page 5 "Mandatory overtime may cause or lead to increased stress on the job, less patient comfort and mental and physical fatigue that can contribute to errors and 'near-misses' with medications and case-related procedures. The practice of mandatory overtime ignores the responsibilities nurses may have at home with children, other family members, or other obligations. Being forced into excessive overtime can cause an exhausted RN to practice unsafe patient care, jeopardizing her nursing licensure status." According to information provided by the author, the states of West Virginia, Illinois, Connecticut, Washington, Oregon, New Jersey, Minnesota, Maine, Maryland, Alaska and Massachusetts all have laws prohibiting the use of mandatory overtime as a general staffing tool. The author concludes, "The continued practice of mandatory overtime in California places the state in the position of undoing its hard work in the training, recruitment and retention of public sector nurses by fostering a dangerous work environment. Additionally, the use of mandatory overtime as a scheduling tool creates no incentive for the state to properly hire, schedule or retain staff. Lastly, this policy opens up the state to costly lawsuits due to inadequate care and/or medical errors due to fatigue." Supporters state, "AB 840 is a good governance bill that AB 840 Page 6 encourages a strong civil service system by streamlining the mandatory overtime requirements for all nurses in California, resulting in major cost savings for the state; and increased staff, patient and public safety." This bill is similar to AB 2155 (Ridley-Thomas) from last year which was vetoed by the Governor. In his veto message, the Governor stated, in part, "This bill would prohibit mandatory overtime for nurses in state facilities. This measure covers matters more appropriately settled through the collective bargaining process." In 2005, a similar effort to ban mandatory overtime was proposed in AB 1184 (Koretz) and vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger because the state was already having a difficult time recruiting and training nurses for state hospitals. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support Service Employees International Union, Local 1000 (Sponsor) California Association of Psychiatric Technicians AB 840 Page 7 California Employment Lawyers Association California State Council of the Service Employees International Union Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by:Karon Green / P.E.,R., & S.S. / (916) 319-3957