BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 840
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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
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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:
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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:
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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."
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"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
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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
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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