THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.1959
Session of 2001

INTRODUCED BY SURRA, VEON, GEORGE, DeLUCA, LEDERER, DeWEESE, BELARDI, CAPPABIANCA, BELFANTI, CAPPELLI, LAUGHLIN, SHANER, CALTAGIRONE, BEBKO-JONES, DALEY, YUDICHAK, CAWLEY, WANSACZ, YOUNGBLOOD, WOJNAROSKI, HARHAI, READSHAW, CASORIO, BUXTON, WALKO, THOMAS, SOLOBAY, JAMES, BISHOP, STEELMAN, COSTA, WASHINGTON, J. WILLIAMS, OLIVER, RAYMOND, BUTKOVITZ, McCALL, MELIO, STURLA, C. WILLIAMS, MANDERINO, CURRY, SAINATO, TANGRETTI, WATERS, MICHLOVIC, MARKOSEK, GRUCELA, LaGROTTA, JOSEPHS, DIVEN, M. COHEN, DiGIROLAMO, FREEMAN, TRICH, PISTELLA, MAJOR AND STABACK, SEPTEMBER 26, 2001

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,

SEPTEMBER 26, 2001

AN ACT

   1 Prohibiting mandatory overtime and excessive duty hours of

   2   health care workers.

   3   The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

   4 hereby enacts as follows:

   5 Section 1. Short title.

   6   This act shall be known and may be cited as the Restricted

   7 Overtime for Health Care Workers Act.

   8 Section 2. Definitions.

   9   The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

  10 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

  11 context clearly indicates otherwise:

  12   "Declared state of emergency." An officially designated

  13 state of emergency that has been declared by a Federal, State or

   1 local government official having authority to declare that the

   2 State, county, municipality or locality is in a state of

   3 emergency. The term does not include a state of emergency which

   4 results from a labor dispute in the health care industry.

   5   "Department." The Department of Health of the Commonwealth.

   6   "Employee." A nonsupervisory individual employed by a health

   7 care facility who receives an hourly wage or is classified as a

   8 nonsupervisory employee for collective bargaining purposes.

   9   "Health care facility." A facility licensed by either the

  10 Department of Health or the Department of Corrections.

  11   "Nursing care." Care which falls within the scope of

  12 practice set forth in the applicable nurse practice act or

  13 otherwise encompasses recognized professional standards of

  14 nursing practice.

  15   "Off-duty." An individual that has no restrictions placed on

  16 his or her whereabouts and is free of all restraint or duty on

  17 behalf of the health care facility.

  18   "On-duty." An individual that is required to be available

  19 and ready to perform services on request within or on behalf of

  20 the health care facility and includes any rest periods or breaks

  21 during which the individual's ability to leave the health care

  22 facility is restricted either expressly or by work-related

  23 circumstances beyond the individual's control.

  24 Section 3. Prohibition.

  25   (a) Mandatory overtime.--

  26     (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the

  27   contrary and subject only to the exceptions included in this

  28   section, a health care facility may not mandate or otherwise

  29   require, directly or indirectly, an employee to work or be in

  30   on-duty status in excess of any one of the following:

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   1       (i) the regularly scheduled work shift or duty

   2     period;

   3       (ii) twelve hours in a 24-hour period; or

   4       (iii) eighty hours in 14 consecutive-day period.

   5     (2) As used in this act, the term "mandatory" or

   6   "mandate" means any request which if refused or declined by

   7   the employee may result in discharge, discipline, loss of

   8   promotion or other adverse employment consequence.

   9     (3) Nothing in this subsection is intended to prohibit

  10   an employee from voluntarily working overtime.

  11   (b) Maximum hours.--

  12     (1) No employee may work or be in on-duty status more

  13   than 16 hours in any 24-hour period.

  14     (2) Any employee working 16 hours in any 24-hour period

  15   must have at least eight consecutive hours off duty before

  16   being required to return to duty.

  17     (3) No employee may be required to work or be on duty

  18   more than seven consecutive days without at least one

  19   consecutive 24-hour period off duty within that time.

  20 Section 4. Exceptions.

  21   (a) Declared state of emergency.--

  22     (1) During a declared state of emergency in which a

  23   health care facility is requested or otherwise reasonably may

  24   be expected to provide an exceptional level of emergency or

  25   other medical services to the community, the mandatory

  26   overtime prohibition in section 3(a) shall be lifted to the

  27   following extent:

  28       (i) Employees may be required to work or be on duty

  29     up to the maximum hour limitations set forth in section

  30     3(b) provided the health care facility has taken the

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   1     steps set forth in this section.

   2       (ii) Prior to requiring any employee to work

   3     mandatory overtime, the health care facility must make

   4     reasonable efforts to fill its immediate staffing needs

   5     through alternative efforts, including requesting off-

   6     duty staff to voluntarily report to work, requesting on-

   7     duty staff to volunteer for overtime hours and recruiting

   8     per diem to report to work.

   9       (iii) This exemption shall not exceed the duration

  10     of the declared state of emergency or the health care

  11     facility's direct role in responding to medical needs

  12     resulting from the declared state of emergency, whichever

  13     is less.

  14     (2) During a declared state of emergency in which a

  15   health care facility is requested to provide an exceptional

  16   level of emergency or other medical services to the

  17   community, the maximum hours limitation in section 3(b) shall

  18   be lifted to the following extent:

  19       (i) Employees may work or remain on duty for more

  20     than the maximum hour limitations set forth in section

  21     3(b) provided:

  22         (A) The decision to work the additional time is

  23       voluntarily made by the individual employee affected.

  24         (B) The employee is given at least one

  25       uninterrupted four-hour rest period before the

  26       completion of the first 16 hours of duty and an

  27       uninterrupted eight-hour rest period at the

  28       completion of 24 hours of duty.

  29         (C) No employee may work or remain on duty for

  30       more than 24 consecutive hours in a 72-hour period.

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   1         (D) An employee who has been on duty for more

   2       than 16 hours in a 24-hour period who informs the

   3       health care facility that he or she needs immediate

   4       rest must be relieved from duty as soon thereafter as

   5       possible consistent with patient safety needs and

   6       given at least eight hours uninterrupted hours off

   7       duty before being required to return for duty.

   8       (ii) As used in this act, "rest period" means a

   9     period in which an individual may be required to remain

  10     on the premises of the health care facility but is free

  11     of all restraint or duty or responsibility for work or

  12     duty should the occasion arise.

  13       (iii) This exemption shall not exceed the duration

  14     of the declared state of emergency or the health care

  15     facility's direct role in responding to medical needs

  16     resulting from the declared state of emergency, whichever

  17     is less.

  18   (b) Penalty.--Any employer who violates or fails to comply

  19 with any of the provisions of this act is liable to the employee

  20 affected for an amount equal to eight times the employee's

  21 regular hourly wage less any amount actually paid to the

  22 employee by the employer.

  23 Section 5. Effective date.

  24   This act shall take effect in 120 days.