July 1st, 2009

Reports the Times-Leader:

A state law prohibiting hospitals and health care facilities from requiring nurses to work beyond their scheduled shifts goes into effect today.

The ban on mandatory overtime had taken seven years to enact, said Sue Tonkin, a registered nurse in Mercy Hospice, Scranton.

“There will be a lot of changes,” said Tonkin, a member of the Service Employees International Union Healthcare Pennsylvania.

With few exceptions the law protects Tonkin and other nurses and health care providers from discipline by their employers for refusing to work overtime.

Only in cases of national, state or municipal emergencies or unusual events such as a disease outbreak can the ban be lifted. It also applies when there are unexpected absences that can not be prudently planned for by employers, like two members of a three-member staff calling off, according to Tonkin.

But, “They can’t do it because of holes in the schedule,” she said.

Read more at the Times-Leader.