February 8, 2005, Introduced by Reps. Wojno, Byrnes, Gleason, Hopgood, Farrah, Gonzales, Plakas, Leland and Accavitti and referred to the Committee on Health Policy.
A bill to amend 1978 PA 368, entitled
"Public health code,"
(MCL 333.1101 to 333.25211) by adding section 21541.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 21541. (1) Subject to a collective bargaining agreement,
a hospital shall not require a nurse to work more than 40 hours in
any 7-day work period or more than his or her scheduled shift in
any day except in the event of an emergency. A hospital is in
violation of this section if the hospital does either of the
following:
(a) Terminates or proposes to terminate the employment of a
nurse solely because the nurse chose not to work overtime.
(b) Takes or proposes to take disciplinary or retaliatory
action against a nurse solely because the nurse chose not to work
overtime.
(2) Subsection (1) does not prohibit either of the following:
(a) A nurse from voluntarily working more than 40 hours in any
7-day work period or more than his or her scheduled shift in any
day.
(b) A hospital from offering overtime to a nurse or permitting
a nurse to work overtime if he or she chooses to work overtime.
(3) In addition to the sanctions set forth in section 20165, a
hospital that violates this section is subject to an administrative
fine of not more than $10,000.00 for each violation. All fines
collected under this subsection shall be credited to the nurse
professional fund established under section 16315.
(4) As used in this section:
(a) "Emergency" means an unusual or unpredictable circumstance
that increases the need for patient care, including, but not
limited to, an act of terrorism, a disease outbreak, adverse
weather conditions, or a natural disaster.
(b) "Nurse" means a licensed practical nurse or a registered
professional nurse licensed to engage in the practice of nursing
under part 172.