New York Nurses Win Ban on Mandatory Overtime

Denis Hughes, president of the New York State AFL-CIO, says the ban on mandatory overtime:

is a tremendous victory for health care workers all across New York state.

The legislation prohibits employers from forcing nurses to work longer than their regular shifts. It applies to hospitals, nursing homes and state and locally run facilities. There is an exception for emergencies and health care disasters. The ban will take effect July 1, 2009.

Says Anne Goldman, head of the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) Health Care Professionals Council:

Mandatory overtime will no longer be an acceptable tool for managers to use to staff our hospitals. The abuses of staff have occurred for far too long, and now it is time to have health care managers do the job of staffing.