ANA Applauds House Vote to Reject Overtime Changes

Washington, DC -- ANA applauds yesterday’s vote by the U.S. House of Representatives in support of a non-binding motion instructing House-Senate conferees to block a proposed Department of Labor (DOL) change to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), that would have revised overtime protections. The vote was 221 to 203 and reflected a switch in position for seven Republicans who had supported the revisions in a July roll call vote.

ANA and its constituent members have been outspoken opponents of the proposed revisions, citing concerns about the impact on nurses as well as their patients. ANA believes that under the new rules, employers would increase the dangerous practice of forced overtime for nurses since they would not be required to compensate them at time- and-a-half. In addition, such changes would further erode nurses’ working conditions, exacerbating an already growing shortage of nurses.

Yesterday’s victory followed a similar, favorable vote in the U.S. Senate on September 10. Although the House vote is non-binding, it does provide instruction to the conference committee which will be meeting to finalize the bill. Despite consensus from the House and Senate on this issue, President Bush has announced that he would veto the bill, the Labor-Health and Human Services appropriations bill, if it includes an amendment to bar implementation of the proposed FLSA revisions.

“We applaud the House and the Senate for their actions and thank Senator Harkin for his leadership on this issue,” said ANA President Barbara A. Blakeney, MS, APRN,BC, ANP. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) introduced the Senate amendment to block the proposed FLSA changes.

“We urge President Bush to respect the will of the Congress and the concerns of the American people on this issue,” Blakeney said. “In particular, the ANA urges President Bush to understand how such changes will impact nurses, ultimately increasing the shortage of nurses and negatively affecting patient care.”

Specifically, under revisions proposed by DOL last spring, employees who devote more than 20 percent of their work per week to non-exempt duties could be classified as exempt from overtime protections and the job requirements of administrative and professional employees would be changed in a manner that would expand the number of professional workers, such as RNs, who are exempt.

ANA submitted comments opposing the revisions, noting that registered nurses are licensed professionals who share a responsibility for the outcomes of nursing care, which means all nurses could be classified as "administrative employees" and, therefore, exempted from overtime pay.

ANA also expressed concerns about the redefinition of who is a “learned” professional. Learned professionals are presently exempt if they exercise discretion and independent judgment and perform office or non-manual work which requires knowledge of an advanced type in a field of science. The proposed regulation eliminates the discretion and judgment facet of this test and recognizes knowledge acquired by alternative means, such as a combination of intellectual instruction and work experience. This new definition will add many health care workers, including registered nurses, to the learned professional exempt category. The ANA is concerned that this will not only result in many registered nurses losing their overtime protections, but will also encourage health care institutions to use mandatory overtime as a staffing strategy.

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ANA is the only full-service professional organization representing the nation's 2.7 million Registered Nurses through its 54 constituent associations. ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

2003 press releases

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