Collective bargaining, nursing staff bills vetoed
CARSON CITY — Bills to allow collective bargaining agreements to supersede state law and require hospitals to establish nursing staff levels were vetoed Saturday by Gov. Jim Gibbons.
Gibbons vetoed Assembly Bills 410 and 121. Legislators will have an opportunity to override the vetoes, the fifth and sixth made by the governor, when they return to work Tuesday. The session adjourns by law on June 1.
Under AB410, sponsored by Assemblyman Jerry Claborn, D-Las Vegas, in certain cases collective bargaining agreements could take precedence over state law.
For example, that would occur when labor agreements specify the process for resolving disputes. Agreements also could supersede the law when they pertain to creation of safety committees and set out light-duty work assignments for injured workers.
The bill passed the state Senate 21-0 and the Assembly 31-10.
In his veto message, Gibbons said “to allow collective bargaining agreements to usurp existing laws would lead to a plethora of unintended consequences.” He said it might cause confusion in the awarding of benefits to injured workers and limit their choices in selecting physicians.
In vetoing AB121, Gibbons said requiring hospitals to establish staffing levels for nurses and other employees “could dramatically increase the costs of health care.”
Questions of staffing should be left to medical professionals and health care management, he said.
The bill passed the Assembly 41-1 and the Senate 14-5. Nursing organizations lobbied for the bill, introduced by Assemblywoman Ellen Koivisto, D-Las Vegas.
Under the bill, hospitals with more than 70 beds in Washoe and Clark counties would have to develop a staffing plan “adequate to meet the needs of patients.”
Gibbons said a hospital’s license to operate would be contingent on submission of the staffing plan.
Contact Review-Journal Capital Bureau Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901.