Ohio House passes bill prohibiting mandatory overtime for nurses

COLUMBUS — The Ohio House passed the bipartisan House Bill 163 Thursday, State Rep. Al Cutrona announced.

The bill prohibits mandatory overtime work for nurses as a condition for employment.

Cutrona (R-Canfield) said the bill was a way to support the nurses who supported Ohioans through the COVID-19 pandemic.

H.B. 163 allows nurses to still voluntarily work overtime and hospitals to continue to offer overtime. The bill, however, prohibits hospitals from “requiring a registered nurse or licensed practical nurse to work in excess of agreed upon, predetermined, scheduled full-time or part-time workweek as a condition of continued employment.”

The bill does allow hospitals to schedule overtime for a variety of different emergency situations.

H.B. 163 will now go to the Senate for approval.