LCO No. 4849 1 of 7
General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1417
January Session, 2025
LCO No. 4849
Referred to Committee on HUMAN SERVICES
Introduced by:
(HS)
AN ACT CONCERNING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NURSING HOME
WORKFORCE STANDARDS BOARD.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2025) (a) As used in this section: 1
(1) "Board" means the Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board 2
established under subsection (b) of this section; 3
(2) "Certified worker organization" means a worker organization that 4
is certified by the board to conduct nursing home worker trainings; 5
(3) "Compensation" means all income and benefits paid by a nursing 6
home employer to a nursing home worker or on behalf of a nursing 7
home worker, including, but not limited to, wages, bonuses, 8
differentials, paid leave, pay for scheduling changes and pay for 9
training or occupational certification; 10
(4) "Employer organization" means: 11
(A) An organization that is exempt from federal income taxation 12
under section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended from 13
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 2 of 7
time to time, and that represents nursing home employers; or 14
(B) An entity that employers, who together employ a majority of 15
nursing home workers in the state, have selected as a representative; 16
(5) "Nursing home" has the same meaning as provided under section 17
19a-490 of the general statutes; 18
(6) "Nursing home employer" means an employer of nursing home 19
workers in a licensed, Medicaid-certified facility that is reimbursed 20
under chapter 319y of the general statutes; 21
(7) "Nursing home worker" means any worker who provides services 22
for a nursing home employer in the state, including direct care staff, 23
non-direct care staff and contractors, but excluding administrative staff, 24
medical directors, nursing directors, physicians and individuals 25
employed by a supplemental nursing services agency; and 26
(8) "Worker organization" means an organization that is exempt from 27
federal income taxation under section 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4) or 501(c)(5) of 28
the Internal Revenue Code, as amended from time to time, that is not 29
dominated or interfered with by any nursing home employer within the 30
meaning of 29 USC 158a(2), as amended from time to time, and that has 31
at least five years of demonstrated experience engaging with and 32
advocating for nursing home workers. 33
(b) There is established a Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board 34
to establish nursing home employment, training and minimum 35
compensation standards necessary to ensure the safety and well-being 36
of nursing home residents and workers. The board shall have the 37
following members: 38
(1) The Commissioner of Social Services, or the commissioner's 39
designee; 40
(2) The commissioner of Public Health, or the commissioner's 41
designee; 42
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 3 of 7
(3) The Labor Commissioner, or the commissioner's designee; 43
(4) Three members who represent nursing home employers or 44
employer organizations, appointed by the Governor, with one initially 45
serving a two-year term, one initially serving a three-year term and one 46
initially serving a four-year term; 47
(5) Three members who represent nursing home workers or worker 48
organizations, appointed by the Governor, with one initially serving a 49
two-year term, one initially serving a three-year term and one initially 50
serving a four-year term; and 51
(6) The chairpersons of the joint standing committee of the General 52
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to human services, or 53
their designees. 54
(c) In making appointments under subdivisions (4) and (5) of 55
subsection (b) of this section, the Governor shall consider the geographic 56
distribution of nursing homes within the state. After the initial terms of 57
board members appointed under subdivisions (4) and (5) of subsection 58
(b) of this section have expired, appointed board members shall serve 59
four-year terms, limited to two consecutive terms. Any vacancy in the 60
board membership shall be filled by the appointing authority. 61
(d) The board shall (1) meet not later than thirty days after all 62
members have been appointed, (2) elect a member by majority vote to 63
serve as its chairperson, and (3) determine the term to be served by the 64
chairperson. The affirmative vote of six board members is required for 65
the board to take any action. 66
(e) The Labor Commissioner shall appoint an administrative director 67
for the board and provide office space, resources and personnel to assist 68
the board in carrying out its duties. 69
(f) To carry out its duties, the board shall hold public hearings on, and 70
conduct investigations into, working conditions in the nursing home 71
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 4 of 7
industry. The board shall examine (1) wage rate and benefit data 72
collected by or submitted to the board for nursing home workers in the 73
relevant geographic area and nursing home occupations; (2) statements 74
showing wage rates and benefits paid to nursing home workers in the 75
relevant geographic area and nursing home occupations; (3) signed 76
collective bargaining agreements applicable to nursing home workers 77
in the relevant geographic area and nursing home occupations; (4) 78
testimony and information from current and former nursing home 79
workers, worker organizations, nursing home employers, nursing home 80
resident representatives and employer organizations; (5) training 81
provided to nursing home workers and experience necessary for an 82
organization to be designated a certified worker organization to conduct 83
such training; (6) state and federal laws and regulations governing 84
nursing home care and labor; and (7) any other information pertinent to 85
establishing nursing home workplace standards. 86
(g) The board shall adopt minimum compensation and training 87
standards and may (1) adopt regional compensation standards based on 88
wage rate and benefit data for similar occupations in a geographic area; 89
(2) establish minimum compensation standards by occupation of a 90
nursing home worker; and (3) approve a waiver to such standards for 91
any nursing home employer that presents the board with evidence of 92
financial difficulty risking such home's closure if the standards are 93
applied to such nursing home. Before adopting any compensation or 94
training standards for workers at Medicaid-funded nursing homes with 95
rates of payment set pursuant to chapter 319y of the general statutes, the 96
board shall consult with the Commissioner of Social Services to 97
determine the amount of state funding needed to implement any 98
changes in compensation or additional costs associated with new 99
training requirements. No such standards shall be adopted or 100
implemented until such date as any necessary state appropriations are 101
made. 102
(h) The board shall establish (1) requirements for a worker 103
organization to be certified by the board to provide training; and (2) the 104
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 5 of 7
curriculum for such training, which, at a minimum, shall contain (A) the 105
applicable compensation and working condition standards adopted by 106
the board pursuant to subsection (g) of this section, and (B) the anti-107
retaliation protections established pursuant to subsection (k) of this 108
section. The training shall include, but need not be limited to, follow-up 109
written materials in languages in which nursing home workers taking 110
the training are proficient. Before establishing or updating curriculum 111
requirements, the board shall hold at least one public hearing to solicit 112
input. 113
(i) A nursing home employer shall compensate its nursing home 114
workers at their regular hourly rate of wages and benefits for each hour 115
of training completed as required by this section and reimburse any 116
reasonable travel expenses associated with attending training sessions 117
not held on the premises of the nursing home. A nursing home 118
employer shall submit written documentation to the board to certify 119
that every two years each of its nursing home workers completes one 120
hour of training that meets the requirements of this section and is 121
provided by a certified worker organization. Upon request by a certified 122
worker organization, a nursing home employer shall provide the 123
certified worker organization with the names and contact information 124
of the nursing home workers who attended the training session unless 125
such worker opts out in a written statement filed with the nursing home 126
employer. 127
(j) Nursing home employers shall provide notices informing nursing 128
home workers of applicable minimum nursing home employment 129
standards. The notice shall be in writing and include contact 130
information for the Labor Commissioner to report violations of this 131
section and, at the request of a nursing home worker, provided in the 132
language in which such worker is proficient. 133
(k) A nursing home employer shall not discharge, discipline, 134
penalize, interfere with, threaten, restrain, coerce or otherwise retaliate 135
or discriminate against a nursing home worker because such worker has 136
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 6 of 7
exercised or attempted to exercise rights protected under this section, 137
including participating in any investigations concerning violations of 138
this section or attending training or board proceedings. It shall be 139
unlawful for a nursing home employer to: (1) Inform another employer 140
that a nursing home worker or former nursing home worker has 141
engaged in an investigation of a violation of this section or exercised or 142
attempted to exercise any right protected under this section; or (2) report 143
or threaten to report the actual or suspected citizenship or immigration 144
status of a nursing home worker, former nursing home worker or family 145
member of a nursing home worker to a federal, state or local agency for 146
exercising or attempting to exercise any right protected under this 147
section. 148
(l) It shall be unlawful for a nursing home employer to employ a 149
nursing home worker for lower wages or other compensation than that 150
adopted as the minimum nursing home employment standards by the 151
board and adopted pursuant to the provisions of subsection (g) of this 152
section. One or more nursing home workers may bring a civil action in 153
any Superior Court in the state against a nursing home employer who 154
violates the provisions of this section and such action may represent a 155
class of similarly situated nursing home workers. Upon a finding of one 156
or more violations, a nursing home employer shall be liable to each 157
nursing home worker for the full amount of any wages, benefits and 158
overtime compensation lost due to the violation, less any amount the 159
nursing home employer is able to establish was actually paid to each 160
nursing home worker, in addition to liquidated damages, costs and 161
attorneys' fees. A court may also issue an order requiring compliance 162
with this section. A nursing home worker found to have experienced 163
retaliation and loss of pay in violation of this section shall be entitled to 164
back pay and reinstatement to the worker's previous position, wages, 165
benefits, hours and other conditions of employment. 166
(m) An agreement between a nursing home employer and nursing 167
home worker or labor union that fails to meet the minimum standards 168
adopted by the board pursuant to this section shall not be a defense to 169
Raised Bill No. 1417
LCO No. 4849 7 of 7
an action brought under subsection (l) of this section. 170
(n) Not later than December 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, the 171
board shall file a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-172
4a of the general statutes, on actions taken, standards recommended or 173
adopted and state appropriations necessary to implement such 174
standards with the joint standing committees of the General Assembly 175
having cognizance of matters relating to aging, appropriations and the 176
budgets of state agencies, human services, labor and public health. 177
(o) The Labor Commissioner, in consultation with the board, shall 178
adopt regulations concerning minimum compensation standards, in 179
accordance with chapter 54 of the general statutes, to implement the 180
provisions of this section. 181
(p) The Commissioner of Public Health, in consultation with the 182
board, shall adopt regulations concerning minimum training standards 183
for nursing home workers, in accordance with chapter 54 of the general 184
statutes, to implement the provisions of this section. 185
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2025 New section
Statement of Purpose:
To establish a board to develop minimum nursing home workforce
standards for compensation and training.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]