1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to labor; repealing the Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board;
1.3 amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 177.27, subdivision 7; repealing
1.4 Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 181.211; 181.212; 181.213; 181.214; 181.215;
1.5 181.216; 181.217.
1.6BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.7 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 177.27, subdivision 7, is amended to read:
1.8 Subd. 7.Employer liability.If an employer is found by the commissioner to have
1.9violated a section identified in subdivision 4, or any rule adopted under section 177.28,
1.10181.213, or 181.215, and the commissioner issues an order to comply, the commissioner
1.11shall order the employer to cease and desist from engaging in the violative practice and to
1.12take such affirmative steps that in the judgment of the commissioner will effectuate the
1.13purposes of the section or rule violated. In addition to remedies, damages, and penalties
1.14provided for in the violated section, the commissioner shall order the employer to pay to
1.15the aggrieved parties back pay, gratuities, and compensatory damages, less any amount
1.16actually paid to the aggrieved parties by the employer, and for an additional equal amount
1.17as liquidated damages. The commissioner may also order reinstatement and any other
1.18appropriate relief to the aggrieved parties. Any employer who is found by the commissioner
1.19to have repeatedly or willfully violated a section or sections identified in subdivision 4 shall
1.20be subject to an additional civil penalty of up to $10,000 for each violation for each employee.
1.21In determining the amount of a civil penalty under this subdivision, the appropriateness of
1.22such penalty to the size of the employer's business and the gravity of the violation shall be
1.23considered. In addition, the commissioner may order the employer to reimburse the
1.24department and the attorney general for all appropriate litigation and hearing costs expended
1Section 1.
25-02233 as introduced01/16/25 REVISOR SS/AC
SENATE
STATE OF MINNESOTA
S.F. No. 1531NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
(SENATE AUTHORS: HOUSLEY, Rasmusson and Utke)
OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE
Introduction and first reading02/17/2025
Referred to Labor 2.1in preparation for and in conducting the contested case proceeding, unless payment of costs
2.2would impose extreme financial hardship on the employer. If the employer is able to establish
2.3extreme financial hardship, then the commissioner may order the employer to pay a
2.4percentage of the total costs that will not cause extreme financial hardship. Costs include
2.5but are not limited to the costs of services rendered by the attorney general, private attorneys
2.6if engaged by the department, administrative law judges, court reporters, and expert witnesses
2.7as well as the cost of transcripts. Interest shall accrue on, and be added to, the unpaid balance
2.8of a commissioner's order from the date the order is signed by the commissioner until it is
2.9paid, at an annual rate provided in section 549.09, subdivision 1, paragraph (c). The
2.10commissioner may establish escrow accounts for purposes of distributing remedies and
2.11damages.
2.12 Sec. 2. REPEALER.
2.13 Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 181.211; 181.212; 181.213; 181.214; 181.215; 181.216;
2.14and 181.217, are repealed.
2Sec. 2.
25-02233 as introduced01/16/25 REVISOR SS/AC 181.211 DEFINITIONS.
Subdivision 1.Application.The terms defined in this section apply to sections 181.211 to
181.217.
Subd. 2.Board."Board" means the Minnesota Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board
established under section 181.212.
Subd. 3.Certified worker organization."Certified worker organization" means a worker
organization that is certified by the board to conduct nursing home worker trainings under section
181.214.
Subd. 4.Commissioner."Commissioner" means the commissioner of labor and industry.
Subd. 5.Compensation."Compensation" means all income and benefits paid by a nursing
home employer to a nursing home worker or on behalf of a nursing home worker, including but
not limited to wages, bonuses, differentials, paid leave, pay for scheduling changes, and pay for
training or occupational certification.
Subd. 6.Employer organization."Employer organization" means:
(1) an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under section 501(c)(6) of the
Internal Revenue Code and that represents nursing home employers; or
(2) an entity that employers, who together employ a majority of nursing home workers in
Minnesota, have selected as a representative.
Subd. 7.Nursing home."Nursing home" means a nursing home licensed under chapter 144A,
or a boarding care home licensed under sections 144.50 to 144.56.
Subd. 8.Nursing home employer."Nursing home employer" means an employer of nursing
home workers in a licensed, Medicaid-certified facility that is reimbursed under chapter 256R.
Subd. 9.Nursing home worker."Nursing home worker" means any worker who provides
services in a nursing home in Minnesota, including direct care staff, non-direct care staff, and
contractors, but excluding administrative staff, medical directors, nursing directors, physicians, and
individuals employed by a supplemental nursing services agency.
Subd. 10.Worker organization."Worker organization" means an organization that is exempt
from federal income taxation under section 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), or 501(c)(5) of the Internal Revenue
Code, that is not dominated or interfered with by any nursing home employer within the meaning
of United States Code, title 29, section 158a(2), and that has at least five years of demonstrated
experience engaging with and advocating for nursing home workers.
181.212 MINNESOTA NURSING HOME WORKFORCE STANDARDS BOARD;
ESTABLISHMENT.
Subdivision 1.Board established; membership.(a) The Minnesota Nursing Home Workforce
Standards Board is created with the powers and duties established by law. The board is composed
of the following voting members:
(1) the commissioner of human services or a designee;
(2) the commissioner of health or a designee;
(3) the commissioner of labor and industry or a designee;
(4) three members who represent nursing home employers or employer organizations, appointed
by the governor in accordance with section 15.066; and
(5) three members who represent nursing home workers or worker organizations, appointed by
the governor in accordance with section 15.066.
(b) In making appointments under clause (4), the governor shall consider the geographic
distribution of nursing homes within the state.
Subd. 2.Terms; vacancies.(a) Board members appointed under subdivision 1, clause (4) or
(5), shall serve four-year terms following the initial staggered-lot determination.
(b) For members appointed under subdivision 1, clause (4) or (5), the governor shall fill vacancies
occurring prior to the expiration of a member's term by appointment for the unexpired term. A
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 member appointed under subdivision 1, clause (4) or (5), must not be appointed to more than two
consecutive terms.
(c) A member serves until a successor is appointed.
Subd. 3.Chairperson.The board shall elect a member by majority vote to serve as its
chairperson and shall determine the term to be served by the chairperson.
Subd. 4.Staffing.The commissioner may employ an executive director for the board and other
personnel to carry out duties of the board under sections 181.211 to 181.217.
Subd. 5.Board compensation.Compensation of board members is governed by section 15.0575.
Subd. 6.Application of other laws.Meetings of the board are subject to chapter 13D. The
board is subject to chapter 13. The board shall comply with section 15.0597.
Subd. 7.Voting.The affirmative vote of five board members is required for the board to take
any action, including actions necessary to establish minimum nursing home employment standards
under section 181.213. At least two of the five affirmative votes must be cast by the commissioner
members or the commissioner's appointees.
Subd. 8.Hearings and investigations.To carry out its duties, the board shall hold public
hearings on, and conduct investigations into, working conditions in the nursing home industry in
accordance with section 181.213.
Subd. 9.Department support.The commissioner shall provide staff support to the board. The
support includes professional, legal, technical, and clerical staff necessary to perform rulemaking
and other duties assigned to the board. The commissioner shall supply necessary office space and
supplies to assist the board in its duties.
Subd. 10.Antitrust compliance.The board shall establish operating procedures that meet all
state and federal antitrust requirements and may prohibit board member access to data to meet the
requirements of this subdivision.
Subd. 11.Annual report.By December 1, 2023, and each December 1 thereafter, the executive
director of the board shall submit a report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the house
of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over labor and human services on any
actions taken and any standards adopted by the board.
181.213 DUTIES OF THE BOARD; MINIMUM NURSING HOME EMPLOYMENT
STANDARDS.
Subdivision 1.Authority to establish minimum nursing home employment standards.(a)
The board must adopt rules establishing minimum nursing home employment standards that are
reasonably necessary and appropriate to protect the health and welfare of nursing home workers,
to ensure that nursing home workers are properly trained about and fully informed of their rights
under sections 181.211 to 181.217, and to otherwise satisfy the purposes of sections 181.211 to
181.217. Standards established by the board must include standards on compensation for nursing
home workers, and may include recommendations under paragraph (c). The board may not adopt
standards that are less protective of or beneficial to nursing home workers as any other applicable
statute or rule or any standard previously established by the board unless there is a determination
by the board under subdivision 2 that existing standards exceed the operating payment rate and
external fixed costs payment rates included in the most recent budget and economic forecast
completed under section 16A.103. In establishing standards under this section, the board must
establish statewide standards, and may adopt standards that apply to specific nursing home
occupations.
(b) The board must adopt rules establishing initial standards for wages for nursing home workers
no later than November 1, 2024. The board may use the authority in section 14.389 to adopt rules
under this paragraph. The board shall consult with the department in the development of these
standards prior to beginning the rule adoption process.
(c) To the extent that any minimum standards that the board finds are reasonably necessary and
appropriate to protect the health and welfare of nursing home workers fall within the jurisdiction
of chapter 182, the board shall not adopt rules establishing the standards but shall instead recommend
the occupational health and safety standards to the commissioner. The commissioner shall adopt
nursing home health and safety standards under section 182.655 as recommended by the board,
unless the commissioner determines that the recommended standard is outside the statutory authority
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 of the commissioner, presents enforceability challenges, is infeasible to implement, or is otherwise
unlawful and issues a written explanation of this determination.
Subd. 2.Investigation of market conditions.(a) The board must investigate market conditions
and the existing wages, benefits, and working conditions of nursing home workers for specific
geographic areas of the state and specific nursing home occupations. Based on this information,
the board must seek to adopt minimum nursing home employment standards that meet or exceed
existing industry conditions for a majority of nursing home workers in the relevant geographic area
and nursing home occupation. Except for standards exceeding the threshold determined in paragraph
(d), initial employment standards established by the board are effective beginning January 1, 2025,
and shall remain in effect until any subsequent standards are adopted by rules.
(b) The board must consider the following types of information in making determinations that
employment standards are reasonably necessary to protect the health and welfare of nursing home
workers:
(1) wage rate and benefit data collected by or submitted to the board for nursing home workers
in the relevant geographic area and nursing home occupations;
(2) statements showing wage rates and benefits paid to nursing home workers in the relevant
geographic area and nursing home occupations;
(3) signed collective bargaining agreements applicable to nursing home workers in the relevant
geographic area and nursing home occupations;
(4) testimony and information from current and former nursing home workers, worker
organizations, nursing home employers, and employer organizations;
(5) local minimum nursing home employment standards;
(6) information submitted by or obtained from state and local government entities; and
(7) any other information pertinent to establishing minimum nursing home employment standards.
(c) In considering wage and benefit increases, the board must determine the impact of nursing
home operating payment rates determined pursuant to section 256R.21, subdivision 3, and the
employee benefits portion of the external fixed costs payment rate determined pursuant to section
256R.25. If the board, in consultation with the commissioner of human services, determines the
operating payment rate and employee benefits portion of the external fixed costs payment rate will
increase to comply with the new employment standards, the board shall report to the legislature the
increase in funding needed to increase payment rates to comply with the new employment standards
and must make implementation of any new nursing home employment standards contingent upon
an appropriation, as determined by sections 256R.21 and 256R.25, to fund the rate increase necessary
to comply with the new employment standards.
(d) In evaluating the impact of the employment standards on payment rates determined by
sections 256R.21 and 256R.25, the board, in consultation with the commissioner of human services,
must consider the following:
(1) the statewide average wage rates for employees pursuant to section 256R.10, subdivision
5, and benefit rates pursuant to section 256R.02, subdivisions 18 and 22, as determined by the
annual Medicaid cost report used to determine the operating payment rate and the employee benefits
portion of the external fixed costs payment rate for the first day of the calendar year immediately
following the date the board has established minimum wage and benefit levels;
(2) compare the results of clause (1) to the operating payment rate and employee benefits portion
of the external fixed costs payment rate increase for the first day of the second calendar year after
the adoption of any nursing home employment standards included in the most recent budget and
economic forecast completed under section 16A.103; and
(3) if the established nursing home employment standards result in an increase in costs that
exceed the operating payment rate and external fixed costs payment rate increase included in the
most recent budget and economic forecast completed under section 16A.103, effective on the
proposed implementation date of the new nursing home employment standards, the board must
determine if the rates will need to be increased to meet the new employment standards and the
standards must not be effective until an appropriation sufficient to cover the rate increase and federal
approval of the rate increase is obtained.
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 (e) The budget and economic forecasts completed under section 16A.103 shall not assume an
increase in payment rates determined under chapter 256R resulting from the new employment
standards until the board certifies the rates will need to be increased and the legislature appropriates
funding for the increase in payment rates.
Subd. 3.Review of standards.At least once every two years, the board shall:
(1) conduct a full review of the adequacy of the minimum nursing home employment standards
previously established by the board; and
(2) following that review, adopt new rules, amend or repeal existing rules, or make
recommendations to adopt new rules or amend or repeal existing rules for minimum nursing home
employment standards using the expedited rulemaking process in section 14.389, as appropriate to
meet the purposes of sections 181.211 to 181.217.
Subd. 4.Variance and waiver.The board shall adopt procedures for considering temporary
variances and waivers of the established standards for individual nursing homes based on the board's
evaluation of the risk of closure or receivership under section 144A.15, due to compliance with all
or part of an applicable standard.
Subd. 5.Conflict.(a) In the event of a conflict between a standard established by the board in
rule and a rule adopted by another state agency, the rule adopted by the board shall apply to nursing
home workers and nursing home employers.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), in the event of a conflict between a standard established by
the board in rule and a rule adopted by another state agency, the rule adopted by the other state
agency shall apply to nursing home workers and nursing home employers if the rule adopted by
the other state agency is adopted after the board's standard and the rule adopted by the other state
agency is more protective or beneficial than the board's standard.
(c) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), if the commissioner of health determines that a standard
established by the board in rule or recommended by the board conflicts with requirements in federal
regulations for nursing home certification or with state statutes or rules governing licensure of
nursing homes, the federal regulations or state nursing home licensure statutes or rules shall take
precedence, and the conflicting board standard or rule shall not apply to nursing home workers or
nursing home employers.
Subd. 6.Effect on other agreements.Nothing in sections 181.211 to 181.217 shall be construed
to:
(1) limit the rights of parties to a collective bargaining agreement to bargain and agree with
respect to nursing home employment standards; or
(2) diminish the obligation of a nursing home employer to comply with any contract, collective
bargaining agreement, or employment benefit program or plan that meets or exceeds, and does not
conflict with, the minimum standards and requirements in sections 181.211 to 181.217 or established
by the board.
181.214 DUTIES OF THE BOARD; TRAINING FOR NURSING HOME WORKERS.
Subdivision 1.Certification of worker organizations.The board shall certify worker
organizations that it finds are qualified to provide training to nursing home workers according to
this section. The board shall by rule establish certification criteria that a worker organization must
meet in order to be certified and provide a process for renewal of certification upon the board's
review of the worker organization's compliance with this section. In adopting rules to establish
certification criteria under this subdivision, the board may use the authority in section 14.389. The
criteria must ensure that a worker organization, if certified, is able to provide:
(1) effective, interactive training on the information required by this section; and
(2) follow-up written materials and responses to inquiries from nursing home workers in the
languages in which nursing home workers are proficient.
Subd. 2.Curriculum.(a) The board shall establish requirements for the curriculum for the
nursing home worker training required by this section. A curriculum must at least provide the
following information to nursing home workers:
(1) the applicable compensation and working conditions in the minimum standards or local
minimum standards established by the board;
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 (2) the antiretaliation protections established in section 181.216;
(3) information on how to enforce sections 181.211 to 181.217 and on how to report violations
of sections 181.211 to 181.217 or of standards established by the board, including contact information
for the Department of Labor and Industry, the board, and any local enforcement agencies, and
information on the remedies available for violations;
(4) the purposes and functions of the board and information on upcoming hearings, investigations,
or other opportunities for nursing home workers to become involved in board proceedings;
(5) other rights, duties, and obligations under sections 181.211 to 181.217;
(6) any updates or changes to the information provided according to clauses (1) to (5) since the
most recent training session;
(7) any other information the board deems appropriate to facilitate compliance with sections
181.211 to 181.217; and
(8) information on labor standards in other applicable local, state, and federal laws, rules, and
ordinances regarding nursing home working conditions or nursing home worker health and safety.
(b) Before establishing initial curriculum requirements, the board must hold at least one public
hearing to solicit input on the requirements.
Subd. 3.Topics covered in training session.A certified worker organization is not required
to cover all of the topics listed in subdivision 2 in a single training session. A curriculum used by
a certified worker organization may provide instruction on each topic listed in subdivision 2 over
the course of up to three training sessions.
Subd. 4.Annual review of curriculum requirements.The board must review the adequacy
of its curriculum requirements at least annually and must revise the requirements as appropriate to
meet the purposes of sections 181.211 to 181.217. As part of each annual review of the curriculum
requirements, the board must hold at least one public hearing to solicit input on the requirements.
Subd. 5.Duties of certified worker organizations.A certified worker organization:
(1) must use a curriculum for its training sessions that meets requirements established by the
board;
(2) must provide trainings that are interactive and conducted in the languages in which the
attending nursing home workers are proficient;
(3) must, at the end of each training session, provide attending nursing home workers with
follow-up written or electronic materials on the topics covered in the training session, in order to
fully inform nursing home workers of their rights and opportunities under sections 181.211 to
181.217;
(4) must make itself reasonably available to respond to inquiries from nursing home workers
during and after training sessions; and
(5) may conduct surveys of nursing home workers who attend a training session to assess the
effectiveness of the training session and industry compliance with sections 181.211 to 181.217 and
other applicable laws, rules, and ordinances governing nursing home working conditions or worker
health and safety.
Subd. 6.Nursing home employer duties regarding training.(a) A nursing home employer
must submit written documentation to the board to certify that every two years each of its nursing
home workers completes one hour of training that meets the requirements of this section and is
provided by a certified worker organization. A nursing home employer may, but is not required to,
host training sessions on the premises of the nursing home.
(b) If requested by a certified worker organization, a nursing home employer must, after a
training session provided by the certified worker organization, provide the certified worker
organization with the names and contact information of the nursing home workers who attended
the training session, unless a nursing home worker opts out according to paragraph (c).
(c) A nursing home worker may opt out of having the worker's nursing home employer provide
the worker's name and contact information to a certified worker organization that provided a training
session attended by the worker by submitting a written statement to that effect to the nursing home
employer.
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 Subd. 7.Training compensation.A nursing home employer must compensate its nursing home
workers at their regular hourly rate of wages and benefits for each hour of training completed as
required by this section and reimburse any reasonable travel expenses associated with attending
training sessions not held on the premises of the nursing home.
181.215 REQUIRED NOTICES.
Subdivision 1.Provision of notice.(a) Nursing home employers must provide notices informing
nursing home workers of the rights and obligations provided under sections 181.211 to 181.217 of
applicable minimum nursing home employment standards and local minimum standards and that
for assistance and information, nursing home workers should contact the Department of Labor and
Industry. A nursing home employer must provide notice using the same means that the nursing
home employer uses to provide other work-related notices to nursing home workers. Provision of
notice must be at least as conspicuous as:
(1) posting a copy of the notice at each work site where nursing home workers work and where
the notice may be readily seen and reviewed by all nursing home workers working at the site; or
(2) providing a paper or electronic copy of the notice to all nursing home workers and applicants
for employment as a nursing home worker.
(b) The notice required by this subdivision must include text provided by the board that informs
nursing home workers that they may request the notice to be provided in a particular language. The
nursing home employer must provide the notice in the language requested by the nursing home
worker. The board must assist nursing home employers in translating the notice in the languages
requested by their nursing home workers.
Subd. 2.Minimum content and posting requirements.The board must adopt rules under
section 14.389 specifying the minimum content and posting requirements for the notices required
in subdivision 1. The board must make available to nursing home employers a template or sample
notice that satisfies the requirements of this section and rules adopted under this section.
181.216 RETALIATION PROHIBITED.
(a) A nursing home employer shall not discharge, discipline, penalize, interfere with, threaten,
restrain, coerce, or otherwise retaliate or discriminate against a nursing home worker because the
person has exercised or attempted to exercise rights protected under sections 181.211 to 181.217,
including but not limited to:
(1) exercising any right afforded to the nursing home worker under sections 181.211 to 181.217;
(2) participating in any process or proceeding under sections 181.211 to 181.217, including but
not limited to board hearings, board or department investigations, or other related proceedings; or
(3) attending or participating in the training required by section 181.214.
(b) It shall be unlawful for an employer to:
(1) inform another employer that a nursing home worker or former nursing home worker has
engaged in activities protected under sections 181.211 to 181.217; or
(2) report or threaten to report the actual or suspected citizenship or immigration status of a
nursing home worker, former nursing home worker, or family member of a nursing home worker
to a federal, state, or local agency for exercising or attempting to exercise any right protected under
sections 181.211 to 181.217.
(c) A person found to have experienced retaliation in violation of this section shall be entitled
to back pay and reinstatement to the person's previous position, wages, benefits, hours, and other
conditions of employment.
181.217 ENFORCEMENT .
Subdivision 1.Minimum nursing home employment standards.Except as provided in section
181.213, subdivision 5, paragraph (b) or (c), the minimum wages and other compensation established
by the board in rule as minimum nursing home employment standards shall be the minimum wages
and other compensation for nursing home workers or a subgroup of nursing home workers as a
matter of state law. Except as provided in section 181.213, subdivision 5, paragraph (b) or (c), it
shall be unlawful for a nursing home employer to employ a nursing home worker for lower wages
or other compensation than that established as the minimum nursing home employment standards.
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APPENDIX
Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233 Subd. 2.Investigations.The commissioner may investigate possible violations of sections
181.214 to 181.217 or of the minimum nursing home employment standards established by the
board whenever it has cause to believe that a violation has occurred, either on the basis of a report
of a suspected violation or on the basis of any other credible information, including violations found
during the course of an investigation.
Subd. 3.Civil action by nursing home worker.(a) One or more nursing home workers may
bring a civil action in district court seeking redress for violations of sections 181.211 to 181.217
or of any applicable minimum nursing home employment standards or local minimum nursing
home employment standards. Such an action may be filed in the district court of the county where
a violation or violations are alleged to have been committed or where the nursing home employer
resides, or in any other court of competent jurisdiction, and may represent a class of similarly
situated nursing home workers.
(b) Upon a finding of one or more violations, a nursing home employer shall be liable to each
nursing home worker for the full amount of the wages, benefits, and overtime compensation, less
any amount the nursing home employer is able to establish was actually paid to each nursing home
worker, and for an additional equal amount as liquidated damages. In an action under this subdivision,
nursing home workers may seek damages and other appropriate relief provided by section 177.27,
subdivision 7, or otherwise provided by law, including reasonable costs, disbursements, witness
fees, and attorney fees. A court may also issue an order requiring compliance with sections 181.211
to 181.217 or with the applicable minimum nursing home employment standards or local minimum
nursing home employment standards. A nursing home worker found to have experienced retaliation
in violation of section 181.216 shall be entitled to back pay and reinstatement to the worker's
previous position, wages, benefits, hours, and other conditions of employment.
(c) An agreement between a nursing home employer and nursing home worker or labor union
that fails to meet the minimum standards and requirements in sections 181.211 to 181.217 or
established by the board is not a defense to an action brought under this subdivision.
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Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 25-02233