mandating time off essentially the same as lay off

I posted about this awhile ago on the general discussion board but wanted a local take on this issue. I work at a non-union hospital. We have had no lay offs; to compensate for this, the policy is to have staff mandated to stay home (you can use vacation time or you can take it without pay to keep your vacation time).

This obviously affects the paycheck, and the MNA has suggested that essentially it is a "rolling layoff"

I am curious if anyone knows if this is legal? (I'm guessing it must be)

Can a person collect if they are mandated to stay home a certain amount of time in a pay-period?

Are we the only profession that this is accepted?

Is it any different at the union hospitals? (I'm assuming they do lay off)

And any other thoughts you have!