Per Diem who pays for Mandatory training

[RNKPCE]

I work 2 jobs. One is union and all mandatory trainig whether in-house or taught by another company pays for any training that is mandatory. The other is non union and they have been wishy washy about paying for per diems training. They paid for a class one year and not the next, or they pay for one per diem nurse and then don't pay for another. Saying they are no longer paying for per diems mandatory education. They have no problem paying for the monthly in-house inservices but won't pay for mandatory education outside of the facility.

Are there any state or Fed. laws covering this? I have tried to look at my states labor laws but they aren't specific regarding per diem employees.

[jjjoy, LPN]

That's an interesting question. How responsible are employers versus employees for paying for education employees need to do their job? Nurses are ultimately responsible for maintaining their license and continuing education whether per diem or full time status.

I can see the argument that since per diem workers are similar to "free lance" workers, trading the stability & benefits of full time employee status for the freedom from the same obligations as full time employees as well as higher pay per hour (since no benefits), that the per diem worker could be argued to be responsible for maintaining their qualifications to work there.

I'd imagine it would have more to do with the demand. If the hospital *needs* their per diem workers, then they'd do well to offer as many perqs as possible to keep them on. If the hospital is willing to risk losing per diem staff in order to save a little money on training expenses, then they might lose out.

But as far as legality, I don't know what kind of rights per diem workers have as compared to full-time employees. Good question!

[RNKPCE]

There is a difference in what CEU's one needs to maintain their license in their state and what education or skills you need to work on a unit. For instance if PALS is required for all employees on a unit who pays. Or say the unit becomes an accredited stroke unit after a per diem has been working there for a while who pays for the NIH Stroke certification. The place I work with a contract pays all mandatory education for per diem the non union place doesn't.

Another example is CPR certification. The union place pays the nurse for her time recertifying the non union doesn't.

[suzanne4, RN]

It is up to the facility, there is no law in place. The union facility has this covered in their contract with the facility and it is spelled out in black and white.

A facility can require that you have specific training for a job, but they are not required by law to pay for it when you are not a benefited employee there. They are not bound to provide any training for you, they do it only as they see needed.