BUTLER TWP — Butler County may increase the staff at Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center thanks to a new state law.

The state House on Wednesday banned mandatory overtime for nurses and other direct patient care workers.

On Thursday, Gov. Ed Rendell signed the bill into law, which will take effect July 1.

Dr. William DiCuccio, Sunnyview executive and medical director, said at Thursday's board meeting the county likely would be forced to hire additional staff as a result.

"Your only way of getting around it is to hire more employees," he said to the county commissioners.

DiCuccio said there would be a tradeoff of higher expenses for a larger staff with a larger reimbursement from the state.

"It becomes a vicious cycle," he said.

DiCuccio said the law's impact must be part of contract talks now under way between the county and Sunnyview workers.

Pam Hook, the administrative organizer for the Service Employees International Union, which is representing Sunnyview workers in contract negotiations, agreed.

"It is going to impact your budget," she said to county officials.

Hook said the regulation was needed to ensure good patient care.

"It's a safety issue," she said.

Unions and nurses were seeking the ban, claiming rampant overtime increased the chances of making mistakes.

"It took us eight years to get this," Hook said.

She attributed an ongoing nursing shortage in the region to people not wanting to be stuck in a job working overtime regularly.

Although the legislation prevents such facilities as hospitals and nursing homes from using mandatory overtime to deal with chronic understaffing, a provision does allow mandatory overtime when an unforeseen shortage occurs.

The county is negotiating new contracts for more than 190 Sunnyview employees and more than 300 courthouse and government center workers.

The current pacts expire Nov. 30.

A major issue during negotiations is requiring employees to contribute to their health care costs.

Nurse Bonna Gould, the Sunnyview union steward, said the workers are willing to reach a new agreement as long as the stipulations also apply to the county commissioners and nonunion administrators.

"We're willing to to do whatever it takes to make Sunnyview succeed," she said.

County Commissioner Jim Lokhaiser assured Gould the cost of the new county prison construction would not impact a final agreement.

"I would never allow it to happen," he said.