Sec. 242.327. PROTECTION FOR REFUSAL TO ENGAGE IN CERTAIN CONDUCT. (a) A person may not suspend, terminate, or otherwise discipline or discriminate against a licensed nursing facility administrator who refuses to engage in an act or omission relating to the administrator's job duties or responsibilities that would constitute a violation of this subchapter or of a rule adopted under this subchapter, if the administrator notifies the person at the time of the refusal that the reason for refusing is that the act or omission constitutes a violation of this subchapter or of a rule adopted under this subchapter.
(b) An act by a person under Subsection (a) does not constitute a violation of this section if:
(1) the act or omission the administrator refused to commit was not conduct that constitutes a violation of this subchapter or of a rule adopted under this subchapter; or
(2) the act or omission the administrator refused to commit was conduct that constitutes a violation of this subchapter or of a rule adopted under this subchapter, and the person rescinds any disciplinary or discriminatory action taken against the administrator, compensates the administrator for lost wages, and restores any lost benefits to the administrator.
(c) A violation of this section is an unlawful employment practice, and a civil action may be brought by a licensed nursing facility administrator against a person for the violation. The relief available in a civil action shall be the same as the relief available to complainants in a civil action for violations of Chapter 21, Labor Code. In no event may any action be brought pursuant to this section more than two years after the date of the administrator's refusal to engage in an act or omission that would constitute a violation of this subchapter or of a rule adopted under this subchapter.
(d) In this section, "person" includes an individual, organization, corporation, agency, facility, or other entity.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1280, Sec. 2.01.
Last modified: September 28, 2016