New Leadership
The new Chair of the House Committee on Labor and Public Employment (LAB) is Aaron Ling Johanson, Representative from the 31st District that includes Moanalua, Red Hill, Foster Village, Aiea, Fort Shafter, Moanalua Gardens, Aliamanu, and Lower Pearlridge. The Vice Chair is freshman Daniel Holt, Representative from the 29th District including Kalihi, Palama, Iwilei, and Chinatown. The former House labor chair Mark Nakashima and former vice chair Jarrett Keohokalole are now leading the House Committee on Economic Development & Business.
On the Senate side, Gilbert Keith-Agaran, Senator from the 5th District of Wailuku, Waihee, and Kahului Maui, remains as the chair of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor. A new vice chair, Karl Rhoads, from Senate District 13 that includes Dowsett Highlands, Puunui, Nuuanu, Pacific Heights, Pauoa, Punchbowl, Palama, Liliha, Iwilei, Chinatown, and Downtown, replaces Maile Shimabukuro who continues as Chair of the Committee on Hawaiian Affairs.
What are we watching?
The Wage Standards Division follows all the measures that will impact any of the laws in the Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) we are responsible for enforcing. This year we are seeing some familiar concepts including minimum wage increases(Chapter 387, HRS), paid leave, expansion of the family leave (Chapter 398. HRS), an increase to the guaranteed salary threshold for exemption from Hawaii's minimum wage and overtime (Chapter 387, HRS), and including corrections agencies with law enforcement agencies who are not prohibited from using lie detector tests in the workplace, (HB 1130, SB 996) (Chapter 378-Part II, HRS). New concepts being followed include stop-work orders for violations of the payment of wages law (Chapter 388, HRS) and measures related to housing that carve out exceptions to Hawaii's prevailing wage law for public works (Chapter 104, HRS).
Minimum Wage
Hawaii is in the penultimate step of Act 82, 2014, with a current minimum wage of $9.25 per hour and the last increase to $10.10 per hour set for January 1, 2018. This year there are nine minimum wage bills in either the House or Senate aimed to make additional increases to the minimum wage that we have our eyes on.
Support for using a consumer price index (CPI) for the minimum wage is evident again as in HB 1433 introduced by Representative Johanson and Chris Lee. Another measure in the House advocating use of the CPI is HB 441, introduced by Representatives Ing, Woodson, Gates, and LoPresti which also repeals the seventy-cent tip credit for regularly tipped individuals. On the Senate side SB107 introduced by Senator Karl Rhoads uses the CPI for computation of the minimum wage and also repeals the seventy-five cent tip credit. See also SB 544 and its companion HB 5.
Measures to increase the minimum wage without the CPI calculation include:
SB 14 advocates minimum wage increases in addition to a living wage assessment to be conducted by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT); and SB 267 increasing minimum wage to $14 per hour by the year 2022, introduced by Senators Espero, Rhoads, Baker, Galuteria, Green, Ihara, Keith-Agaran, Kidani, Ruderman, and Shimabukuro.
The third type of minimum wage bill we are looking at allows the counties to impose their own minimum wage. SB 1165 increases the minimum wage to $15.10 by the year 2023 and also allows counties to impose a higher minimum wage and a lower minimum for teens. And finally HB 442 that proposes allowing the counties to impose their own minimum wage.
Paid Leave
There aren't as many paid leave bills as there have been in the past, (see February 3, 2015 post) with only four that represent just three ideas. Bills with the employer paying for the leave are SB 638 and it's companion HB 4, and HB 1434. HB 1434 has already passed the first committee of its triple referral. HB 1434 requires food service employers with 25 or more employers to pay for 40 hours of leave. The leave can be used for the employee's own illness, or the care of a child, spouse or parent, or for absences related to being a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault, The HD1 version will have an anti-retaliation clause and limit the scope of the definition of food establishment according to comments made at the February 7, 2017 hearing. It is now referred to the House Judiciary committee.
HB 1362 creates paid leave benefits though an employee funded trust fund.
There were three measures aimed at only State employees that provided paid leave, HB 214, is for paid family leave and HB 683 and its companion SB521 provide paid maternity or paternity leave.
Part II will address the other measures not discussed and provide an update on Minimum Wage and Paid Leave. See you at the Capitol.
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