Caps the employer's contribution to the Public Employees Health Fund at a specific dollar amount. Sets the vacation and sick leave for public employees.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that health, vacation, and sick leave benefits are part of the total compensation to the public employee. Therefore, the amounts appropriated for wages and salaries are necessarily reduced by the financial cost of providing fringe benefits such as health, vacation, and sick leave.

Health, vacation, and sick leave benefits are items that incur costs and are agreed to in the course of collective bargaining but must ultimately be funded by the legislature.

Because the legislature has to appropriate the funds to cover these benefits, the cost of these items must be addressed when deciding whether to fund the wages and salaries for public employees agreed to in collective bargaining.

The purpose of this Act is to fix the costs that the employer is legally obligated to pay for these benefits by:

SECTION 2. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

§ -1 General Definitions. As used in this chapter:

"Elective officer" or "elective official" means any person elected to a public office or appointed to fill a vacancy of an elective office, except as a delegate to a constitutional convention, member of the board of education or trustee of the office of Hawaiian affairs, in accordance with an election duly held in the State or counties under chapter 11; provided that the person receives compensation, pay, or salary for such office.

granted vacation with pay each calendar year as follows:

New employees employed on or after July 1, 2001, shall be subject to a three-month probation period. During this probation period, no new employee shall earn or take vacation.

(b) An annual vacation, or any part thereof unused, shall be automatically accumulated for succeeding years, except that the total recorded accumulation shall be in no event more than ninety working days; provided that not more than fifteen days a year may be accumulated unless prior approval is secured by the employee from the employee's department head for the accumulation of the full amount, the accumulation to be granted only for good cause shown; and provided further that no employee shall be granted or permitted to take a vacation in any calendar year in excess of ninety working days, but whenever the employee's accumulated vacation credit exceeds ninety working days the employee shall be paid salary in lieu of vacation to the extent of the excess if, upon investigation by the comptroller of the State or the director of finance of the county, as the case may be, it is found that the excess vacation credit resulted from the employee's inability to be allowed vacation time off because of orders of the employee's appointing authority; otherwise the employee shall automatically forfeit the excess.

§ -3 Sick leaves, exceptions. (a) Beginning July 1, 2001, with the exception of teachers, educational officers, and cafeteria managers employed in the public schools of the State, the instructional staff of the University of Hawaii, and emergency appointees, all officers and employees employed by the State or of the several counties shall be entitled to and granted cumulative sick leave pay each calendar year as follows:

"§79-1 Vacations of public officers and employees; exceptions. [With] (a) Beginning July 1, 2001, with the exception of school teachers, principals, and cafeteria managers employed in the public schools of the State, the instructional staff of the University of Hawaii, members of the fire departments of the political subdivisions of the State, and persons employed pursuant to paragraphs (2), (3), (13), and (15) of section 76-16, paragraphs (g), (h), and (i) of section 6-303 of the charter of the city and county of Honolulu, and paragraphs (7), (8), and (12) of section 76-77, all officers and employees of the State or of the political subdivisions of the State and all full-time elected and appointive officers and employees [of] employed by the State and the political subdivisions of the State shall be entitled to and granted [a vacation with pay each calendar year calculated at the rate of one and three-quarters working days for each month of service. A month of service shall be deemed to mean a calendar month in which the employee performs not less than nineteen days of actual service or for calendar months with less than nineteen working days, actual service on all available working days. A provisional employee, as such, shall not be entitled to a vacation with pay, but the employee shall be entitled to earn and accrue vacation allowances during the term of the employee's provisional appointment, and if upon the termination of the employee's provisional appointment the employee receives a probationary or limited term or permanent appointment in the same position, the employee shall be credited with the allowances earned and accrued during the provisional appointment, but if the employee does not become such probationary or regular employee, the vacation allowances shall be automatically forfeited. Vacation allowances shall be recorded and administered on a calendar year basis, the allowance accruing during each calendar year being credited to employees as of December 31 of each year.] vacation with pay each calendar year as follows:

(b) An annual vacation, or any part thereof unused, shall be automatically accumulated for succeeding years, except that the total recorded accumulation shall be in no event more than ninety working days; provided that not more than fifteen days a year may be accumulated unless prior approval is secured by the employee from the employee's department head for the accumulation of the full amount, the accumulation to be granted only for good cause shown; and provided further that no employee shall be granted or permitted to take a vacation in any calendar year in excess of ninety working days, but whenever the employee's accumulated vacation credit exceeds ninety working days the employee shall be paid salary in lieu of vacation to the extent of the excess if, upon investigation by the comptroller of the State or the director of finance of the county, as the case may be, it is found that the excess vacation credit resulted from the employee's inability to be allowed vacation time off because of orders of the employee's appointing authority; otherwise the employee shall automatically forfeit the excess."

SECTION 4. Section 79-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§79-8 Sick leaves; exceptions. [With] (a) Beginning July 1, 2001, with the exception of teachers, educational officers, and cafeteria managers employed in the public schools of the State, the instructional staff of the University of Hawaii, and emergency appointees, all officers and employees [in the service of] employed by the State or of the several counties shall be entitled to and granted [cumulative sick leave pay at the rate of one and three-quarters working days for each month of service.] cumulative sick leave pay each calendar year as follows:

An employee employed on or after July 1, 2001, shall be subject to a three-month probation period. During this probation period, no new employee shall earn or take sick leave. In the event that an employee needs to take sick leave during this probation period, the employee may apply for temporary disability insurance benefits pursuant to chapter 392.

SECTION 5. Section 87-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsections (a) to (c) to read as follows:

"(a) The State through the department of budget and finance and the several counties through their respective departments of finance shall pay to the fund [a monthly contribution equal to the amount established under chapter 89C or specified in the applicable public sector collective bargaining agreement, whichever is appropriate,] no more than

$ each month for each of their respective employee-beneficiaries and employee-beneficiaries with dependent-beneficiaries, which shall be used toward the payment of costs of a health benefits plan; provided that the monthly contribution shall not exceed the actual cost of a health benefits plan. If both husband and wife are employee-beneficiaries, the total contribution by the State or the appropriate county shall not exceed the monthly contribution of a family plan for both of them. If, however, the State or any of the several counties establish cafeteria plans in accordance with section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and part II of chapter 78, the monthly contribution to the fund for those employee-beneficiaries who participate in a cafeteria plan shall be made through the cafeteria plan. In this event, the payments made by the State or the counties shall include the State's and the counties' respective contributions to the fund and the employee-beneficiary's share of the cost of the health benefits plan selected and authorized by the employee-beneficiary through the cafeteria plan.

(b) The State through the department of budget and finance and the several counties through their respective departments of finance shall pay to the fund [a monthly contribution equal to the amount established under chapter 89C or specified in the applicable public sector collective bargaining agreement, whichever is appropriate,] no more than $ each month for each child who has not attained the age of nineteen of all employee-beneficiaries who are enrolled for dental benefits. The contributions shall be used [towards] toward the payment of costs of dental benefits of a health benefits plan. Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, no part of the fund shall be used to finance the contributions except a rate credit or reimbursement or earnings or interest therefrom received by the fund or general revenues appropriated for that purpose.

(c) The State through the department of budget and finance and the several counties through their respective departments of finance shall pay to the fund [a monthly contribution equal to the amount established under chapter 89C or specified in the applicable public sector collective bargaining agreement, whichever is applicable,] for each of their respective employees, no more than $ each month to be used [towards] toward the payment of group life insurance benefits for each employee."

SECTION 6. Section 89-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

§89-9 Scope of negotiations. (a) The employer and the exclusive representative shall meet at reasonable times, including meetings in advance of the employer's budget-making process, and shall negotiate in good faith with respect to wages, hours, the number of incremental and longevity steps and movement between steps within the salary range,[the amounts of contributions by the State and respective counties to the Hawaii public employees health fund to the extent allowed in subsection (e),]and other terms and conditions of employment [which] that are subject to negotiations under this chapter and [which] that are to be embodied in a written agreement, or any question arising thereunder, but such obligation does not compel either party to agree to a proposal or make a concession; provided that the parties may not negotiate with respect to cost items as defined by section 89-2 for the biennium 1999 to 2001, and the cost items of employees in bargaining units under section 89-6 in effect on June 30, 1999, shall remain in effect until July 1, 2001.

(b) The employer or the exclusive representative desiring to initiate negotiations shall notify the other in writing, setting forth the time and place of the meeting desired and generally the nature of the business to be discussed, and shall mail the notice by certified mail to the last known address of the other party sufficiently in advance of the meeting.

(c) Except as otherwise provided herein, all matters affecting employee relations, including those that are, or may be, the subject of a regulation promulgated by the employer or any personnel director, are subject to consultation with the exclusive representatives of the employees concerned. The employer shall make every reasonable effort to consult with the exclusive representatives prior to effecting changes in any major policy affecting employee relations.

(d) Excluded from the subjects of negotiations are matters of classification and reclassification, benefits of [but not contributions] and the employer's maximum contribution to the Hawaii public employees health fund, retirement benefits except as provided in section 88-8(h), vacations, sick leave, and the salary ranges now provided by law; provided that the number of incremental and longevity steps, the amount of wages to be paid in each range and step, and movement between steps within the salary range shall be negotiable. The employer and the exclusive representative shall not agree to any proposal which would be inconsistent with merit principles or the principle of equal pay for equal work pursuant to sections 76-1, 76-2, 77-31, and 77-33, or which would interfere with the rights of a public employer to (1) direct employees; (2) determine qualification, standards for work, the nature and contents of examinations, hire, promote, transfer, assign, and retain employees in positions and suspend, demote, discharge, or take other disciplinary action against employees for proper cause; (3) relieve an employee from duties because of lack of work or other legitimate reason; (4) maintain efficiency of government operations; (5) determine methods, means, and personnel by which the employer's operations are to be conducted; and take such actions as may be necessary to carry out the missions of the employer in cases of emergencies; provided that the employer and the exclusive representative may negotiate procedures governing the promotion and transfer of employees to positions within a bargaining unit, procedures governing the suspension, demotion, discharge or other disciplinary actions taken against employees, and procedures governing the layoff of employees; provided further that violations of the procedures so negotiated may be the subject of a grievance process agreed to by the employer and the exclusive representative.

[(e) Negotiations relating to contributions to the Hawaii public employees health fund shall be for the purpose of agreeing upon the amounts which the State and counties shall contribute under section 87-4, toward the payment of the costs for a health benefits plan, as defined in section 87-1(8), and group life insurance benefits, and the] The parties shall not be bound by the amounts contributed under prior agreements; provided that section 89-11 for the resolution of disputes by way of fact-finding or arbitration shall not be available to resolve impasses or disputes relating to the amounts the State and counties shall contribute to the Hawaii public employees health fund."

SECTION 7. Act 253, Session Laws of Hawaii 2000, is amended by amending section 98 to read as follows:

"SECTION 98. Section 89-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

"(a) The employer and the exclusive representative shall meet at reasonable times, including meetings sufficiently in advance of the April 16 impasse date under section 89-11, and shall negotiate in good faith with respect to wages, hours, [the amounts of contributions by the State and respective counties to the Hawaii public employees health fund to the extent allowed in subsection (e),] and other terms and conditions of employment [which] that are subject to collective bargaining and [which] that are to be embodied in a written agreement as specified in section 89-10, but such obligation does not compel either party to agree to a proposal or make a concession; provided that the parties may not negotiate with respect to cost items as defined by section 89-2 for the biennium 1999 to 2001, and the cost items of employees in bargaining units under section 89-6 in effect on June 30, 1999, shall remain in effect until July 1, 2001.

(b) The employer or the exclusive representative desiring to initiate negotiations shall notify the other party in writing, setting forth the time and place of the meeting desired and the nature of the business to be discussed, sufficiently in advance of the meeting.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, all matters affecting employee relations, including those that are, or may be, the subject of a rule adopted by the employer or any director, shall be subject to consultation with the exclusive representatives of the employees concerned. The employer shall make every reasonable effort to consult with exclusive representatives and consider their input, along with the input of other affected parties, prior to effecting changes in any major policy affecting employee relations.

(d) Excluded from the subjects of negotiations are matters of classification, reclassification, benefits of [but not contributions] and the employer's maximum contribution to the Hawaii public employees health fund, recruitment, examination, initial pricing, vacation, sick leave, and retirement benefits except as provided in section 88-8(h). The employer and the exclusive representative shall not agree to any proposal [which] that would be inconsistent with the merit principle or the principle of equal pay for equal work pursuant to section 76-1 or which would interfere with the rights and obligations of a public employer to:

The employer and the exclusive representative may negotiate procedures governing the promotion and transfer of employees to positions within a bargaining unit; the suspension, demotion, discharge, or other disciplinary actions taken against employees within the bargaining unit; and the layoff of employees within the bargaining unit. Violations of the procedures so negotiated may be subject to the grievance procedure in the collective bargaining agreement.

[(e) Negotiations relating to contributions to the Hawaii public employees health fund shall be for the purpose of agreeing upon the amounts which the State and counties shall contribute under section 87-4, toward the payment of the costs for a health benefits plan, as defined in section 87-1(8), and group life insurance benefits, and the] The parties shall not be bound by the amounts contributed under prior agreements; provided that section 89-11 for the resolution of disputes by way of fact-finding or arbitration shall not be available to resolve impasses or disputes relating to the amounts the State and counties shall contribute to the Hawaii public employees health fund.

(f) The repricing of classes within an appropriate bargaining unit may be negotiated as follows:

SECTION 8. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 9. This Act shall take effect upon its approval; provided that: