Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 448 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to protect domestic employees from discriminatory employment practices.

Testimony in support of the measure was received from the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission, the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, the National Employment Lawyers Association, the American Friends Service Committee - Hawaii Area Program, the ILWU Local 142, the Women's Legislative Coalition, and a private citizen.

Your Committee finds that under existing law, domestic employees are explicitly exempted from the protections provided under Chapter 378, Hawaii Revised Statutes, relating to discriminatory employment practices. This exclusion places domestic employees at risk of being subjected to invasions of privacy and other forms of discriminatory acts which would otherwise be considered unlawful if the domestic employee was employed in another capacity.

Your Committee believes that domestic employees deserve protection equal to that of other employees covered under Chapter 378, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 448 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.