Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 2967 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to prohibit an employer from requiring an employee to work continuously for more than eight hours without at least a fifteen-minute break period.

Testimony in support of the measure was received from the ILWU Local 142, the Hawaii State AFL-CIO, Covanta Energy Group, and a private citizen.

Your Committee finds that under existing law, only minors are protected with a statutorily mandated rest break. Your Committee believes that the provision of a minimum of fifteen minutes for an employee to use as either a rest or meal break is a good employment practice and will result in a more efficient workforce.

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. 2967 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.