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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
17 |
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TWENTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2005 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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urging employers to implement flexible benefit plans and other family-friendly policies for public and private sector employees.
WHEREAS, by the year 2011, the first of the baby boomers will reach sixty-five years of age; and
WHEREAS, these "sandwich" generation employees who are caring for their children and parents or grandparents need to be supported in their workplaces in order to be happy and productive employees; and
WHEREAS, in order to compete in today's global economy, employers must place greater emphasis on creating a motivating and challenging people-oriented work environment, which includes changing old benefit plans; and
WHEREAS, flexible benefit plans, which allow employers to accommodate the different needs of different employees, give all employees the ability to choose from standard benefits; and
WHEREAS, flexible benefit plans and family-friendly policies help to establish a more dedicated and productive workforce, with a reduction of absenteeism and high turnover; and
WHEREAS, family-friendly policies are employment-oriented social policies that facilitate the reconciliation of work and family life by fostering adequacy of family resources and child development, favor the parental choice about work and care, and promote gender equality in employment opportunities; and
WHEREAS, family-friendly policies will, therefore, help employees succeed both at work and at home; and
WHEREAS, meeting the needs of employees will also serve to facilitate the preservation and promotion of the family unit, and
WHEREAS, employers' policies should endeavor to recognize and address the specific needs of their employees, accordingly; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2005, that public and private sector employers are urged to consider the implementation of flexible benefit plans and other family-friendly policies for their employees; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that employers should consider policies, including but not limited to those that:
(1) Offer flex-time, job-sharing, and part-time employment options;
(2) Provide paid time off that may be utilized by employees for personal illness, family matters, or other circumstances that would cause employees to be absent from work;
(3) Provide financial assistance through dependent care spending assistance plans, flexible benefit plans, child care vouchers, or a child care vendor plan;
(4) Provide or support childcare, sick-childcare, night or weekend childcare, or holiday, school-break, respite care services; and
(5) Provide employee-parents with information and referral services to appropriate community resources and agencies;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor; the Lieutenant Governor; the President of the House of Representatives; the Speaker of the House of Representatives; the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court; the Director of Labor and Industrial Relations, who in turn is requested to transmit copies to all other public sector employers; the Director of Human Resources Development; the Mayor and Chairperson of the Council of each county; the President of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii; the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Retail Merchants of Hawaii; the President of the Society for Human Resources Management; the Hawaii Bankers Association; the Director of the National Federation of Independent Business-Hawaii; the President of the Hawaii Business League; the President of Small Business Hawaii; the President of the Hawaii Hotel Association; and the President of the Hawaii Business Roundtable.
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OFFERED BY: |
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Report Title:
Flexible Benefit Plans; Family-Friendly Policies; Public and Private Sector Employees