Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor and Public Employment, to which was referred H.B. No. 180 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to require that proposed adjustments to compensation and benefit packages for excluded civil service employees be at least equivalent to adjustments provided under collective bargaining agreements for their counterparts within the employer's jurisdiction.

Members of the Hawaii Government Employees Association-Managerial and Confidential Employees Chapter testified in support of this measure. The Department of Human Resources Development did not support this measure.

Your Committee finds that the majority of employees in the Excluded Managerial Compensation Plan are career civil servants who have invaluable knowledge, job experience, and skill, and are individuals who continually serve in managing governmental operations even through changes in Administration. These individuals should not be treated less favorably than their counterparts who are covered by collective bargaining agreements. Your Committee believes that to maintain fairness and increase employee morale, it is important that government grant managerial employees compensation and benefit adjustments equivalent to those awarded to their counterparts under collective bargaining agreements.

With unemployment rates in Hawaii among the lowest in the nation, state and county agencies must be able to recruit and retain the best available managerial and technical talents with, at least, the prospect of fair compensation. This measure promotes the critical public policy of attracting and retaining competent, able, and dedicated personnel.

Although concerns were raised that adjusting compensation and benefit packages for excluded civil service employees in this manner would lessen the ability for the State to award deserving individuals based upon the merit principle thereby acting as a disincentive to dedication and hard work, your Committee respectfully disagrees. This measure would provide a floor for compensation and benefit adjustments, but would not preclude merit-based awards to recognize or reward notable service.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor and Public Employment that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 180 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.