STAND. COM. REP. NO. 272

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1288

       S.D. 1

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2013

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 1288 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FAMILY LEAVE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to allow an employee to use family leave time to care for a sibling with a serious health condition.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; Hawaii Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO; United Public Workers, AFSCME Local 646, AFL-CIO; International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Local 142; and three private individuals.  Testimony in opposition to this measure was submitted by the Department of Public Safety, Department of Human Resources Development, The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, and Society of Human Resource Management – Hawaii Chapter.

     Your Committee finds that employees are entitled to a total of four weeks of family leave during any calendar year upon the birth of a child of the employee, upon the employee's adoption of a child, or to care for the employee's child, spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, or parent with a serious health condition.  However, taking family leave to care for a sibling is not a covered benefit.  By extending employees' authorization to take family leave to care for a sibling with a serious health condition, this measure exemplifies Hawaii's rich tradition of ohana and caring for family members.

     However, the Department of Public Safety testified that this measure may significantly impact the Department's operations because a significant percentage of its staff is already on family leave.  Extending family leave to employees to care for their siblings may further increase the amount of family leave privileges exercised by staff thereby impacting the Department's twenty-four-hours, seven-days-a-week operational requirements.  Furthermore, the Department of Human Resources Development testified that operations with limited resources will likely incur an increase in overtime costs in order to maintain their level of service to the public.  Your Committee believes that this issue and its potential fiscal impact merit further discussion by your Committee on Ways and Means.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1288, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1288, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary and Labor,

____________________________

CLAYTON HEE, Chair