Lawmakers Agree To Pay $450 Million In Pandemic Hazard Pay To HGEA Members
Much of the back pay was negotiated by Gov. Josh Green’s administration for state employees who reported for work in person during the emergency from 2020 to 2022.
Negotiators for the House and Senate tentatively agreed Thursday to put up more than $450 million to fund an arbitration decision and a separately negotiated deal for back hazard pay for union and non-union state employees who reported for work during the pandemic.
The settlement calls for payouts of either $10,000 or $20,000 to thousands of workers who are represented by Hawaii’s largest union, the Hawaii Government Employees Association.
The settlement payments will go to workers in the executive branch, University of Hawaii, public charter schools, the state Judiciary and the Hawaii Health Systems Corp. The size of the employees’ payments depends on how many days they physically reported to their jobs during the pandemic.
The agreement provides for payments of $20,000 to public employees who reported to work in person on 420 days or more from March 4, 2020 to March 25, 2022.
Public employees who physically reported to work fewer than 420 days during that period and also worked from home are eligible for $10,000 payments. Employees who worked from home for the entire pandemic are not eligible for the hazard pay.
Gov. Josh Green is expected to sign the measure, which is based on a settlement proposal and that originated with his administration.
Randy Perreira, executive director of the HGEA, said the union expects payments from the settlement will be distributed to employees in two installments, one in October and the second next March. He estimated the settlement agreement covers about 9,000 state employees.
The appropriation in also includes money to pay for a January hazard pay arbitration decision that covers an estimated 7,800 employees in the Department of Education, including school nurses, office employees and classroom educational assistants.
HGEA and the United Public Workers union have been聽pressing their case for hazard pay for their members for more than two years. Hazard pay provisions have been in both unions’ contracts for years, but were never before applied to so many workers.
UPW said in a written statement Friday that it is “tirelessly” pursuing the issue, and has resolved its hazard pay claims with Maui County and the state Judiciary.
“However, in other jurisdictions, we are moving forward with legal arbitration while remaining open to settlements that align with our contract terms,” according to the statement. The union said it is now “at the forefront of significant legal battles in seven jurisdictions” for hazard pay.
“This effort is critical to securing fair compensation for our essential workers who faced heightened risks and protecting their rights,” the statement said. The union has already reached hazard pay agreements with Maui County and the Judiciary.
UPW represents about 11,000 state and county public workers, including blue-collar employees, corrections officers and hospital employees. All of the government employees who are UPW members are covered by contracts that provide for hazard pay of up to 25%.
Perreira said HGEA has had discussions about hazard pay with the city, but the two sides have not yet struck a deal. “We are prepared to proceed with litigation if necessary,” he said.
Lawmakers on Friday voted to add another $8 million to HB 2374 to provide hazard pay for permanent staff in the legislative branch, including the state Ethics Commission, the state auditor, the Legislative Reference Bureau, the state ombudsman and the House and Senate.
Cathy Lee, spokeswoman for the state House, said in a written statement that lawmakers themselves are not eligible for the hazard pay.
