Bill Text: HI HCR165 | 2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Requesting The Department Of Human Resources Development To Conduct A Sample Survey Of For-profit, Non-profit, And Government Organizations In Hawaii That Have Successfully Implemented Remote Work, Hybrid Work, Or Telework Arrangements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 19-0)
Status: (Engrossed) 2024-04-05 - Referred to LBT. [HCR165 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2024-HCR165-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.C.R. NO. |
165 |
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THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT TO CONDUCT A SAMPLE SURVEY OF FOR-PROFIT, NON-PROFIT, AND GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS IN HAWAII THAT HAVE SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED REMOTE WORK, HYBRID WORK, OR TELEWORK ARRANGEMENTS.
WHEREAS, housing costs in the State have sharply increased in recent years; and
WHEREAS, the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization reported that between 2000 and 2022, the median single family home price increased by two hundred sixty percent and, according to the Repeat Sales Index, home prices are 4.7 times higher than in 2000; and
WHEREAS, there are areas in Hawaii, including rural portions of every island, that have substantially less expensive housing costs than those in urban and more populated areas; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Human Resources Development reported to the Legislature that nearly four thousand of the seventeen thousand civil service positions in the state executive branch were vacant as of November 2022, not including the University of Hawaii System or Department of Education; and
WHEREAS, identifying state jobs that are good candidates for remote work, identifying areas of the State where housing is relatively affordable but good-paying jobs are not readily available, and pairing the remote jobs with Hawaii workers who can work remotely would meaningfully address issues of affordability, help keep local families in Hawaii, and strengthen community ties; and
WHEREAS, funds should be invested to ensure that households have sufficient broadband infrastructure to support an increase in remote workers and co-working facilities; this will allow more people who want to stay in their communities to work but do not have appropriate space in their own homes to work remotely; and
WHEREAS, co-working facilities can also be used for community events in the evenings, weekends, and off-work hours, and existing state facilities like state libraries could be utilized as co-working facilities; and
WHEREAS, the federal government has had remote work options for its employees since the 1970s; and
WHEREAS, before the COVID-19 pandemic, only three percent of federal employees teleworked every day, but that amount grew substantially during the peak of the pandemic when a record fifty-nine percent of federal employees worked from home daily; and
WHEREAS, similarly in the State, the COVID-19 pandemic led to much of the State working remotely full-time; and
WHEREAS, even after the COVID-19 pandemic, telecommuting and remote services have remained popular, which has led to renewed interest in strategies to create more sustainable communities; and
WHEREAS, remote work arrangements help alleviate transportation costs for employees and simultaneously ease traffic congestion for other commuters; and
WHEREAS, according to the Honolulu Transportation Demand Management Plan, approximately thirty to fifty percent of trips by vehicles are made by people driving alone; and
WHEREAS, there are best practices for remote work and hybrid work with respect to management and productivity, including establishing policies that provide clear guidelines and expectations, providing appropriate training sessions and materials to support training for managers and employees, providing clear communication, recognizing employees and managers must invest additional effort to ensure their communications are effective and that they are providing a continuous flow of information, and engaging in frequent consultations with labor unions to ensure a clear understanding of policies and procedures; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Human Resources Development is requested to conduct a sample survey of for-profit, non-profit, and government organizations in Hawaii that have successfully implemented remote work, hybrid work, or telework arrangements; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Human Resources Development is requested to examine the following:
(1) Best practices for managers and supervisors of remote workers;
(2) Best practices for measuring productivity in a remote work or hybrid work environment; and
(3) Lessons learned from running a remote work or hybrid work program in Hawaii; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Human Resources Development is requested to determine how these strategies can be incorporated in existing and vacant state job positions to retain and attract a healthy public employee workforce; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization is requested to identify areas in the State that have lower housing costs and decreased access to good-paying jobs and consultant to the Department of Human Resources and Development[EB1] ; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Broadband and Digital Equity Office is requested to analyze the condition of the existing broadband infrastructure in the areas of the State that have lower housing costs and decreased access to good-paying jobs, as identified by the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Human Resources Development is requested to submit a report of its findings, including the findings of the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization and Hawaii Broadband and Digital Equity Office, and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of the Regular Session of 2025; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Human Resources Development, State Broadband Coordinator, and Executive Director of the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization.
Remote Work; Survey; Department of Human Resources Development; Best Practices
[EB1]Since we're adopting the amendment proposed by UHERO, use the language provided by UHERO's testimony here.
