Bill Text: HI HB467 | 2017 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating To Collective Bargaining In Public Employment.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-02-02 - The committee(s) on HLT recommend(s) that the measure be deferred. [HB467 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2017-HB467-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	467
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that under the present law, employees of the Hawaii health systems corporation are included in seven bargaining units that also include employees of other public employers.  While this arrangement is not unique to the Hawaii health systems corporation, its status as the one of the nation's largest public health care organizations providing continuous acute and long-term health care services makes the employees' work uniquely different from most other government workers in the State.  No other health care workers in the State provide acute hospital care or residential long-term care.  The ability to negotiate collective bargaining agreements that address the wages, hours, and working conditions of health care employees would allow the Hawaii health systems corporation to expeditiously respond to and address the unique issues inherent in its continuous hospital operations, including census, acuity, process improvement, and most importantly, quality patient care.

     The legislature believes that a more appropriate categorization of the bargaining units requires that the employees of the Hawaii health systems corporation be placed in separate bargaining units that are counterparts to the existing bargaining units.

     The purpose of this Act is to establish seven separate bargaining units for employees of the Hawaii health systems corporation.

     SECTION 2.  Section 89-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

     1.  By amending subsections (a) and (b) to read:

     "(a)  All employees throughout the State within any of the following categories shall constitute an appropriate bargaining unit:

     (1)  Nonsupervisory employees in blue collar positions;

     (2)  Supervisory employees in blue collar positions;

     (3)  Nonsupervisory employees in white collar positions;

     (4)  Supervisory employees in white collar positions;

     (5)  Teachers and other personnel of the department of education under the same pay schedule, including part-time employees working less than twenty hours a week who are equal to one-half of a full-time equivalent;

     (6)  Educational officers and other personnel of the department of education under the same pay schedule;

     (7)  Faculty of the University of Hawaii and the community college system;

     (8)  Personnel of the University of Hawaii and the community college system, other than faculty;

     (9)  Registered professional nurses;

    (10)  Institutional, health, and correctional workers;

    (11)  Firefighters;

    (12)  Police officers;

    (13)  Professional and scientific employees, who cannot be included in any of the other bargaining units; [and]

    (14)  State law enforcement officers and state and county ocean safety and water safety officers[.];

    (15)  Nonsupervisory employees in blue collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation;

    (16)  Supervisory employees in blue collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation;

    (17)  Nonsupervisory employees in white collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation;

    (18)  Supervisory employees in white collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation;

    (19)  Registered professional nurses with the Hawaii health systems corporation;

    (20)  Institutional and health workers with the Hawaii health systems corporation; and

    (21)  Professional and scientific employees with the Hawaii health systems corporation, who cannot be included in bargaining units (15), (16), (17), (18), (19), and (20).

     (b)  Because of the nature of work involved and the essentiality of certain occupations that require specialized training[, supervisory]:

     (1)  Supervisory employees who are eligible for inclusion in units (9) through (14) shall be included in units (9) through (14), respectively, instead of unit (2) or (4)[.]; and

     (2)  Supervisory employees with the Hawaii health systems corporation who are eligible for inclusion in bargaining units (19) through (21) shall be included in bargaining units (19) through (21), respectively, instead of bargaining unit (16) or (18)."

     2.  By amending subsection (d) to read:

     "(d)  For the purpose of negotiating a collective bargaining agreement, the public employer of an appropriate bargaining unit shall mean the governor together with the following employers:

     (1)  For bargaining units (1), (2), (3), (4), (9), (10), (13), and (14), the governor shall have [six] five votes and the mayors[,] and the chief justice[, and the Hawaii health systems corporation board] shall each have one vote if they have employees in the particular bargaining unit;

     (2)  For bargaining units (11) and (12), the governor shall have four votes and the mayors shall each have one vote;

     (3)  For bargaining units (5) and (6), the governor shall have three votes, the board of education shall have two votes, and the superintendent of education shall have one vote; [and]

     (4)  For bargaining units (7) and (8), the governor shall have three votes, the board of regents of the University of Hawaii shall have two votes, and the president of the University of Hawaii shall have one vote[.]; and

     (5)  For bargaining units (15), (16), (17), (18), (19), (20), and (21), the governor shall have one vote and the Hawaii health systems corporation shall have one vote.

Any decision to be reached by the applicable employer group shall be on the basis of simple majority, except when a bargaining unit includes county employees from more than one county.  In that case, the simple majority shall include at least one county."

     SECTION 3.  Section 89-11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (e) to read as follows:

     "(e)  If an impasse exists between a public employer and the exclusive representative of bargaining unit (2), supervisory employees in blue collar positions; bargaining unit (3), nonsupervisory employees in white collar positions; bargaining unit (4), supervisory employees in white collar positions; bargaining unit (6), educational officers and other personnel of the department of education under the same salary schedule; bargaining unit (8), personnel of the University of Hawaii and the community college system, other than faculty; bargaining unit (9), registered professional nurses; bargaining unit (10), institutional, health, and correctional workers; bargaining unit (11), firefighters; bargaining unit (12), police officers; bargaining unit (13), professional and scientific employees; [or] bargaining unit (14), state law enforcement officers and state and county ocean safety and water safety officers[,]; bargaining unit (15), nonsupervisory employees in blue collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation; bargaining unit (16), supervisory employees in blue collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation; bargaining unit (17), nonsupervisory employees in white collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation; bargaining unit (18), supervisory employees in white collar positions with the Hawaii health systems corporation; bargaining unit (19), registered professional nurses with the Hawaii health systems corporation; bargaining unit (20), institutional and health workers with the Hawaii health systems corporation; or bargaining unit (21), professional and scientific employees with the Hawaii health systems corporation, the board shall assist in the resolution of the impasse as follows:

     (1)  Mediation.  During the first twenty days after the date of impasse, the board shall immediately appoint a mediator, representative of the public from a list of qualified persons maintained by the board, to assist the parties in a voluntary resolution of the impasse.

     (2)  Arbitration.  If the impasse continues twenty days after the date of impasse, the board shall immediately notify the employer and the exclusive representative that the impasse shall be submitted to a three-member arbitration panel who shall follow the arbitration procedure provided herein.

         (A)  Arbitration panel.  Two members of the arbitration panel shall be selected by the parties; one shall be selected by the employer and one shall be selected by the exclusive representative.  The neutral third member of the arbitration panel, who shall chair the arbitration panel, shall be selected by mutual agreement of the parties.  [In the event that] If the parties fail to select the neutral third member of the arbitration panel within thirty days from the date of impasse, the board shall request the American Arbitration Association, or its successor in function, to furnish a list of five qualified arbitrators from which the neutral arbitrator shall be selected.  Within five days after receipt of the list, the parties shall alternately strike names from the list until a single name is left, who shall be immediately appointed by the board as the neutral arbitrator and chairperson of the arbitration panel.

         (B)  Final positions.  Upon the selection and appointment of the arbitration panel, each party shall submit to the panel, in writing, with copy to the other party, a final position that shall include all provisions in any existing collective bargaining agreement not being modified, all provisions already agreed to in negotiations, and all further provisions [which] that each party is proposing for inclusion in the final agreement; provided that such further provisions shall be limited to those specific proposals that were submitted in writing to the other party and were the subject of collective bargaining between the parties up to the time of the impasse, including those specific proposals that the parties have decided to include through a written mutual agreement.  The arbitration panel shall decide whether final positions are compliant with this provision and which proposals may be considered for inclusion in the final agreement.

         (C)  Arbitration hearing.  Within one hundred twenty days of its appointment, the arbitration panel shall commence a hearing at which time the parties may submit either in writing or through oral testimony, all information or data supporting their respective final positions.  The arbitrator, or the chairperson of the arbitration panel together with the other two members, are encouraged to assist the parties in a voluntary resolution of the impasse through mediation, to the extent practicable throughout the entire arbitration period until the date the panel is required to issue its arbitration decision.

         (D)  Arbitration decision.  Within thirty days after the conclusion of the hearing, a majority of the arbitration panel shall reach a decision pursuant to subsection (f) on all provisions that each party proposed in its respective final position for inclusion in the final agreement and transmit a preliminary draft of its decision to the parties.  The parties shall review the preliminary draft for completeness, technical correctness, and clarity and may mutually submit to the panel any desired changes or adjustments that shall be incorporated in the final draft of its decision.  Within fifteen days after the transmittal of the preliminary draft, a majority of the arbitration panel shall issue the arbitration decision."

     SECTION 4.  This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun, before its effective date.

     SECTION 5.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 6.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2017, and shall apply to collective bargaining agreements negotiated after that date.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

Report Title:

Hawaii Health Systems Corporation; Collective Bargaining Units

 

Description:

Creates 7 separate collective bargaining units for employees of the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.