STAND. COM. REP. NO. 552

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 206
                                        




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Labor and Environment, to which was
referred S.B. No. 206 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WAGES AND COMPENSATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require that the civil
penalty for not paying wages in a timely manner be equal to the
total amount of unpaid wages plus interest. 

     Testimony in support of this measure was received from the
National Employment Lawyers Association and Consumer Lawyers of
Hawaii.  Testimony in support of the measure to apply only to new
cases was received from the Department of Labor and Industrial
Relations.

     Your Committee finds that under the current law an employer
who fails to pay an employee's wages is liable to the employee
for a penalty of up to the amount of back wages, plus interest at
six per cent.  This measure requires that the penalty be equal to
the back wages plus interest.

     Your Committee believes that this proposal strengthens the
law by eliminating discretion in the amount of the penalty to be
assessed against an employer who fails to pay timely wages.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Labor and Environment that is attached to this
report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 552
                                   Page 2


of S.B. No. 206 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be
placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   BOB NAKATA, Chair

 
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