By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
Gov. Ben Cayetano’s office yesterday called a newspaper ad by the Hawaii Government Employees Association "misleading."
The ad, which ran in The Honolulu Advertiser and the Honolulu Star-Bulletin yesterday, said: "What if you found out your boss wanted to raise executive pay up to 29 percent but was unwilling to offer you and your co-workers even one dime more? That’s what the state is doing to me."
The ad refers to an administration bill that proposes raises for all department heads — except the schools superintendent, whose salary is set by the Board of Education — and deputies and assistants. The governor’s chief of staff, Sam Callejo, would also have his pay increased.
The House Committee on Labor and Public Employment, however, changed the measure to establish a commission to annually review those salaries instead.
The HGEA’s ad says: "When some in government think they’re above the law, when top management gets caviar and everyone else gets crumbs — everyone suffers, because any hope of fairness is destroyed. The Legislature has the power to make things right and the obligation to be fair by following the law."
Callejo yesterday said: "The ad is false and misleading and only serves as smoke and mirrors to confuse the public. We’ve repeatedly asked HGEA to come back to the bargaining table, but they refuse. Gov. Cayetano wants to provide fair pay raises that the state can afford to the HGEA and other unions that are willing to make adjustments to improve productivity."
The governor’s press release yesterday also said: "There is no request for a 29 percent pay increase for anyone in the Administration."
In fact, the governor’s bill did propose an increase of up to 23.5 percent to $90,000 for deputies and assistants. Deputies and officials are paid between $69,748 and $77,966.
HGEA Deputy Director Randy Perreira said Cayetano’s office is "the one being misleading" and that the state has not given the union a new proposal.
HGEA won pay raises averaging 14.5 percent over four years in arbitration, but Cayetano has said he would veto a bill to pay for that and that the arbitration panel didn’t have legal authority to award a four-year contract. The governor has said there is room for discussion about some across-the-board raise but the 14.5 percent figure cannot be met.
Correction: Gov. Ben Cayetano has proposed raises of up to 23.5 percent for state department deputies and assistants. A previous version of this story reported an incorrect figure.
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