Charges sought in state office scuffle
By Jim Dooley
Advertiser Staff Writer
State Labor Department official James Decker, an expert in workplace violence issues, said yesterday that he suffered nerve damage to his arm and a torn shirt when department director Nelson Befitel tried to physically stop Decker from leaving Befitel's office during a heated discussion last week about "policy issues."
Decker said he filed a police report about the incident and wants the prosecutor's office to press an assault charge against Befitel.
Befitel has referred questions about the incident to his assistant, James Hardway, who has declined to discuss it other than to say the matter is under investigation.
Decker said an atmosphere of "stress and tension" has developed in the department because of "policy changes" being instituted by Befitel and Gov. Linda Lingle, and he said that may have contributed to the incident in his closed door meeting with Befitel July 23.
Lingle said yesterday that a "major shift" is under way to move the department from a "less punitive, more consultative" approach in its dealings with local businesses, particularly in the area of workplace safety inspections.
"We're not going to allow government to make arbitrary decisions that affect people and affect jobs. So there is a major shift going down," Lingle said yesterday.
Lingle did not discuss the Befitel-Decker incident in detail, but said she felt it had been "played up" in the news media because Befitel, 37, is a family friend of hers and was attorney for the Lingle political campaign.
"I've been through this before with other people who are close to me; when an allegation gets made, it's highlighted," Lingle said.
"I support the governor and I support Mr. Befitel," Decker told The Advertiser yesterday.
"But we have a policy against workplace violence in this department, and it should be followed," he said.
Decker said he had a meeting with Befitel July 22 and again on July 23.
"It concerned policy matters but the subject is really irrelevant," he said.
The July 23 meeting was "very short, maybe five minutes" and occurred behind closed doors, Decker said.
"At some point in the meeting, I felt uncomfortable. He was verbally attacking me," Decker said.
"I felt threatened, and I felt it was time to leave. As I attempted to leave, he physically prevented me from leaving. I asked him to take his hands off me and I left," Decker said.
Decker is manager of the administrative and technical support branch of the department's occupational safety and health division.
He has held the job for two years, Decker said. After retiring from the Navy in 1996, where he was an occupational safety and health official, Decker then worked as a private consultant in the same field in Montana before moving to Hawai'i, he said.
"Among other things, I counseled employers and employees about workplace violence issues," Decker said.
Hardway, Befitel's assistant, said the departmental policy changes and the incident between Decker and Befitel are unrelated.
"From the vantage point of the director, one issue doesn't play into the other," Hardway said.
The changes are not creating friction within the department, Hardway said.
"We haven't felt any resistance per se from the line people in terms of what we're doing," he said."
Advertiser staff writer Gordon Y. K. Pang contributed to this report.
Reach Jim Dooley at jdooley@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2447.
