• Sending a message • HMSA members must protest ASAP Sending a message The Hirakawa case and several others in the last few years lead to the inevitable conclusion that the county of Kauai has repeatedly failed to respond appropriately
• Sending a message • HMSA members
must protest ASAP
Sending a message
The Hirakawa case and several others in the last few years lead to the inevitable conclusion that the county of Kauai has repeatedly failed to respond appropriately to allegations of sexual harassment and hostile workplace environment. The Hirakawa case has had an unusual level of public disclosure, but most cases settle prior to open court proceedings being filed and are shielded from public scrutiny. The County has paid millions of tax payers’ dollars to settle claims; managers and supervisors continue to make the same fundamental mistakes; and the county has yet to take any action to correct the situation.
The repeated failures that have occurred at the highest levels of County leadership can only be described as a total and systemic breakdown. This has resulted in a climate where many employees, particularly women, feel unsafe in the workplace and have no faith that their concerns will be responded to appropriately, if at all. Managers who have reportedly engaged in behaviors that led to the claims have been protected from any consequence because, in violation of County policy, personnel inquiries are not even initiated. Thus no investigations are conducted and the actions of these supervisors are effectively covered-up and their accountability is non-existent. When there is no follow through in implementing our workplace violence/sexual harassment policies, a strong and valid argument can and has been made that the county protects supervisors who harass and threaten their employees.
Since 1998 when the Supreme Court issued rulings in two cases (Faragher-Ellerth), the County has known that in sexual harassment/hostile work environment cases, an employer may be held liable when the person doing the harassing is the plaintiff’s direct supervisor or higher. However, in those cases in which no tangible adverse employment action is taken against the plaintiff in the context of the alleged harassment, employers are allowed to assert a defense to liability and damages if they are able to prove that: (1) the employer had a published anti-harassment policy prohibiting the conduct in question and provided employees with channels to report the conduct; (2) the harassed employee unreasonably failed to report the conduct using those reporting channels; and (3) the employer, on learning of the harassment, promptly took action to stop the problem behavior.
Although the County’s anti harassment policy is deeply flawed, one does exist, yet to our knowledge not even one sexual harassment training session has been conducted and not one investigation, required by policy, into sexual harassment has been conducted. Most of the liability the County has incurred has come not from the alleged harassment but from the failure of any manager to take any action. So not only are supervisors who are accused of misconduct not investigated and no corrective action taken, other supervisors who fail to fulfill their responsibility to follow the policy are not held accountable.
Although the County’s failure to address issues of sexual harassment/hostile work environment have resulted in huge liability for the county, the more important question is what kind of message does this situation send to the employees of the County?
On a brighter note the current administration has recognized this problem and the Mayor and County Attorney are in the process of revamping the County policies and issues of accountability. We trust that comprehensive, annual training in sexual harassment/hostile work environment issues is on the horizon for employees and managers. Discussion is ensuing about revamping the Personnel Department into a Human Resource Department which would not just hire employees and manage their records but would also recognize our employees as our most valuable resource and be tasked specifically to protect our employees’ rights to work in a safe environment, free from sexual harassment and workplace violence.
Lani Kawahara, Tim Bynum, Kaua‘i County Council
HMSA members must protest ASAP
HMSA has sent threatening letters to all members stating that contract negotiations with Hawai‘i Pacific Health which includes Kaua‘i’s Wilcox Memorial Hospital have reached the point where HPAC is very likely to end its participation in HMSA’s provider network as of Jan. 31.
This means that all Kaua‘i HMSA members would have to fly to O‘ahu to receive any diagnostic, or radiology or hospital treatment, which is not within the standards in the industry of “reasonable and customary” care.
HMSA is the largest Health insurance provider on Kaua‘i and we can not allow them to take our hospital services away from us! We HMSA members need to write immediately to HMSA at: 818 Keeaumoku St., Honolulu, HI. 96808-0860. In addition, call HMSA (808)948-5110 or on Kaua‘i – 245-3393.
In addition we HMSA members need to write to Hawai‘i Pacific Health to protest their demands of increasing reimbursement levels that are unreasonable and unfair: Hawai‘i Pacific Health, 55 Merchant St., Honolulu, HI. (808) 535-7401.
This is a most critical juncture in the history of health care on this island and we can not afford to let HMSA and HPAC use the members of HMSA as pawns.
For the sake of the health of your families you must initiate these letters immediately. The health care of all of our HMSA members on Kaua‘i is at stake.
Jane Schmitt, Princeville
