§371-7  Duties and powers of the department;
rules, procedure for varying.  In addition to any other duties and powers
as may be conferred upon the department of labor and industrial relations by
law, the department shall:



(1)  File with the governor a written report or
reports at times, at least once in each year, and in a form as shall be
requested by the governor covering the condition and activities of the
department;



(2)  Make, modify, and repeal reasonable rules of
general application for the protection of life, health, and safety of employees
in every employment or place of employment; provided that the rules shall not
conflict with any rules of the department of health covering the same subject
matter; provided further that rules pertaining to any workers' compensation
case arising under chapter 386 shall be adopted or amended as specified in
section 386-72; and



(3)  Make, modify, and repeal such other reasonable
rules of general application as may be necessary to carry into effect this
chapter.



The rules of the department and any amendments
thereto, when adopted in accordance with chapter 91, shall have the force and
effect of law and shall be enforced in the same manner as this chapter.



If there are practical difficulties or
unnecessary hardships in carrying out a rule, the director of labor and
industrial relations, after public hearing, may make a variation from the
requirement if the spirit of the rule is observed.  Any person affected by the
rule, or the person's agent, may petition for variation, stating the grounds
therefor.  The director shall fix a day for a hearing on the petition and give
reasonable notice thereof to the petitioner.  A properly indexed record of all
variations made shall be kept in the office of the department and shall be open
to public inspection.



Any interested person may obtain a ruling as to
the validity or applicability of any rule in the manner provided in chapter 91.
[L 1939, c 237, §1(9); RL 1945, §4112; am L 1951, c 23, §1; RL 1955, §88-13; am
L Sp 1959 2d, c 1, §§19, 27; am L 1965, c 96, §63; HRS §371-7; gen ch 1985; am
L Sp 2005, c 11, §2]



 



Cross References



 



  Annual reports, see §93-12.



  General authority and organization, see §26-20.