[PART V.] 
WHISTLEBLOWERS' PROTECTION ACT



 



Revision Note



 



  In this part, "part" substituted for
"chapter".



 



Law Journals and Reviews



 



  Wrongful Termination Law in Hawaii.  V HBJ No. 13, at pg. 71.



  Employee Rights Under Judicial Scrutiny:  Prevalent Policy
Discourse and the Hawai`i Supreme Court.  14 UH L. Rev. 189.



  Confidentiality Breeds Contempt:  A First Amendment Challenge
to Confidential Ethics Commission Proceedings of the City & County of
Honolulu.  18 UH L. Rev. 797.



 



Case Notes



 



  Respondent's claims for discharge in violation of public
policy and in violation of the Hawaii Whistleblower [sic] Protection Act were
not preempted by the Railway Labor Act.  512 U.S. 246.



  Protection afforded under this Act not restricted to at-will
employees.  74 H. 235, 842 P.2d 634.



  Plaintiff's Hawaii Whistleblowers' Protection Act and Parnar
v. Americana Hotels, Inc. claims were preempted by §1305(a)(1) of Airline
Deregulation Act of 1978.  870 F. Supp. 295.



  The Act does not provide employees with a protected property
interest, as it does not create an enforceable expectation of continued public
employment.  120 F. Supp. 2d 1244.



  Where plaintiff was removed from project, State did not
violate the Act or the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution when it reassigned
the project to someone else.  76 H. 332, 876 P.2d 1300.



 



[§378-61]  Definitions.  As used in this
part:



"Employee" means a person who
performs a service for wages or other remuneration under a contract for hire,
written or oral, express or implied.  Employee includes a person employed by
the State or a political subdivision of the State.



"Employer" means a person who has one
or more employees.  Employer includes an agent of an employer or of the State
or a political subdivision of the State.



"Person" means an individual, sole
proprietorship, partnership, corporation, association, or any other legal
entity.



"Public body" means:



(1)  A state officer, employee, agency, department,
division, bureau, board, commission, committee, council, authority, or other
body in the executive branch of state government;



(2)  An agency, board, commission, committee, council,
member, or employee of the legislative branch of the state government;



(3)  A county, city, intercounty, intercity, or
regional governing body, a council, special district, or municipal corporation,
or a board, department, commission, committee, council, agency, or any member
or employee thereof;



(4)  Any other body which is created by state or local
authority or which is primarily funded by or through state or local authority,
or any member or employee of that body;



(5)  A law enforcement agency or any member or
employee of a law enforcement agency; or



(6)  The judiciary and any member or employee of the
judiciary. [L 1987, c 267, pt of §1]