Police union to vote on COVID hazard pay settlement

The union representing Honolulu police officers will vote on a COVID hazard pay settlement with the city worth more than $30 million with initial payouts of $20,000 “or more” by June 30.

City officials have set aside about $115 million to settle hazard pay claims and grievances arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. HPD’s hazard pay settlement is pending approval by the Hono­lulu City Council.

There are about 1,800 sworn officers on Oahu and the agreement must be ratified by membership because it extends past SHOPO’s current collective bargaining agreement with the city.

Voting materials will be mailed to Honolulu chapter members with a password today with voting beginning Friday and ending Feb. 19 at noon, according to an email obtained by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser sent by the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers.

The temporary hazard pay period applies to officers who worked from March 5, 2020 to March 5, 2022.

During that two-year period, 721 HPD officers were sidelined after either being infected with COVID-19 or forced to isolate because of exposure, or while experiencing symptoms.

There was one documented incident of an officer contracting the virus from a suspect who tested positive for COVID-19.

“The agreement was negotiated between the City and SHOPO and did not involve HPD,” Chief Arthur “Joe” Logan told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “We have and continue to hope for timely THP (temporary hazard pay) compensation for our officers and civilian employees.”

Robert Cavaco, an HPD lieutenant and SHOPO president, favors approval of the agreement.

“We endorse the agreement and we recommend that you ratify it. The SHOPO board believes the compensation package in front of you provides the best mix of cash and future economic benefits through a negotiated agreement,” wrote Cavaco. “While all payouts will be based on an individuals actual experience it is highly likely that any member who worked consistently through the COVID Hazard pay period will get a check for $20,000 or more by June 30, with more to come.”

The temporary negotiated settlement agreement covers eligible tier one employees at 15% of the officer’s base pay and will pay 80 percent by June 30. SHOPO had asked for 25 percent hazard pay Opens in a new tab for officers statewide in 2022.

On Maui, county officials settled SHOPO’s Maui chapter’s grievance for about $13 million in February 2024. The Maui settlement covers officers employed between March 4, 2020, and March 25, 2023.

Overtime hours are not part of the calculation, overtime worked during the pandemic is based off of an officer’s base pay rate. Officers who retired and are eligible will receive 100 percent of their hazard payout by June 30 under the terms of the agreement.

The remaining 20 percent of the payout will be converted to vacation hours. City officials agreed to convert the vacation credit to vacation hours by “dividing the dollar value of employee’s vacation credit by the hourly rate of pay as set forth in the salary schedule,” according to a Feb. 7, 2025, letter disclosing the terms of the agreement to Cavaco from city Managing Director Michael D. Formby.

The city did not want to carry a deficit going into the next budget cycle, which is the reason for the deferred cash obligation.

If an officer leaves city employment, the unused THP vacation credit shall be “paid to the employee in cash at the employee’s hourly rate of pay as of the date the employee retired or separated from employment.”

The hazard pay vacation hours “shall not be counted towards the annual vacation accrual maximum” in the SHOPO collective bargaining agreement but “shall still be subject to the same terms and conditions applicable to use of vacation benefits generally,” including blackout dates, policies regarding resolution of scheduling conflicts and when multiple employees submit vacation requests for the same date.

The hazard pay vacation hours cannot be forced on an officer who may cash out 50 percent of the hazard vacation pay one year after the date the agreement is finalized, which SHOPO estimates to be Feb. 26.

An officer may sell back all of the hazard vacation pay two years after the council signs off on the agreement.

SHOPO embedded a five minute and fifty second YouTube presentation walking members through the agreement that included a hypothetical look at what the agreement could mean to officers’ bank accounts.

The projections are based on the possible 4,160 hours of work time and 1,200 overtime hours an officer could work during the two year period covered by the agreement.

A police officer who earns an hourly rate of pay of $32.81 would earn $136,490 over that two year period and be eligible for $20,473 in hazard pay, $5,906 in overtime, for a total of $26,379.

On the high end of the scale, an HPD lieutenant, would earn $173,514 in the two years covered by the agreement and be eligible for $33,535.

“You all have been patient through this cumbersome, frustrating process. We appreciate that,” wrote Cavaco in the email to SHOPO Honolulu chapter members. “We hope you see the value of the settlement package before you.”