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Veto saves power
to transfer workers

THE ISSUE The Legislature has failed to override Governor Lingle's veto of a bill that would have impeded transfers of public employees.

LEGISLATORS' attempt to obstruct the ability of the state and counties to transfer their employees from one location to another has been thwarted by a veto by Governor Lingle. The rejection rightly keeps in force a state Supreme Court decision in January that transfers are a management prerogative.

The inability of Democrats to override Lingle's veto is a victory for Mayor Hannemann, who plans to relocate more city jobs to Kapolei. It also will allow the judiciary to relocate all Oahu Family Court functions to the Kapolei complex.

Legislators approved the bill at the instigation of Hawaii's public employee unions, which convinced the Hawaii Labor Relations Board that transfer should be allowed only after "meaningful consultation" with the unions.

The Hawaii State Government Employees Association had objected to state jobs being transferred to Kapolei, and the United Public Workers union challenged the transfer of 10 garbage collectors from Pearl City to the Honolulu base yard. The high court ruling came in the garbage workers' case.

While organized labor was unable to garner two-thirds support of a veto in the House, the failure unfortunately is not evidence that unions have lost their grip on legislators. By a party-line vote, the Legislature struck down administrative rule changes adopted by the state labor director that would have streamlined aspects of workers compensation reform that did not require legislation.

The new law will assure Hawaii's continued reputation as one of the worst places to do business. It will restore the Labor Department's rule-making authority in 2007, but the restrictions may be extended to 2011 if Lingle wins re-election. The brazen measure is intended to limit the governor's power until a more malleable chief executive surfaces.

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Lack of certification
carries college risks

THE ISSUE Students at a Kapolei pharmaceutical college are protesting the consequences of a planned reduction in students.

FAILURE of a new pharmaceutical college's attempt to gain prompt accreditation has caused friction at its Kapolei campus. An attempt to meet student-faculty ratio standards is disrupting many students' plans, and several students are accused of threatening violence. The troubles are a reminder that caveat emptor applies to college tuition as well as over-the-counter purchases.

The Hawaii College of Pharmacy opened last fall to an unexpectedly large student body of more than 230, even though it had only five full-time and four or five part-time faculty members. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education in Chicago advised the college in January to withdraw its accreditation application, and H.A. Hasan, the college's dean, has responded with a plan to sharply reduce the number of students.

Hasan told the Star-Bulletin's Stewart Yerton that only 100 of the students would be promoted to the second year of the three-year doctoral program. Another 100 would be required to repeat their first year, even if they passed their courses. Tuition would remain at $28,000 for both the advanced and repeat students, although the holdovers won't be charged for their fourth year.

Three students have been suspended for their protests, and Hasan is seeking an injunction against them in state court.

On its Web site, the college advises potential students that it has not been accredited, adding that many licensing authorities require accredited degrees, accredited colleges might not accept transfer credits and some employers might not hire them.

Hasan anticipates accreditation. An affiliated Hawaii College of Dental Medicine, scheduled to open in September 2006, will accept no more than 100 students and will not open if it has not been accredited, according to its dean, longtime Las Vegas dentist Raymond Rawson, a former Nevada state senator who was appointed in April to a $40,000-a-year position on the Nevada Gaming Commission.

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