Sunday, April 8, 2001

FL MORRIS / STAR-BULLETIN
Picketers at Kipapa Elementary School in Mililani were very
organized and spirited in their demonstration this week.

Politics of
entrenchment silences
the school bell

Until government and special
interests accept reforms,
nothing will change

---

By Cynthia Oi
Star-Bulletin

THE STRIKES by the state's public school teachers and the faculty of the University of Hawaii appear on the surface as a dispute about wages and working conditions. Underneath, the conflict is a tangle of politics, egos, emotions and self-interest.

The strikes are about legislators afraid to take risks, unions members unwilling to see beyond their sense of entitlement, about an state administration unable to communicate effectively, about a public that uses cynicism as an excuse for being uninformed and uninvolved.

Nobody gets off the hook because everyone shares the blame for this mess that's being televised and reported across the nation. The strikes by the Hawaii State Teachers Association and the University of Hawaii Professional Assembly that have shut down our entire public education system is beyond a slight embarrassment; they are a shame.

But they also present an opportunity to make things right. Democrats and Republicans alike acknowledge that the state's civil service system needs a fundamental overhaul. Year after year, state auditors point to waste and inefficiency in government operations.

Yet few politicians are willing to take on the task of righting the wrongs for fear of alienating public worker unions and losing their votes. Lawmakers seem to have forgotten that their constituencies lie beyond the walls of the state Capitol and government offices.

They seem not to remember that, while the unions play a worthwhile role in demanding quality working conditions, they sometimes override what is in the best interest of all citizens. To move beyond the label of politician, lawmakers could demonstrate statesmanship and make decisions based on the greater good, but most haven't so far.

MEANWHILE, Governor Cayetano is taking the brunt of criticism for these strikes and he acknowledges that he should; it comes with the territory.

"It's a lonely job because you get blamed for everything, but you know, that's part of it," he said in a candid conversation Friday. "But I'm the governor for everyone, not governor for the HSTA."

The governor concedes that his direct manner can be grating.

"I have a style that some people don't like. I can feel it...but I am who I am."

Even his allies note that his confrontational style often hampers his ability to explain his plans and motives. "He's not a good communicator," said Democratic Rep. Ed Case of Manoa. "He understands instinctively what the problems are and what changes have to be made...But he doesn't take enough time to explain what the situation is. He leaves himself exposed."

In his defense, Cayetano is doing what he believes needs to be done and that is to hold the line on public workers' pay so that there will be money for others things he feels are just as important. But maybe his purposes would be better served if he would pull back from his challenging tendencies because some perceive them as disrespectful when he doesn't mean to be.

UHPA leader J.N. Musto, who says he's known Cayetano for more than 20 years, contends that inroads in civil service reform could have been made if the governor had approached it in a more conciliatory way, "but his method is confrontational."

Linda Lingle, head of the state Republican Party and Cayetano's rival in the last election, sees the governor's manner as part of the problem in contract talks. "Personalities do count in negotiations. Watching from the outside, you can see how personalities come into play."

JUDGING FROM QUOTES in news stories and television sound bites, many teachers and faculty members hold this perception. They contend that the state's pay proposals convey a lack of respect for their work rather than the true amount the state can afford.

Musto points to the millions of dollars that go to promotion of Hawaii through the Hawaii Visitors Bureau and even television programs. "Look at 'Baywatch.' They got all that money to build an image of Hawaii. Well, we're still on the national scope," he said, referring to the reports of the strikes in mainland newspapers and the network news. "All we're asking is that the state respect us. We teach their children."

There is no doubt that a good teacher is worth good money, but what educators seemed to have overlooked is that there are limits to taxpayer dollars. A 22 percent wage increase, which is what HSTA is demanding, may come at the expense other needed programs.

For example, the governor had proposed spending $8.8 million for a drug treatment program that would have helped first-time offenders kick their habits rather than jail them. The House trimmed that amount by half and the Senate eliminated it entirely as legislators last week shifted funds to pay projected salary increases.

"Something like this gets cut because there's not enough funds," Cayetano said. "I've never criticized the unions for lobbying the Legislature, but they have to look at the larger good. I have to look out for the people who are vulnerable. They don't have lobbyists."

Another factor: Those who wrap themselves in entitlements may find that the veil will wear thin if the walkouts run long. "We cannot afford to give all the public employees all the raises they want," Case said. "Public employees have resisted tailoring government, resisted reform. That's why (the strikes) are so tearing."

AT SOME POINT, he said, "We have to change the entrenched political culture of Hawaii. If anyone thinks settling the strikes will make the underlying problem go away, they're absolutely wrong."

"We're at a crossroads. If we don't address the larger problems, solutions may have to come even at the expense of warm-body layoffs."

In the weeks preceding the strikes, both the unions and the state attempted to build support through printed ads, brochures, sign-waving demonstrations and television spots. The unions had the advantage because few people would deny that teachers and professors are important to a community that values education.

But when the discussion went beyond that point, many people were unaware of the details in what the unions are seeking and what the government is offering. Few seemed to have made the effort to examine the facts of the issues at hand. People seemed to think that they had little control over politicians and may have thought: Why bother?

To some extent, the media may be to blame for an uninformed public. With lean staffs, editors may have elected to bypass in-depth stories that would take a big chunk of a reporter's time, thus denying readers information that would explain and enlighten.

Resolutions are difficult when people view each other as adversarial groups rather than as individuals. Out in the rain on the Manoa campus Friday, UHPA picket captain Thomas Jackson talked about how the words of Governor Cayetano hurt him.

"I don't know how he can say we don't work hard. We do, public school teachers do," he said. He questioned the governor's priorities about educating children, but when asked if he would give up a few dollars of a pay raise to extract a teen-ager from a life of drug abuse, he stopped to think.

Put in those human terms, he said, "yes."