HI HCR54

Requests the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, to submit a report determining a living wage standard for agricultural workers in Hawaii.

Report must include average living wage by county, living wage adjusted for employer-provided housing, health insurance, transportation, and meals, and average living expenses for agricultural workers by county.

Report must include current median wages for agricultural workers, annual local food production data since 2000, and annual agricultural worker employment data since 2000.

Report must be submitted to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the Regular Session of 2020 convenes.

Resolution cites Massachusetts Institute of Technology data showing $15.73 as a livable hourly wage in Hawaii and notes agricultural worker shortages are hindering the state's sustainability goals to double local food production by 2020.