HI SB2836

Establishes a five-year critical skills retention pilot program within the Department of Education to rehire retired educators for hard-to-staff positions without reenrollment in the employees' retirement system or loss of retirement benefits.

Limits retirant employment to positions eligible for hard-to-staff location differentials, special education differentials, Hawaiian language immersion differentials, or other differentials of $3,000 or more annually, as well as areas with high emergency hire percentages.

Requires the superintendent to certify in writing that good-faith recruitment was conducted and no qualified non-retirant applicant was available before hiring a retirant.

Caps retirant employment terms at one year with possible reappointment, requires the Department of Education to contribute to the employees' retirement system's unfunded actuarial accrued liability, and excludes retirants from earning additional service credit or tenure protections.

Allows the superintendent to establish a separate salary schedule for rehired retirants, capped at the maximum salary step for the position's classification under the applicable collective bargaining agreement.