HIOSH Penalties Rising Jan. 1
The new state law also says the penalties are to be adjusted for inflation annually in December, with new penalties taking effect the following Jan. 15.
Effective Jan. 1, 2018, penalties assessed by the Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Division (HIOSH) are going up. This is occurring because of a bill signed into law last July by Gov. David Ige, a bill named Act. 126.
The act raised civil penalties for a serious safety or health violation to $12,675 from $7,700; it raised the civil penalty for willful or repeat violations to $126,749 from $77,000 and directs that any employer convicted of willful or repeated violations resulting in the death of an employee shall be fined no more than $126,749 or by imprisonment for no more than six months, or both, except if the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction, the punishment is the same maximum fine and no more than one year of imprisonment.
The law also says the penalties are to be adjusted for inflation annually in December, with new penalties taking effect the following Jan. 15.