No rate hike
I read with shock and amazement that Young Brothers is requesting a 34% increase in their rates (Tribune-Herald, Jan. 26).
I worked for the state Department of Education as a behavioral therapist (requires a master’s degree), and our salary was about $50,000-plus a year.
Most years, we were fortunate if our union bargaining Unit 13 was able to negotiate a 3.5% increase a year.
The average high school principal in Hawaii makes $112,000 (and they deserve three times that salary).
The average employee at Young Brothers makes $91,389 a year (according to Paysa). The average executive at Young Brothers makes about $390,000, according to Paysa.
They do not need a rate hike; they need an executive salary reduction and an average employee reduction in pay.
Look at the truth: The hardest job in the state is any high school principal’s job: 12-hour workdays, Monday through Friday, not including all the sports, music and other events they attend after they have put in their 12-hour days.
Michael Quay
Pahoa
Voting concerns
The League of Women Voters of Hawaii County is very pleased that mailed ballot elections will be implemented in Hawaii County in 2020. The League of Women Voters has been and continues to be very supportive of this effort. Passage of this legislation was a priority of the league for the past several legislative sessions.
Because of the league’s support, we are very concerned to learn that Hawaii County plans to open only two Voter Service Centers on the island for the 10 days prior to the election.
We fear that this will not be sufficient to serve the needs of the voters of such a large county.
We know that each voter will be mailed an absentee ballot and that there will be voter education efforts made to inform the voters of the new procedures.
However, the county has some experience with this type of effort in the 2018 Primary Election. As you recall, the two precincts in lower Puna were declared all-mail-ballot precincts due to the lava flow emergency. Even with notices sent, dozens of voters showed up in person on Pahoa to vote on Election Day.
As voters become more familiar with all-mail-ballot election procedures, in the future it may be possible to decrease the number of Voter Service Centers, but we believe that it would be prudent to err on the side of caution and open additional centers in 2020.
We also recommend that the public is consulted on where these centers are located.
Rosemarie Muller
President League of Women Voters Hawaii County
