MEDIA RELEASE

The following is the complete statement from HECO:

HELCO's Hill power plant in Hilo. (Photo by Baron Sekiya | Hawaii 24/7)

“For more than five months, Hawaiian Electric, Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light Company have been negotiating a new contract with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1260, which represents our companies’ unionized employees on Oahu, in Maui County and on Hawaii Island.

“The union gave our companies notice that its members have initiated a strike as of 3:30 p.m. Friday, March 4.

“We are disappointed that the union has chosen to take this action, especially since there are still thousands of customers without power following the severe weather that hit overnight. A strike clearly hurts everyone.

“We have been working to arrive at an agreement that balances the interests of our employees and our customers, and are willing to continue to negotiate.

“As part of responsible planning, our non-union employees have been trained and prepared to step in and operate our electric systems to provide our customers with the safe, reliable electric service they expect and deserve.

“We will be reaching out to the union for further discussions and hope that we will be able to reach an agreement quickly.”

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Statement from Gov. Neil Abercrombie:

“I have spoken with leaders of Hawaiian Electric Company and the union. My thought is that they can set aside their respective positions during this emergency situation until the public’s safety is taken care of.

“The most important thing right now is restoring electric services for residents and ensuring their health and security then resume negotiations.”

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From the HECO website:

To our valued electric customers on Oahu, Hawaii Island and in Maui County,

Hawaiian Electric has been working to negotiate a new contract with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 1260, which represents our union employees. We regret that at this time an agreement for a new contract has not yet been reached and the union has initiated a strike.

Every effort will be made to ensure your continued reliable electric service. However, in the event of an outage, it is possible that repair times will be longer than normal. We ask for your patience as repairs are made as quickly as possible while ensuring the safety of the public and our employees.

Non-union employees of Hawaiian Electric Company, Maui Electric Company and Hawaii Electric Light Company are prepared and will be operating our electric systems throughout the union’s work stoppage.

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From the HECO website: For more than 100 years, Hawaiian Electric Company has provided the energy that has fueled the islands’ development from a Hawaiian kingdom to a modern state. Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. (HECO), and its subsidiaries, Maui Electric Company, Ltd. (MECO), and Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. (HELCO), serves 95 percent of the state’s 1.2 million residents on the islands of Oahu, Maui, Hawaii Island, Lanai and Molokai.

The energy we use is an essential but limited resource necessary to maintaining our quality of life. In a changing world, Hawaiian Electric has evolved to offer more than electricity.

Today, the company also provides energy solutions to help customers save money and use energy more efficiently. Hawaiian Electric also continues to pursue the use of more renewable energy alternatives to help ensure a sustainable future for our islands.

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Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1260 voted last week to authorize a strike after negotiations stalled.

The IBEW 1260 represents nearly 1,300 workers — or about 54 percent of the company’s employees — at HECO on Oahu, at Maui Electric Co. and at Hawaii Electric Light Co. on the Big Island.

Those workers perform a range of jobs, including power plant operations, line work, meter reading and customer service.

The union has said it opposes a proposal that would require employees to work two more years to get full retirement benefits, pushing back the age to 62.

About 6,500 customers on Oahu are without power following Thursday night’s stormy weather.

Kauai is not affected as electricity service is provided by the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative.

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UPDATED 6 p.m. Friday, March 4

Non-union employees on the job to continue providing electric service

MEDIA RELEASE

Hawaiian Electric, Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light Company have been working to negotiate a new contract with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1260, which represents the company’s unionized employees on Oahu, Maui County and Hawaii Island.

The former contract expired on October 31, 2010 but had been extended through January 31, while negotiations continued. However, an agreement for a new contract has not yet been reached and today at 3:30 p.m. the union employees walked out on strike.

“We are very disappointed that union chose to strike at this time. We were still willing to continue negotiations. Our goal has been to arrive at a settlement that balances the interests of our employees and our customers. We apologize for any inconvenience our customers may experience,” said Dick Rosenblum, Hawaiian Electric president and chief executive officer.

“We know a strike is hard on everyone, and we will continue to keep lines of communication open so that we can resume normal levels of service and bring all of our employees back to work as soon as possible,” Rosenblum said.

Non-union employees of Hawaiian Electric Company, Maui Electric Company and Hawaii Electric Light Company will be operating the companies’ electric systems during the union’s work stoppage and every effort will be made to maintain reliable electric service during this time.

In the event of an outage, repair times could be longer than normal. “We appreciate our customers’ patience as repairs will be made as quickly as possible. We hope the public understands that the top priority must be maintaining the safety of our employees and the public,” Rosenblum said.

Here is some additional customer service information:

All customer outage reports will continue to be investigated and repairs made as needed.

To report an outage, call:
* HECO: 548-7961
* HELCO: 969-6666
* MECO: 871-7777 (Maui); 1-877-871-8461 (Molokai & Lanai)

Customers can continue to call the Customer Assistance Center for help. Business hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday at HECO and HELCO and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at MECO.

* HECO: 548-7311
* HELCO: 969-6999
* MECO: 871-9777 (Maui); 1-877-871-8461 (Molokai & Lanai)

Walk-in service – including payment drop boxes – at HECO, HELCO and MECO offices will be temporarily halted, but the following payment options are available:

* Mail
* Automatic Bill Payment (forms available at www.heco.com)
* Online payment via www.heco.com
* Charge or debit card (service charges apply)
* Residential customers call 1-888-813-2207
* Commercial customers call 1-888-813-2215

Customers may also pay their bills at the following locations. During the strike period, service charges paid by customers at these locations will automatically be credited to their accounts at a later date.

* First Hawaiian Bank
* Wal-Mart
* Foodland, SackNSave

Priority will be given to repair work. New service will be installed as resources permit, with priority given to emergencies.

Requests to start electric service will require a minimum of 48 hours notice. Customers should plan ahead as service will only be turned on the same day in emergency situations.

Most electric meters will not be read during a strike and bills may be estimated based on past usage. Any difference from your actual electricity use will be adjusted the next time we do read your meter.

For more information, check www.heco.com

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UPDATED 10:30 p.m. Friday, March 4

Hawaiian Electric working to restore power in Ewa Beach

MEDIA RELEASE

Non-union Hawaiian Electric crews are continuing to work tonight to restore power to approximately 6,000 Ewa Beach customers who have been without power since severe weather hit Oahu early this morning.

However, as a precaution, Hawaiian Electric advises customers those Ewa Beach customers to be prepared to be without power overnight.

About 1,800 customers in the Waipahu area are also without power.

Non-union crews are working to restore those as well.

Approximately 900 North Shore customers in the Kuilima area who lost power earlier were restored about 6 p.m. this evening.

Currently, there are no other major outages on Oahu. Pockets of customers in other scattered locations may also be without power.

Those outages may involve a few homes or a portion of a neighborhood.

Restoration may take longer than usual due to the current strike by the company’s union workers. Restoring power safely – both for the public and employees — remains the highest priority.

— Find out more:
www.helcohi.com
www.ibew1260.org