Honolulu hotel workers earn wages set primarily through collective bargaining with UNITE HERE Local 5 and the statewide minimum wage law, since Hawaiʻi preempts city-set living wages and county pay floors above the state minimum.
Unlike Los Angeles or Long Beach, Honolulu does not have a hotel-specific living wage ordinance. Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes §387-2 sets a statewide minimum wage that ratchets to $18.00 per hour by January 1, 2028, and HRS §387-9 preempts local wage floors above the state level. Most large Waikīkī hotels are unionized under UNITE HERE Local 5, and master contracts establish above-minimum hourly rates, healthcare contributions, and workload limits. The City and County of Honolulu enforces only the prevailing wage on city-funded construction projects under ROH Chapter 6 — not hotel operations.
Wage violations are pursued by the state Wage Standards Division, with back wages, civil penalties up to $500 per violation, and possible criminal charges for willful nonpayment under HRS §388.
Honolulu, HI
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Honolulu, HI
Hawaiʻi sets a single statewide minimum wage and bars Honolulu and the other counties from enacting higher local floors, with the rate scheduled to climb fro...
See how Honolulu's hotel living wage rules stack up against other locations.
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