State Plans to Reclassify Sheriff's Deputies
The Hawaii Government Employees Association opposes the change, which would move about 60% of deputies into a new State Law Enforcement Officer title with an 8% raise.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Law Enforcement
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The state Department of Human Resources Development has proposed reclassifying about 60% of Sheriff's deputies as State Law Enforcement Officers, with an 8% pay increase. The Hawaii Government Employees Association, which represents nearly 300 deputies, opposes the plan.
Why it matters
The reclassification affects deputies in Hawaii across patrol, airport, harbor, fugitive, canine, training and criminal investigation units, and the union says it will worsen recruitment and retention. The dispute follows a stalled contract negotiation that the union says the state did not pursue.
The state Sheriff Division starting salary of $60,024 sits $6,661 below the median of 2,288 agencies tracked in a Blue Shifts staffing application, based on figures cited by the union. Whether the reclassification will proceed remains unresolved, and an arbitration hearing on the stalled contract is set for Dec. 14 to Dec. 18.
The players
Hawaii Government Employees Association
A public-sector labor union representing about 300 Sheriff's deputies and other state workers in Hawaii, which opposes the reclassification plan.
Department of Human Resources Development
The Hawaii state agency responsible for personnel administration and classification of state government positions, which proposed the reclassification.
The details
Under the proposal, deputies in the affected units would lose the title of deputy sheriff and be called State Law Enforcement Officers, while deputies assigned to state courthouses would keep their title without the 8% raise. The union says the state acted unilaterally after it proposed changing pay, and a petition opposing the change had more than 420 supporters as of Monday afternoon.
Timeline
April 27, 1846: King Kamehameha III created the sheriff role in the Act to Organize the Executive Departments.
July 1, 2025: The Sheriff's deputies contract that reached impasse was set to begin.
Dec. 14 to Dec. 18: An arbitration hearing on the stalled contract is scheduled.
Legal Context
The sheriff role dates to King Kamehameha III's 1846 Act to Organize the Executive Departments, and the proposed reclassification would move most deputies away from that title. The change is framed by the union as a departure from the state's historical sheriff structure, though the source does not describe any court or legislative challenge to it.
Deputies who serve state courthouses would keep the title of Sheriff's deputy without the 8% raise, while those in patrol, airport, harbor and other units would change titles. The union warns that the change could make it harder to recruit and keep deputies, which may affect staffing in those units.
The takeaway
The dispute highlights how reclassification of public safety positions can become a central point of contention between state agencies and labor unions. Readers following Hawaii's public workforce can track the December arbitration hearing as the next checkpoint.
What happens next
An arbitration hearing on the stalled Sheriff's deputies contract is scheduled for Dec. 14 to Dec. 18.
Further reading
For related coverage, see more Law Enforcement reporting.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Honolulu Star Advertiser.
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