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SB3292
THE SENATE
S.B. NO.
3292
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII
A BILL FOR AN ACT
relating
to labor
.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
����
SECTION 1.
�
The legislature finds that delivery drivers
increasingly perform essential business functions for companies operating in
Hawaii, including the transport of packages to consumers.
�
Many of these drivers are required to
complete deliveries within specific or algorithmically determined timeframes
and are not permitted to refuse assigned delivery requests without penalty,
discipline, or loss of access to work.
����
The legislature further finds that
these conditions constitute a significant degree of control over the manner and
means of work, rendering the classification of such delivery drivers as
independent contractors inconsistent with the purposes of Hawaii's employment
laws.
����
The purpose of this Act is to
clarify the employment status of certain delivery drivers under state laws
related to workers' compensation, wage and hour, temporary disability
insurance, family leave, tax classification of business relationships, and
unemployment insurance by establishing conditions under which delivery drivers
are deemed employees of the business operating the delivery program.
����
SECTION 2.
�
Chapter 386, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:
����
"
�386-
�
Delivery
drivers; covered employment.
�
(a)
�
Notwithstanding
any other law to the contrary, for purposes of this chapter, services performed
by a delivery driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery driver shall
be deemed an employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or dispatches
delivery work, if the delivery driver:
����
(1)
�
Is required to
complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time frames
established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
����
(2)
�
Is not
permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
Any
agreement, policy, or contractual provision that purports to classify a
delivery driver described in this section as an independent contractor shall be
void and unenforceable for purposes of this chapter.
����
(b)
�
As
used in this section, "delivery driver" means an individual who uses
a personal vehicle to deliver packages originating from a warehouse,
fulfillment center, or distribution station operated by or on behalf of a
business to a customer or end user.
"
����
SECTION 3.
�
Chapter 387, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:
����
"
�387-
�
Delivery
drivers; covered employment.
�
(a)
�
Notwithstanding
any other law to the contrary, for purposes of this chapter, services performed
by a delivery driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery driver shall
be deemed an employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or dispatches
delivery work, if the delivery driver:
����
(1)
�
Is required to
complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time frames
established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
����
(2)
�
Is not
permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
Any
agreement, policy, or contractual provision that purports to classify a
delivery driver described in this section as an independent contractor shall be
void and unenforceable for purposes of this chapter.
����
(b)
�
As
used in this section, "delivery driver" means an individual who uses
a personal vehicle to deliver packages originating from a warehouse,
fulfillment center, or distribution station operated by or on behalf of a
business to a customer or end user.
"
����
SECTION 4.
�
Chapter 392, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:
����
"
�392-
�
Delivery
drivers; covered employment.
�
(a)
�
Notwithstanding
any other law to the contrary, for purposes of this chapter, services performed
by a delivery driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery driver shall
be deemed an employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or dispatches
delivery work, if the delivery driver:
����
(1)
�
Is required to
complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time frames
established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
����
(2)
�
Is not
permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
Any
agreement, policy, or contractual provision that purports to classify a
delivery driver described in this section as an independent contractor shall be
void and unenforceable for purposes of this chapter.
����
(b)
�
As
used in this section, "delivery driver" means an individual who uses
a personal vehicle to deliver packages originating from a warehouse,
fulfillment center, or distribution station operated by or on behalf of a
business to a customer or end user.
"
����
SECTION
5.
�
Chapter 398, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read
as follows:
����
"
�398-
�
Delivery drivers; covered employment.
�
(a)
�
Notwithstanding any other law
to the contrary, for purposes of this chapter, services performed by a delivery
driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery driver shall be deemed an
employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or dispatches delivery work,
if the delivery driver:
����
(1)
�
Is required to
complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time frames
established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
����
(2)
�
Is not
permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
Any
agreement, policy, or contractual provision that purports to classify a
delivery driver described in this section as an independent contractor shall be
void and unenforceable for purposes of this chapter.
����
(b)
�
As
used in this section, "delivery driver" means an individual who uses
a personal vehicle to deliver packages originating from a warehouse,
fulfillment center, or distribution station operated by or on behalf of a
business to a customer or end user.
"
����
SECTION
6
.
�
Section 233-1,
Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
����
"
�233-1
�
Certain relationship
deemed as that of employer-employee.
�
(a)
�
Whenever a person,
firm, corporation, or the like, shall engage or continue in this State in the
business of selling tangible personal property, and shall cause such property
to be distributed to, by, or through representatives, distributors, dealers, salespersons,
peddlers, canvassers, carriers, truckers, or the like, the department of
taxation may adopt, in the manner provided by law, one or more rules [
or
regulations
] providing that for the purposes of the tax laws administered
by the department the group, class, or category of persons or business
described therein (to be determined by the department as may be appropriate for
the purposes of the particular rule [
or regulation
]) shall, irrespective
of whether the relationship or class of business otherwise would be deemed that
of seller and buyer, principal and agent, or master and servant, be deemed to
be that of employer and employee; provided that [
no
]
:
����
(1)
�
No
rule [
or
regulation
] adopted under this section shall apply to any group, class, or
category of persons or business as to which the department shall determine, or
it shall be shown:
���
[
(1)
]
(A)
�
That the
potential employee has been and will continue to be free from control or
direction over the performance of the business or services undertaken by the
potential employee[
, and also
]
;
���
[
(2)
]
(B)
�
That the
business or services are performed outside of all the places of business of the
potential employer[
,
]
;
and [
also
]
���
[
(3)
]
(C)
�
That the
potential employee is customarily engaged in an independently established
trade, occupation, or business of the same nature as that involved in the
business or services in which the potential employee is engaged or which the
potential employee has undertaken for, with, or at the behest of the potential
employer[
.
]
; and
����
(2)
�
Notwithstanding paragraph
(1),
services
performed by a delivery driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery
driver shall be deemed an employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or
dispatches delivery work, if the delivery driver
:
���������
(A)
�
Is
required to complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time
frames established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
���������
(B)
�
Is
not permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
���������
Any agreement, policy, or
contractual provision that purports to classify a delivery driver described in
this section as an independent contractor shall be void and unenforceable for
purposes of this chapter.
����
(b)
�
As used in [
paragraphs (1), (2), and (3)
"potential
]
this section:
����
"Delivery driver" means
an individual who uses a personal vehicle to deliver packages originating from
a warehouse, fulfillment center, or distribution station operated by or on
behalf of a business to a customer or end user.
����
"Potential
employee" means the person who by [
such
] rule [
or regulation
]
would be classed as an employee[
, and "potential
]
.
����
"Potential
employer" means the person, firm, corporation, or the like, who by [
such
]
rule [
or regulation
] would be classed as the employer."
����
SECTION
7
.
�
Section 383-6,
Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
����
"
�383-6
�
Master and servant
relationship, not required when.
�
(a)
�
Services performed by an individual for wages
or under any contract of hire shall be deemed to be employment subject to this
chapter irrespective of whether the common law relationship of master and
servant exists unless and until it is shown to the satisfaction of the
department of labor and industrial relations that:
����
(1)
�
The individual has
been and will continue to be free from control or direction over the
performance of such service, both under the individual's contract of hire and
in fact;
����
(2)
�
The service is
either outside the usual course of the business for which the service is
performed or that the service is performed outside of all the places of
business of the enterprise for which the service is performed; and
����
(3)
�
The individual is
customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation,
profession, or business of the same nature as that involved in the contract of
service.
����
(b)
�
Notwithstanding subsection (a), services
performed by a delivery driver shall be deemed employment, and the delivery
driver shall be deemed an employee of the business that arranges, assigns, or
dispatches delivery work, if the delivery driver:
����
(1)
�
Is required to
complete deliveries within specified time frames, including time frames
established or enforced through algorithmic or automated systems; and
����
(2)
�
Is not
permitted, in practice or by policy, to decline assigned delivery requests
without incurring penalties, discipline, loss or reduction of compensation,
loss of access to work opportunities, deactivation, or any other adverse
consequence.
Any agreement, policy, or contractual provision
that purports to classify a delivery driver described in this section as an
independent contractor shall be void and unenforceable for purposes of this
chapter.
����
(c)
�
As used in this section, "delivery
driver" means an individual who uses a personal vehicle to deliver
packages originating from a warehouse, fulfillment center, or distribution
station operated by or on behalf of a business to a customer or end user.
"
����
SECTION 8.
�
Statutory material to be repealed is
bracketed and stricken.
�
New statutory
material is underscored.
����
SECTION 9.
�
This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
INTRODUCED BY:
_____________________________
Report Title:
Employment
Classification; Delivery Drivers; Covered Employment
Description:
Clarifies
the employment status of certain delivery drivers under state laws related to
workers' compensation, wage and hour, temporary disability insurance, family
leave, tax classification of business relationships, and unemployment insurance
by establishing conditions under which delivery drivers are deemed employees of
the business operating the delivery program.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.