§378-35  Findings and order.  If the department of labor and industrial relations finds, after a hearing, that an employer has unlawfully suspended, discharged or discriminated against an employee in violation of section 378-32, the department may order the reinstatement, or reinstatement to the prior position, as the case may be, of the employee with or without backpay or may order the payment of backpay without any such reinstatement. [L 1967, c 22, pt of §2; HRS §378-35; am L 1981, c 10, §3]

Case Notes

  Appellate court affirmed district court's denial of defendant's motion for summary judgment where defendant, a food distributor, allegedly forced the resignation of plaintiff, a delivery truck driver, due to a shoulder injury; finding that there was no indication that a workplace injury could not serve as the disability in an Americans with Disability Act claim.  In other words, just because an injury happened at work does not mean that a plaintiff can only assert a claim under this section or §378-32.  908 F.3d 428 (2018).

  Where public policy against terminating employee solely because employee suffered a compensable work injury is evidenced in §378-32 and remedy is available under this section, judicially created claim of wrongful discharge in violation of public policy could not be maintained.  87 H. 57 (App.), 951 P.2d 507 (1998).

  Discussed:  945 F. Supp. 2d 1133 (2013).