On Sunday, March 22, mayors of the City and County of Honolulu and Maui County issued stay-at-home, work-at-home orders.
The order for Oahu is effective Monday, March 23, at 4:30 p.m. through Thursday, April 30. The order for Maui County is effective Wednesday, March 25, through Thursday, April 30.
Essential activities and services are excluded from these orders.
The Hawaii State Department of Education sent the following communication to its employees late Sunday:
In response to the county emergency orders issued today (Honolulu, Maui County, Kauai), HIDOE employees on Oahu will be given access to offices or classrooms by their administrators on Monday, March 23, if needed. A specific window of time will be designated to gather equipment or any resources needed to work from home.
Essential workers are still expected to report to work when called.
Please look for communication from your administrator. Thank you for your patience and cooperation during these rapidly changing times.
The recent announcement means that we don't expect Bargaining Unit 05 employees on Oahu to be provided access to their worksite or campus after 4:30 p.m. on Monday, March 23.
The HIDOE has told HSTA that teachers are not considered essential employees who have to report to a worksite. However, all Bargaining Unit 05 are working remotely starting March 23.
Regarding schools, Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said, "Should the schools come back into session, that would be allowed. That would be a determination by the Department of Education, and I don't think they've made that decision yet. But with what we're seeing, I wouldn't be surprised if you saw them continue their not coming back to school."
Kauai County Mayor Derek Kawakami said details of the Kauai Stay at Home program would be released Monday, March 23.
As of this posting, no corresponding order has been issued for Hawaii Island.