Unemployment on the rise

LIHU‘E — Unemployment figures for Kaua‘i have almost tripled since this time last year, with the visitor and construction industries most affected, according to recent statistics from WorkWise Kaua‘i.

While layoffs are widespread, the decline in visitor arrivals has forced hotel chains to significantly reduce staff, thereby forcing unemployment to spike 11.1 percent last month, said Bill Grier, branch manager for WorkWise Kaua‘i.

Elliot Mills, general manager of Kaua‘i Marriott Resort and Beach Club, confirmed Friday that approximately 80 associates were furloughed last month “as a consequence of closing a number of guest rooms and Kukui’s Poolside Restaurant and Bar for renovation.”

He added that affected employees will phase back into their jobs starting Sept. 1, after $50 million in renovations are expected to be completed.

Before the visitor industry took a hit, for years, unemployment averaged around 2 to 4 percent, according to the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. But Grier said current trends are “astonishing.”

“It’s usually a ripple effect, but in this case, it’s become a tidal wave,” he said.

During the month of June, some 900 people were walking through the doors of WorkWise seeking employment, he said, compared to 350 the same month last year.

Construction, also greatly influenced by changing economic tides, has slowed across the island forcing people like Mele Huddy who owns a mobile local grinds business to look elsewhere for customers.

Huddy, who used to only serve construction workers, recently set up shop in Hanapepe where she now serves her shrimp specialties to both visitors and kama‘aina.

“I’m changing the game,” she said Friday night at the Hanapepe Art Walk.

Andrea Brower of Malama Kaua‘i says the island, in recent decades, has become “overly dependent on tourism (and related development) as its primary economic driver.”

“Tourism will always be an important part of our economy, but, as the economic recession and climbing unemployment has shown us, it is critical to maintain a diverse economy,” she said. “Developing industries that also supply for our own needs — food, energy, local building materials, closed resource and waste cycles — will ensure community resilience.”

Hawai‘i Workforce Informer reports that 1,500 individuals were unemployed in June 2008, compared to 3,700 last month and only 1,000 in June 2007.

“People are very nervous and I think one of the differences between now and other economic times is everyone has lost their jobs and no one is working in the family,” Grier said Thursday.

The last time unemployment reached 11.1 percent on Kaua‘i was March 1998, according to Civilian Labor force statistics. While 3,250 were looking for jobs at the time, 26,000 were a part of the workforce. Currently, some 29,500 are working.

In addition, there is a “great mass of people not accounted for” in unemployment figures, as many are “underemployed” or have run out of benefits, Grier concludes.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act — the stimulus — added two different federal extensions for Kaua‘i benefits. Individuals formerly eligible for 26 weeks of benefits can now collect for 59 weeks, though some have already surpassed this time frame, according to Grier.

He also added that not everyone qualifies for the extensions and “people are starting to use all their resources.”

Individuals are frustrated, says Grier, but he is surprised by the positive attitudes still exhibited.

“People pull together in difficult times,” he said. “We’re all in this together.”

Grier added that in the last month, there was a “distinct uptick in jobs,” where for many months it remained rather stagnant.

Job growth for nonagricultural positions on Kaua‘i retracted by 2,000 between June 2008 and last month, but grew by 50 from May 2009 to June 2009.

• Coco Zickos, business and environmental writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or czickos@kauaipubco.com