Hawaii Tourism Authority CEO on tourism reopening; Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii's role during COVID-19; Navatek CEO showed no sympathy to workers during pandemic; State and nonprofits launch job training for emerging industries
Hawaii Tourism Authority CEO on tourism reopening
We are looking ahead to next week, Oct. 15, when we enter a new phase of our economic recovery due to the global pandemic crisis. Visitors to the Islands will be able to bypass the 14-day quarantine under a new pre-travel COVID-19 test program. We hear more from the new head of the Hawaii Tourism Authority, John De Fries.
Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii's role during COVID-19
The Waikiki offices of the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii have been shuttered since the early part of 2020 - but that doesn't mean it hasn't been working. Jessica Lani Rich, executive director of VASH, tells us about its mission and how it's been busy despite the lack of tourists.
Navatek CEO showed no sympathy to workers during pandemic
Months before Navatek LLC's CEO Martin Kao was arrested on federal charges of defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program meant to help small businesses stay afloat during a deadly pandemic, he sent a company-wide email to his employees assuring them their jobs were safe. But he also made it very clear that he would not be sympathetic to employees who didn't perform to the fullest extent possible in order to keep the company on a good financial path. Civil Beat Reporter Nick Grube tells us about Kao's threats of "draconian consequences" for his employees. Click here to read his story at CivilBeat.org.
State and nonprofits launch job training for emerging industries
The state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, along with nonprofit organizations and the private sector, launched a job training program last month supported by $10 million in federal CARES Act money. The program can provide local businesses with up to 650 workers. Click here to find more info on jobs in the conservation track from Kupu Aina Corps from Kupu. Click here to find more info on jobs in the innovation track from the Aloha Connects Innovation program from Economic Development Alliance of Hawaii.
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