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HRS §388-12

Agreements with other states to collect wage claims

This section lets the state labor director work with other states to collect unpaid wages and related claims. The director can make agreements, file lawsuits in other states, and help collect claims from other states here, but only if those states treat Hawaii claims the same way.

employeesemployersstate agencies

The statute, as written — Reciprocal agreements with other states; actions

(a) The director of labor and industrial relations may enter into reciprocal agreements with the labor department or corresponding agency of any other state or with the person, board, officer, or commission authorized to act on behalf of such department or agency, for the collection in such other states of claims or judgments for wages and other demands based upon claims assigned to the director. (b) The director may, to the extent provided for by any reciprocal agreement entered into by law or with an agency of another state as herein provided, maintain actions in the courts of such other state for the collection of claims for wages, judgments, and other demands and may assign such claims, judgments, and demands to the labor department or agency of such other state for collection to the extent that such an assignment may be permitted or provided for by the law of such state or by reciprocal agreement. (c) The director may, upon the written consent of the labor department or other corresponding agency of any other state or of any person, board, officer, or commission of such state authorized to act on behalf of such labor department or corresponding agency, maintain actions in the courts of this State upon assigned claims for wages, judgments, and demands arising in such other state in the same manner and to the same extent that such actions by the director are authorized when arising in this State. However, such actions may be maintained only in cases where such other state by law or reciprocal agreement extends a like comity to cases arising in this State.
Read the official text at capitol.hawaii.gov ↗as published Jan 6, 2026our copy taken Aug 20, 2026

LawTrove is not legal advice. The summary above is a computer-generated restatement — the authoritative text is the official version linked above.