STATEMENT BY GOVERNOR LINDA LINGLE ON HAWAIIAN TELCOM

For Immediate Release: March 19, 2009

HONOLULU – Governor Linda Lingle issued the following statement relating to Hawaiian Telcom’s motion filed in Bankruptcy Court to pay employee bonuses.

“The decision today by Hawaiian Telcom to ask the bankruptcy court to approve $6 million in bonuses for its employees is unconscionable, and we will oppose it in court.

“Hawaiian Telcom is the critical communications backbone for our state, and its action to pay millions in bonuses puts the company in a precarious position that jeopardizes its long-term viability, as well as threatens Hawai‘i’s economic recovery. 

“The fact that company president and CEO Eric Yeaman himself turned down a bonus shows that he clearly recognized bonuses were wrong and counterproductive to Hawaiian Telcom’s efforts to restructure its finances and operations.  He could have and should have put an immediate stop to this outrageous action.”

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For more information, contact:
Lenny Klompus 
Senior Advisor – Communications 
Tel: (808) 586-7708

Russell Pang
Chief of Media Relations
Tel: (808) 586-0043