BUSINESS BRIEFS
go! planes 67.2% filled in October
Advertiser Staff
Interisland carrier go! said its planes were 67.2 percent full in October.
The discount airline said preliminary figures show that its load factor was up from October 2006's 62.9 percent.
Mesa Air Group, go!'s Phoenix-based parent, said it served a total of 53,559 passengers in Hawai'i last month and that its on-time rate in October was 84.4 percent.
STATE TAX FORM N-12 ELIMINATED
The state Tax Department said it will eliminate Form N-12 for individual taxpayers for tax year 2007.
In its place, resident taxpayers may file either Form N-11 (individual income tax return for residents filing federal return) or Form N-13 (individual income tax return — resident short form).
The Form N-11 has been modified to accommodate the limited number of residents who were previously filing Form N-12, according to the Tax Department.
WAIKIKI RESORT CONTRACT RATIFIED
Employees at the Waikiki Resort hotel have ratified a new four-year contract, according to the union that represents the workers.
The contract covers about 100 UNITE HERE Local 5 members and expires at the end of November 2010. Employees had been working without a contract since November 2006.
The new deal includes wage, health and pension benefits similar to those at other major Waikiki hotels, the union said. The workload for housekeepers also was addressed, and the union said tipped workers will now receive double time while on sick leave and vacation.
Local 5 said the contract was approved by 100 percent of the members who voted.
CHINA BUSINESS CONFERENCE ON MAUI
A conference aimed at fostering entrepreneurial business activities between the United States and China will be held Wednesday at Royal Lahaina Resort in Maui.
The conference, titled "Business with China: Making It Work for Entrepreneurs," is an initiative of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program funded by the Hogan Family Foundation.
Robert Spitzer, president of Gonzaga University, will be the keynote speaker. Other speakers include Chris McNally, author of China's "Emergent Political Economy — Capitalism in the Dragon's Lair"; Jun Zhao, managing director of PacifiCap Management in Shanghai; and Ted Liu, director of the Hawai'i Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
For more information, call 739-4673.
INCENTIVE MAGAZINE CITES HVCB
Incentive magazine has awarded the Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau a 2007 Platinum Partner Award.
It is the third straight year HVCB has earned the award, which recognizes its excellence in the incentive industry and is determined by votes cast from readers of Incentive.
"Having your work recognized by the customer is always the most satisfying tribute," said Michael Murray, HVCB's vice president of sales and marketing for corporate meetings and incentives.
The incentives business is a lucrative sector of Hawai'i's meetings industry, and the Islands are traditionally one of the world's most popular incentive destinations.
