The Hawaiʻi Youth Correctional Facility in Olomana has again received approval to spend up to $80,000 this year on meals from Zippy’s, L&L Hawaiian Barbecue and Times and Foodland grocery stores because it doesn’t have enough cooks in its kitchen.
The 30-bed facility got the greenlight to buy emergency meals in January. This is the third year in a row that the state has turned to fast food to supply those meals for staff and minors detained in the facility.
In 2023, the kitchen was down to just one cook. The facility spent about $61,000 on emergency meals that year. Last year, it spent just $5,000 after hiring a second cook.
But the facility’s kitchen needs a third cook to be considered fully staffed. The salary for state government cooks ranges from $63,000 to just over $67,000, according to job postings…