Hawaiian Electric Co. and its unionized workers have agreed to continue negotiations on a new labor contract tomorrow, despite the expiration of their current pact at midnight last night..

"We remain optimistic that we will reach an agreement that is fair to our employees and our customers," said HECO spokesperson Darren Pai.

Local 1260, which represents some 800 HECO workers plus 400 employees of Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light, overwhelmingly approved a strike authorization two weeks ago.