Maui County has moved to boost recruitment of workers for its Summer PALS program with substantial pay increases that will have recreation aides earning $20 an hour, up from $15 an hour.

Hourly wages also were increased to $26.04 for program specialists; $22.32 for recreation leaders; $27.91 for recreation directors; and $31.63 for office coordinators and site coordinators.

“The county’s Summer PALS program provides a critical (service) to many local families. By providing essential summer child care, parents are able to continue working while their keiki are out of school,” said Mayor Richard Bissen in a news release. “With ongoing staffing challenges within the PALS program, especially in Lahaina and Lana‘i, it’s imperative that we are doing everything we can to ensure these programs continue to operate.”

Salary appropriations for June will be applied within the 2023 fiscal year budget and do not require a budget amendment since the funding is available from cost savings in the Summer PALS program budget, the release said.

The Maui wages are well above the pay offered by two of Oahu’s biggest summer day care programs, which also are experiencing staffing shortages.

Minimum pay for recreation aides in the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation’s Summer Fun program is $15.56 an hour. A spokesperson said there are about 130 job openings for the popular program, which can accommodate up to 9,000 youngsters at 53 locations.

Meanwhile, starting pay is $13 an hour for the YMCA of Honolulu’s summer day camp and other child care programs, which had 60 job openings at last report. Another 10 open positions were for swim instructors and lifeguards.

The organization had received 3,200-plus keiki registrations for its summer youth programs.

To apply for seasonal positions within the Summer PALS program or other County of Maui vacancies, visit governmentjobs.com/careers/maui.