Mel Kahele worries that the Army's ban against truck drivers using cell phones on base will pit the drivers against company rules that require them to be in cell-phone contact.

Kahele, president of the Teamsters and Allied Workers, Local 996, said a Teamsters driver last week at Hickam Air Force Base could not find anyone to accept his delivery and could not leave his load unattended. So the driver called his supervisor on the company cell phone seeking instructions.

If the same driver had been at Schofield Barracks, Wheeler Army Air Field or Tripler Army Medical Center — or any other Hawai'i Army installation, Kahele said, he might have been cited for violating the Army's cell-phone ban that went into effect 10 days ago.

"Almost every trucking company that we represent provides our drivers with cell phones," Kahele said. "It's part of their job to communicate with the dispatchers and supervisors. But I don't want them to face disciplinary action (at work) for not responding to a call.

"And with all of the increased security and the Patriot Act, the drivers know they just can't leave their trucks unattended on a military base to go make a phone call."

Like other general orders, there are no signs on base posting the new rules, said Army spokesman Kendrick Washington.

Soldiers who violate the ban face potentially severe military punishment "for violating a direct order from a general officer," Washington said. "He has basically given an order to every soldier on base."

Civilians could receive a warning or citation similar to a traffic ticket, Washington said.

"For civilians who work on base, they could also face administrative disciplinary action, which means their boss could get a call and they could get whatever disciplinary action their supervisor hands down," he said.

Diagnostic Laboratory Services, which picks up medical specimens every day from Tripler, relies on cell phones to be in contact with the company's 50 drivers.

Yesterday, the company's president, Richard Okazaki, was unaware that his drivers are no longer allowed to use cell phones on the hospital grounds — although other company officials knew of the ban, Okazaki said.

"Each person in our courier fleet is assigned a cell phone for communication purposes," he said.

Diagnostic Laboratory Services has begun relying more on text messaging instead of phone calls, which Okazaki hopes will make it easier for drivers to receive instructions outside of Tripler without having to answer or make a phone call.

Like the various branches of the military in Hawai'i, companies even in the same businesses have widely differing policies on the use of cell phones in vehicles.

Navy personnel, civilians and family members driving on Navy facilities in Hawai'i "should use cell phones while driving in a manner that doesn't take their attention away from driving safely," said Navy spokeswoman Lt. Barbara Mertz. "There's nothing that specifically addresses cell-phone use while driving. But we are advising personnel of the Army's policy since they travel and shop on Army bases, especially Tripler."

The Air Force encourages drivers to pull over while making cell-phone calls, said Air Force Lt. Jennifer Tribble.

"Right now there's no actual ban forbidding the use of cell phones while driving," she said.

The Marines, however, allow hands-free devices but forbid speaking directly into a cell phone while driving on Marine Corps Base Hawai'i, Capt. Chris Perrine said. The base has posted signs of the rules at both entrances.

For civilians, Perrine said, "we really don't have authority to recoup money from them. But they could lose their base driving privileges."

Pittsburgh, Pa.-based FedEx Ground, which uses independent contractors to deliver small packages via ground delivery, "discourages" cell-phone use while driving, spokeswoman Allison Sobczak said. Drivers are encouraged to pull over to the side of the road or make their calls after making a delivery, she said.

But the larger FedEx forbids cell-phone use.

"Our policy is that at no time can employees use cellular phones, including hands-free, while operating a vehicle," spokeswoman Darcy Goodwin said.

Patrick Souza, vice president and director of sales and community relations for Mililani Memorial Park & Mortuary, pulled his 2003 Ford F-150 truck to the side of South Beretania Street yesterday and said he spends 3,000 to 4,000 minutes per month on his cell phone.

"We have no written policy," Souza said into his cell phone, "but each employee is advised about their responsibilities regarding accidents. Even myself, when I get a call, I pull off to the side of the road. I make a lot of calls and it's very difficult to drive and talk at the same time."

Fujikami Florist has been thinking about imposing a cell-phone ban on the company's two drivers, said Amy Fujikami, whose brother, Steve, runs the business.

The issue isn't over safety, liability or insurance, Amy said.

"If it's not an important call," she said, "we just don't want them wasting company time."

But Watanabe Floral Inc. has a policy that prohibits its six drivers from using personal cell phones on company time and discourages them from using company cell phones while driving the florist's six vans and trucks, said Monty Pereira, the company's sales and marketing director.

"We don't want them to be distracted when they're driving, especially in a company vehicle," Pereira said. "It's definitely a safety issue."

Like other civilian operations, Pereira says his company will find a way to work with the Army's new restrictions — particularly when delivering flowers to patients at Tripler.

"We understand there are rules, and we'll abide by them," Pereira said.