Hawai'i isn't perceived as a state where racism is a serious problem, but a recent $2.5 million race-bias settlement involving Lockheed Martin Corp. and a former employee is an indication of lingering problems in the state's workforce.

Although experts here say racial discrimination and harassment aren't as overt as they can be on the Mainland, they do exist and are a concern.

Nationally, charges of race discrimination make up about 35 percent of the complaints filed each year with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Race complaints annually surpass other categories, such as discrimination based on sex, national origin, religion and age.

In Hawai'i, race charges to the EEOC hover around 30 percent. The percentage of race complaints to the state agency responsible for investigating civil rights complaints is lower.

In fiscal year 2007, the Hawai'i Civil Rights Commission received 532 discrimination complaints, down from 595 the previous year and the fourth consecutive year complaints declined. Of the 532 cases, 55, or 10 percent, involved race, down from 61 in 2006.

Bill Hoshijo, Civil Rights Commission executive director, said it is difficult to say why Hawai'i has a lower percentage of race complaints, which include failure to hire, failure to promote and unequal terms and conditions. He said it could be the state's diverse culture, but said he also credits employers.

"I think employers are doing a better job of educating and creating a different kind of culture where there's less tolerance for offensive behavior," said Hoshijo, who has been with the commission for 11 years.

But he added that complaints are being filed and more needs to be done to reduce these cases.

"It's still a substantial number of complaints. It's something that we in enforcement and employers and unions have to pay attention to because it's not something that's just in the past," he said.

Tim Riera, director of the EEOC Hawai'i office, agreed and said race is an issue that cannot be ignored. He said he's seen an increase in the number of companies and agencies that take advantage of EEOC employment discrimination courses.

"In Hawai'i we do tend to pride ourselves on diversity, but there are still issues here among ethnic groups and racial groups," Riera said.

Civil rights attorney Daphne Barbee-Wooten said the Lockheed Martin case was "very significant and very important" because it sent a message that racial harassment by co-workers and supervisors would not be tolerated. Charles Daniels, the former Lockheed employee, said he was the target of racial slurs by co-workers and a supervisor between 2000 and 2001.

The settlement was the largest for a racial discrimination case in Hawai'i and was an extreme example of racism in the workplace. But Barbee-Wooten said it shows that problems exist here, sometimes on a more subtle level.

"Unfortunately in Hawai'i there is still a lot of racial joking. Things that may be considered a joke to one person is offensive to another," said Barbee-Wooten, who is black.

She said one recent example of someone who may have unknowingly made a racist remark was a statement in a letter to the editor on the firing of University of Hawai'i athletic director Herman Frazier. The writer stated, "Are the University of Hawai'i regents and president so afraid of Mr. Frazier's attorneys that they can't tell it like it is? Or maybe that would be like the pot calling the kettle black?"

"I thought it was offensive, but perhaps the persons who are reading it are not sensitive to that," Barbee-Wooten said.

She said African-Americans are still struggling to break through the glass ceiling in Hawai'i. Barbee-Wooten pointed out that there are no black judges or members of the state Legislature.

"To a certain extent, there's a clique here in the power structure. If you don't belong to a certain country club, or if you don't belong to certain associations, you can only go so far," she said.

But Barbee-Wooten said much progress has been made in Hawai'i. She said people, particularly the younger generation, are more open-minded and don't have "such a negative view" of African-American contributions to the society.

"It is different over here. Plus or minus, every place has it's problems," she said.

Hoshijo said race is such an important issue that it should be discussed year-round and not just during the celebration of Martin Luther King's birthday.

"In ways we deal better with diversity than other places, but on the flip side of that we don't talk about it a whole lot," Hoshijo said. "Culturally, that affects the number of people who come forward to file complaints and there's probably an underreporting of discrimination because people are reluctant to come forward."

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.