After serving in the United States Marine Corps and a Veteran of the Vietnam War, Ernie went to work for the Department of Safety at Halawa High Security Correctional Facility (HCF). Mr. Oku, the Administrator (Warden) at the time, found a need for in-house facility training and compliance because of disparity. Ernie was tasked to design, implement, teach and enforce the facility’s Standard Operating Procedures for Officer Safety.

After 7 years, Ernie found himself looking for a career change. He went to the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 368 to work as a laborer. He worked his way to become a Business Agent for the Union under the management of Benjamin “Ben” Saguibo, Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer. Ben saw a need for a Safety Officer for the Union and assigned Ernie the position. Ernie was assigned to The Hawaii Laborer’s Training Program (HILTP) in 2000 where he was the Safety Coordinator and an Instructor.

He was also assigned to investigate any on the job accidents the laborers’ were involved in. He later was appointed the Interim Director’s position for the Hawaii Laborers’ Training Program. Ernie implemented the Safety Program for the Apprenticeship Program that was recognized and won an award from the Hawaii Industrial Occupational Safety and Health Administration (HIOSH).

He is certified to teach all Construction Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Safety and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classes. He has 20+ years of experience.

Ernie, although retired, wanted to pass on the valuable knowledge he has gained throughout the years so he decided to start his own company “ESH Training LLC”.

ESH Training LLC is currently insured for up to $2M Commercial General Liability Insurance.