Stay informed in inclement weather
Getting timely, accurate information in an emergency or inclement weather event is critical. Make sure you’re getting the latest King County information on how you are affected, at work and at home:
- KCInform: Make sure you can be reached in a major emergency. If you haven’t yet registered your County provided mobile phones and employees personal contact information in KCInform, please contact kcinform@kingcounty.gov anytime or 206-296-3830 between 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday – Friday to request your unique registration link. Watch this short video to learn more or visit our website.
- Call the Employee Hotline—206-205-8600 (save it to your phone now).
- Check your King County email for specific directives and updates. Log on at outlook.kingcounty.gov.
- Contact your supervisor for instructions.
- Visit kcemployees.com for the latest employee information.
- Follow King County on Twitter—@kcemployees, @KingCountyWA, and @kcmetrobus.
- Check your agency website or Intranet (if applicable).
- Visit the Emergency News page at www.kcemergency.com for regional impacts and monitor local media channels.
HR Policies: When an agency remains open, but conditions prevent you from reporting to work or from reporting on time, notify your supervisor as soon as possible. You may request leave, subject to approval by your supervisor. If you have no leave accrued, your supervisor may approve leave without pay to cover absences. Sick leave may not be used. Refer to HR Bulletin 2011-0009 County Operations During Emergency Situations and Inclement Weather (Sheriff’s Office employees refer to KCSO Inclement Weather Policy. Superior Court and District Court employees please check court policies).
Always have a plan if you need to commute in inclement weather, dress warmly, and let safety be your guide when making travel decisions.
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More than 500 nurses urge King County to confront the surge
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
In the midst of an unprecedented surge in COVID-19 cases, more than 500 King County nurses are issuing an urgent call to renew efforts to turn around this troubling trend.
“It’s been a tough year, and we’ve all sacrificed so much to stay safe. But now, with cases skyrocketing in King County, it’s more important than ever to stop the spread,” reads the nurses’ message, published Sunday in a special wrap-around section of the Seattle Times.
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Prepare now for winter weather
As we approach winter, now is a great time to ensure you are well-prepared for an emergency or inclement weather at home or work.
Taking a few steps now to plan ahead will give you peace of mind and help you make good decisions in an emergency:
- There are many online resources that you can use to make sure you and your family have what you need to Make it Through an emergency – from an extended power outage to a more severe event. Please take personal preparedness seriously.
- If your child is attending school or daycare in-person, learn about their school or daycare policies and procedures for possible early release and facility closures.
- Locate flashlights, radio, and extra batteries should you experience a power outage at home.
- Store non-perishable meals for your family that don’t require a stove-top, microwave, or oven to prepare, and keep plenty of bottled water on hand.
- Make sure pets have appropriate shelter to stay warm and safe.
- Get more tips, utility contacts, and weather preparedness checklists at www.takewinterbystorm.org.
Always have a plan if you need to commute in inclement weather, dress warmly, and let safety be your guide when making travel decisions.
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Training Spotlight for November 19
- Communication and Problem Solving Skills – Online – Join instructor Lenny Borer for this two-day training. He will address communication and problem-solving skills with the public and with co-workers. This class covers skills for effective listening, speaking, dealing with conflicts, and dealing with defensive behavior. This training is $65 and space is limited. It takes place on Tuesday and Wednesday, Dec. 8 and 9, both days from 1-4:30 p.m. Register here.
Please visit our King County Eventbrite page website for more opportunities. For more information, contact the Learning and Development Team at KCTraining@kingcounty.gov or visit Learning and Development at www.kingcounty.gov/learning.
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Medical benefits for transgender employees
King County provides comprehensive benefits and services to support the health and well-being of eligible employees, retirees, and their dependents, and now offers enhanced medical benefits for transgender employees.
Starting Jan. 1, 2020, King County expanded its medical plans’ coverage policies for transgender employees and their covered family members. King County has covered gender confirmation surgery and hormone replacement since 2015, but starting in 2020, we are covering additional gender-affirming procedures and treatments to comply fully with World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) standards, including procedures most insurers exclude.
This week, during Transgender Awareness Week, we want to remind employees of the enhanced medical benefits available for transgender employees. King County medical plans now provide employees and their covered family members with comprehensive healthcare coverage to support them if they choose to transition physically.
King County was the first public sector employer in Washington to cover these expanded services, and offering these benefits is an important step in our efforts to build a truly welcoming and inclusive workplace, and an example of living our values and True North.
If you have questions about these – or any of your employee benefits – please contact the Benefits Team at 206-684-1556 or KC Benefits.
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2020 Employee Giving Drive spotlight and reminder for last chance to donate
The 2020 Employee Giving Drive ends tomorrow, Nov. 20. This week, we are featuring nonprofits that support the arts in our community:
- Hilltop Artists (9032) – We use glass art to connect young people from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds to better futures through art instruction, wrap around services, and mentoring to 650 youth.
- 5th Avenue Theatre (9631) – We develop, produce and present live musical theater for the cultural enrichment of the Northwest community; preserve, maintain, and operate the historic 5th Avenue Theatre.
- Northwest African American Museum (9737) – We celebrate and explore the histories, arts, and cultures of people of African descent through exhibitions, programs and events.
See all participating nonprofits.
Go online or use a paper form and pledge to support your favorite Employee Giving Program nonprofits. There are many ways to donate:
- Payroll donation: One-time, once–per-month, or twice-per-month.
- Time donation: Eligible vacation or comp time. See your department Lead Ambassador for details in your office.
- Check or credit card: Made out directly to the nonprofit.
- Volunteering: Up to three sick days per calendar year at a nonprofit in the EGP (for non-represented and employees whose union has approved this benefit, including those covered by the Master Labor Agreement).
For more information, contact your Employee Giving Program Ambassador, visit www.kingcounty.gov/giving, email EmployeeGiving@kingcounty.gov, call 206-263-9405, or attend an online Nonprofit Expo.
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Donating excess time to the Employee Giving Program, deadline tomorrow, November 20
Every year, many employees find themselves in a “use-it-or-lose-it” situation with their vacation balances. When an employee exceeds the maximum vacation accrual, the balance in excess of the maximum is forfeited on January 8.
If an employee has accumulated leave that they do not plan on taking, they can choose to give the cash equivalent of that excess time to a nonprofit organization in the King County Employee Giving Program and/or to the COVID-19 Emergency Leave Fund. Both donations can be done in PeopleSoft.
Click here to make a time donation through the Employee Giving Program to a nonprofit organization, and for more information. The deadline to donate is tomorrow, Nov. 20.
- Employees can donate a minimum of 4 hours and a maximum of 40 hours, unless they are in a use-it-or-lose-it position, which is typically more than 480 hours. In this case, employees may give all the excess hours.
- Employees can select up to three organizations to receive your donation.
- Only vacation and eligible comp time can be donated.
- Donated time counts as income for the employee. The time is converted into a check, and the amount after taxes becomes the charitable donation.
- Charitable donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Individual situations vary. Please refer to your tax advisor for tax related questions.
- The Prosecutor’s Office has chosen not to participate in this option.
- Pledge Forms must be received by November 20, 2020, by email at EmployeeGiving@kingcounty.gov.
- Questions about this option can be directed to the Employee Giving Program at EmployeeGiving@kingcounty.gov or by phone at 206-263-9405.
Click here to make to make a donation to the COVID-19 Emergency Leave Fund, and for more information.
- Comprehensive leave eligible employees in the Executive Branch can donate up to 80 hours of accrued sick leave and 80 hours of accrued vacation time per year.
- Donations are distributed to eligible employees who have been affected by COVID-19.
- Employees can donate more than 80 hours of leave, but it requires approval of the department director.
- The donation counts as income for the receiving employee.
- Superior Court and Prosecutor’s Office have chosen not to participate in this program.
- Questions about this option can be directed to your department HR representative.
For more information visit www.kingcounty.gov/giving.
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COVID-related Paid Administrative Leave extended to June 2021
King County is extending the eligibility period for accessing Paid Administrative Leave (PAL) for COVID-related reasons to June 2021 for non-represented employees, and is bargaining the same extension for represented employees.
This is an extension of the timeframe in which the existing 80 hours of Paid Administrative Leave for COVID-related reasons can be used (see COVID-related Paid Administrative Leave for details); additional hours are not being awarded. For non-represented employees, this extension will last until either June 25, 2021, or June 30, 2021, depending on whether the employee’s pay period is biweekly or semi-monthly. Represented employees can check here to see if their union has approved the Memorandums of Agreement (MOA). This list will be updated as new MOAs are signed.
Please be advised that employees must receive supervisor approval in order to take this leave. Supervisors will make decisions based on the eligibility criteria, operational needs and business continuity, and employee designations as First Responders and Mission-Critical.
As previously communicated, First Responders “have the highest duty to report to work as directed in emergency conditions,” and Mission-Critical Employees “must be available to perform their duties as determined by their agency management,” per King County’s Temporary COVID-19 Personnel Policy. First Responders and Mission-Critical employees are expected to continue to report to work in person or telecommute per existing arrangements. Departments can change employee designations as needed and must inform employees accordingly. This is as important as ever during our COVID-19 response.
Thank you for supporting our community and one another during this difficult time and doing what you can to keep stay safe.
Whitney Abrams
Chief People Officer
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Executive Constantine statement on updated COVID-19 restrictions
King County Executive Dow Constantine delivered the following statement at Gov. Jay Inslee’s press conference announcing new guidance on how to slow the spread of COVID-19, and new restrictions in place until Dec. 14:
“Like everywhere in the state, our case counts are soaring, and that is also true nationally. The number of hospitalizations in King County last week increased by over 70 percent compared to the previous four weeks.
“In fact, it was just earlier this week that I was reflecting that our hospitalizations had not increased dramatically, and then later that afternoon I was informed that we had seen a 30 percent increase in one day in hospital bed use. There are twice as many people in local hospitals with COVID-19 as there were just a month ago.
Read more in the official press release.
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November 2020 proclaimed Native American Heritage Month in King County
As part of our celebrations for Native American Heritage Month, the Metropolitan King County Council and King County Executive Dow Constantine have proclaimed the month of November 2020 Native American Heritage Month in King County.
Native American Heritage Month was initially proposed in 1990 as American Indian Heritage Month by U.S. House Joint Resolution 577, and in 1991 by Congress Senate Joint Resolution 172, before November was ultimately proclaimed as “Native American Heritage Month” by President George H.W. Bush in 1991.
“Whereas, in King County, we honor the unique government-to-government relationship that exists between Indian tribes and County Government, and that relationship has weathered various challenges and changes over the years, evolving into a partnership by which we can work productively together,” Councilmembers and Executive Constantine stated in the Proclamation. “During Native American Heritage Month, we reaffirm our commitment to work to promote the well-being and celebrate the history and cultures of our local and regional American Indian, Alaska Native, and Indigenous communities.”
You can read the full Proclamation here.
Employee News 