For many students in King County, this time of year heralds spring break, a much-anticipated week away from school. The coronavirus outbreak has caused many families to cancel plans for break, leaving them in search of creative ways to keep their kids entertained while practicing social distancing. Visit the Balanced You blog to learn more about activities you can do as a family, both during and after spring break, that promote well-being while observing guidelines for staying healthy. 

Crossposted from Balanced You 

The evolving coronavirus outbreak in our community has been difficult for everyone to process. Each of us is experiencing some degree of anxiety or stress in the face of this pandemic. Children process stress differently than adults and are uniquely affected by the way we talk about the virus, images in the media, and changes to their routine following school closures and other ‘social distancing’ measures. 

Balanced You is here to support King County employees who are parents and caretakers of children. Below, you will find resources and tips for helping children through this period. 

Read more from Balanced You

Effective March 23, Governor Jay Inslee issued a “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order, which included a list of essential services that can and should continue operating. 

At King County, employees who are designated as First Responders and Mission-Critical Employees are classified as “critical government workers” for the purposes of the Governor’s Order, and accordingly are expected to continue to report to work in person or telework per existing arrangements. 

Please be advised that your King County identification badge serves as proof that you are an “essential employee.” If you are asked to provide proof of your status while performing your County duties, please present your King County ID badge, unless your department or division has provided you with an additional form of proof.  

You can learn more about the Governor’s Order and the designation of King County employees in this previous guidance. 

As we continue our efforts to slow the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in King County, we have put together several resources for King County employees during this outbreak. Our new one-stop webpage, www.kingcounty.gov/employees-coronavirus has health information, telecommuting resources, benefits updates, frequently asked questions, and more. This webpage can help to answer questions for King County employees about how their work is impacted by the coronavirus. 

To help support employees during this time and provide regular needed updates, the employee newsletter schedule will change. The newsletter will now be sent twice a week, instead of its originally scheduled once a week, Wednesday publication.  

This temporary change will allow for important notices and announcements to be sent out at one time, building on the recognition of the employee newsletter, and not overwhelming employees with additional emailed announcements. One-off announcements will be used as necessary. 

Please continue to review the employee newsletter for necessary information, and visit the employee news site, www.kcemployees.com, to see all newsletter announcements, updates, and information. 

King County is sending a mailing to all employees’ homes this week that highlights some of the benefits available to employees and families during this COVID-19 outbreak.  

Highlighted services include what to do if you are feeling sick, how to access care in-person and remotely, and how to get support and counselling services through the Employee Assistance Program and Making Life Easier. 

Please look for the mailer at home this week, and remember you can always get benefits information online at www.kingcounty.gov/benefits, and all COVID-19 employee-related information at www.kingcounty.gov/employees-coronavirus. 

King County is working to protect the health and safety of its employees and the general public by following the guidance of Public Health – Seattle & King County (PHSKC), the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in response to the COVID-19 virus.

As part of this effort, the County has developed protocols for employees and managers for the following situations:

• An employee has been in close contact with someone who was exposed to COVID-19, but neither individual is showing symptoms.

• An employee has been in close contact with someone who was later diagnosed with COVID-19 but was not showing symptoms at the time of contact with the employee.

• An employee has been exposed to a diagnosed person with COVID-19, but the employee is not showing symptoms.

• An employee is showing symptoms of COVID-19.

• An employee has been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Most importantly, if an employee has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or is showing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath), the employee should immediately inform their manager that they need to leave the workplace, but the employee does not need to provide their manager with specific details. The employee is strongly encouraged to notify HR of their symptoms as a public health precaution by contacting their HR Manager or emailing DHRCOVID19@kingcounty.gov. The employee should immediately contact their health care provider to get health guidance on next steps.

Department HR Managers and department leadership will oversee the implementation of this protocol to ensure we are keeping employees safe and informed during the COVID-19 outbreak.