Read across America
Crossposted from Go, Green Team!
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
― Dr. Seuss, The Lorax
On March 2, students across the United States will celebrate and encourage reading. March 2 also happens to be Dr. Seuss’s birthday. Let’s all celebrate learning and reading together. What’s your school doing for Read Across America?
Read more at Go, Green Team!
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We must act now to end gun violence
King County Executive Dow Constantine
Dear fellow King County employee,
On February 14 – Valentine’s Day – 14 children and three adults in Parkland, Florida, lost their lives in a manner that has become all too familiar in America: a senseless school shooting.
This horrifying event is another tragic reminder that we must act to end the epidemic of gun violence that has engulfed our nation, to stand up for those who have had their lives brutally taken, and to fight to keep our children and public places safe.
Last month I testified in Olympia for two bills: promoting safe storage of firearms, and allowing local governments to pass common sense safeguards, such as requiring reporting of stolen firearms and restricting children’s access to firearms. At the time, I noted that gun violence is a public health crisis, and it is preventable. We can attack it the same way we have reduced deaths from smoking and auto collisions.
That’s why I directed Public Health – Seattle & King County to develop innovative, data-driven local strategies for preventing gun violence in King County. This has led to programs like Lok-it-up, which can help prevent firearm theft and keep guns from getting into the hands of kids and being used in crimes and for self-harm.
State and federal law pre-empt our ability to regulate firearms, but that should not stop us from thinking innovatively about what we can do within our own authority to fight this scourge.
When we witness tragedies like the massacre in Florida, we need to support one another. If you would like to speak with someone, King County provides two free services to employees that offer professional support and advice: the Employee Assistance Program and Making Life Easier. Both resources are free and confidential.
As we mourn so many young lives cut short, we must take a stand, continue to work collectively, and redouble our efforts to end gun violence here in King County and across our nation.
Sincerely,
Dow Constantine
King County Executive
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Reminder: Tell us what you love about public service!
Our team is looking for County employees to share their stories via our social media to promote King County as a great place to work, live and play. To participate as a King County ambassador, email the following to KCEmployees@kingcounty.gov:
- Selfie (photo of yourself)
- Your workplace role
- One to three sentence blurb explaining why you love working for King County.
Our team will share your testimonials on our social media accounts.
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Featured Job: Electro-Mechanic
Closing Date/Time: Sat. 03/31/18 11:59 PM Pacific Time
Salary: $34.07 – $37.86 Hourly
Job Type: Career Service, Full Time, 40 hrs/week
Location: Multiple locations in King County, Washington
Department: Department of Transportation – Transit Division
Description: Electro-Mechanics perform journey-level electrical, electronic and mechanical work on either light rail vehicles or streetcars and associated equipment.
Link Light Rail, operated by King County Metro Transit, is a 20.4 mile light rail line from University of Washington Station to Angle Lake Station. Current system expansion will add an additional 50 miles of track by 2023. Currently Link Light Rail has 62 vehicles and will be adding an additional 122 vehicles to their fleet in 2019.
Seattle Streetcar, operated by King County Metro Transit, is responsible for providing streetcar service for both the South Lake Union (2.6 track miles) and First Hill (4.9 track miles) Streetcar lines. Construction on the Center City Connector began last fall 2017 to join the existing lines to create new north-south connections that will allow for easy transit connections throughout the core of downtown Seattle.
King County Metro Transit is a regional leader in helping people move quickly throughout the region, reducing commuter stress, greening the environment and radically improving urban air quality, by providing comfortable, effective transit services for the thousands of commuters and other residents of King County, Washington. Working for Metro means working for a leader in this public transportation industry.
Contact: For more information contact Jen Montoya at 206-477-5997 or Jen.Montoya@kingcounty.gov.
Learn more about this position, or view all available jobs.
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Social Media Spotlight: King County Medic One Facebook
King County Medic One is a publicly-funded Emergency Medical Service that provides world class Advanced Life Support (ALS) for the southern region of King County in Washington State. We serve a population of over 750,000 people.
Follow KCMedic1 on Facebook today.
Click here to view all King County social media pages.
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Tech Tip: New work tools for employees
KCIT is rolling out new work tools like Microsoft OneNote, OneDrive, and Power BI. These applications help us all work better, smarter and faster. To help employees adapt, the IT Training team has put together a robust training toolbox, to complement the in-person trainings, and it is filled with short, PDF or video explanations. Emphasis on short videos!
If you are a video learner, check out OneDrive this week: 12 videos, none longer than two minutes! The videos can be accessed on SharePoint here.
KCIT also wants to say thank you to employees for remaining vigilant about the phishing attacks we have had. Thanks to our employees who report suspicious looking emails quickly! We have been able to get ahead of these attacks and limit the number of employees exposed to these emails.
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Kudos! RASKC assists homeless residents with pets
As part of outreach to local homeless shelters, RASKC received a request for assistance from a homeless-in-cars shelter at Lake Washington United Methodist Church (LWUMC) in Kirkland. LWUMC had been able to secure complimentary dog grooming at a local business for two residents’ dogs, but the dogs required current rabies vaccinations and documentation to attend. RASKC was able to coordinate a veterinarian visit during a Friday commute.
This effort further demonstrates King County’s commitment to equity and social justice, and helping people experiencing homelessness to be able to keep their animal companions healthy and cared for.
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Register now for free classes on noxious weeds being offered this spring
Crossposted from Noxious Weeds Blog
If you are interested in learning to identify and control noxious weeds and other invasive plants (or just to freshen up your skills), then we have the classes for you! We have two options to choose from: a two-hour evening workshop and an all day seminar repeated on three different dates. Both will cover lots of noxious weed ID and control info, but the all day seminar will also cover additional topics that will be useful for vegetation management professionals, restoration crews and landscapers. All classes are free and open to anyone who is interested, but registration is required.
Read more at Noxious Weeds Blog
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Have a say on reserved permit parking for Transit customers
Crossposted from Metro Matters
Metro and Sound Transit want to hear from customers on a proposed new parking option at regional park-and-rides, many of which are full or nearly full by early morning as demand for transit grows.
The two agencies seek public feedback on a parking permit system for customers who want to pay for reserved spaces at some park-and-ride facilities. Permit parking is already available for carpoolers who drive together to select park-and-rides. This proposal would expand that program to offer permits to solo drivers as well. Drivers without permits would still be able to use park-and-rides on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The public can comment via this online survey or by attending one of several neighborhood drop-in sessions. Public input is essential as Metro and Sound Transit consider locations for permit parking and potential pricing options.
Read more at Metro Matters
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Survey Says! More Employee Health & Well-Being survey results
Crossposted from Healthy Incentives
King County is changing the Healthy Incentives program based on what we heard from employees. In 2017, you provided valuable input that will help us shape the new program to support your diverse interests and wellness goals in a more meaningful way. See results to Question 4 and Question 5.
See the results and our approach to be responsive to your feedback.
Read more at Healthy Incentives
Employee News 