Career opportunities as diverse as the people who work here
King County’s 14,000 employees provide a wide range of vital services to our community, and we’ve been out talking to some of them about their work and careers at King County.
One of those employees Penny Lara, a Transportation Planner with Metro Transit, is featured in our latest careers video.
“One of the most important things of my job is that I’m in touch with the community,” Penny said in the video. ”I’m also bringing the community’s perspective back to the agency so we can better plan for different programs. We want to make sure that we represent the communities that we serve.”
King County offers a wide range of rewarding careers that provide an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people across our communities.
We are also working to become racially diverse and culturally responsive at all levels of the organization, which will help us provide equitable, high quality services to all our communities, as part of the Equity and Social Justice Strategic Plan.
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KCIT WannaCry Ransomware Update
This is a long message but please read it entirely. This message contains important information that all King County employees need to be aware of.
KCIT is aware of a new ransomware called WannaCry. You may have seen news articles and publications on this over the weekend. WannaCry encrypts computer files and demands an average payment of $300 which doubles three days after the infection. If no payment has been received after seven days, the files will be deleted. WannaCry utilizes a known weakness affecting most versions of Microsoft Windows. Systems that are up-to-date on Microsoft patches are not susceptible to the exploit used by WannaCry.
King County has seen no instances of this cyberattack on our systems. The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), one of KCIT’s cybersecurity partners, has not received any reports indicating a successful WannaCry infections of State, Local, Tribal or Territorial governments. The good news is that a researcher in the UK has effectively stopped this version of the Ransomware. However, KCIT is being proactive and monitoring for changes in the situation.
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RALS Leadership Fellowship opportunity
The Department of Executive Services, Records & Licensing Services (RALS) is announcing the Leadership Fellowship Opportunity, an effort to create a culture that develops the next generation of leaders and nurture an empowered workforce.
The Leadership Fellowship opportunity will be for two six-month fellowships (Special Duty Assignment) to two Career Service employees. The first fellowship will start in July 2017 and the second fellowship will start in January 2018. It is open to all Career Service Employees who have a salary range of 65 or higher (or equivalent). To check salary information using PeopleSoft Self Service click here.
Selected individuals will have a rigorous and customized leadership development plan which will include; mastering leadership skills including Operations, Human Resources, Finance and Organizational Development.
Applications will be accepted beginning Monday, May 8 through Sunday, May 21. Please apply online at www.kingcounty.gov/jobs. A completed King County Application and a PDF statement of no more than 750 words is required. This statement should reflect a personal interest in the fellowship and how the employee’s background and areas for development make them the ideal candidate. No resumes or additional materials are needed.
For more information, view the job posting. For questions, please contact Robert James at 206-263-9414 or robert.james@kingcounty.gov.
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PRIDE is coming June 25
“Whether you arrived here last week or whether you’ve lived here for five generations, you belong here” – King County Executive Dow Constantine
Please join King County Executive Dow Constantine and other colleagues, friends and family as we walk in the Pride Parade on Sunday, June 25.
Bring yourself, your family, your friends and enjoy the parade together!
As always, there will be fabulous t-shirts available for order soon for about $10 with our theme for this year: We ALL Belong Here.
Want to be up on all of the Pride information? Send an email to Leah Holland at leah.holland@kingcounty.gov with “Pride Info” in the subject line. Leah will send out updates including the t-shirt order form (in about a week), location and time to meet (one week before Pride), and other things to those who contact her as information becomes available!
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EMAP Accreditation awarded to King County OEM
King County Office of Emergency (OEM) has earned full accreditation by the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) – a validation of the capabilities of our disaster preparedness and response systems. Accreditation from this internationally recognized program represents a significant achievement and compliance with sixty-four industry-recognized standards. The rigorous EMAP process required a year-long internal self-assessment of OEM’s organizational programs, plans, and procedures, capped by an on-site peer-review by a team of EMAP assessors drawn from programs across the U.S.
“For the past five years, OEM has completed a top to bottom assessment and realignment of our region-wide mission, values, goals, and objectives,” stated OEM Director Walt Hubbard, pictured with Executive Constantine. “EMAP is the capstone of this effort and represents a validation of our entire emergency management community.”
“I applaud King County’s leadership and your dedication to the safety and security of our residents,” stated Seattle Office of Emergency Management Director and EMAP Commissioner Barb Graff. “Congratulations on achieving EMAP accreditation and earning a perfect score.”
Accreditation is valid for five years. To earn reaccredited status, the program must maintain compliance with the Emergency Management Standard and be reassessed.
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Doubling down on equity and social justice
Crossposted from Inside Transportation
King County’s ambitious program to extend fairness and opportunity to all is rolling out to departments and agencies.
First came the six-year strategic plan, adopted last year as a blueprint for putting equity and social justice (ESJ) at the heart of every county activity. Now each department is creating its own specific plan for meeting the goals the county has set. These fall into six areas (see box at left).
This far-reaching program aims to transform the way we do business—both internally (hiring, promotions, training) and externally (customer service, service planning, public outreach).
In late March, 80 Transportation staffers gathered in Rainier Valley for an all-day workshop to kick off the department’s part of that work.
A powerful morning session on racial justice, presented by Metro’s diversity and inclusion manager, Anita Whitfield, featured personal stories from two department leaders.
Read more at Inside Transportation
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Mother’s Day special offer – LUZIA by Cirque du Soleil
In celebration of Mother’s Day, King County Employees can take advantage of a special offer to see LUZIA by Cirque du Soleil at Marymoor Park before it ends on May 21. Click on this link to receive 20% off select show dates on price levels 1-2-3.
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Remember Mother Earth when celebrating your mother
Crossposted from Go, Green Team!
May 14 is Mother’s Day! Celebrate your mother and Mother Earth.
Mother Earth has a place in many different cultures. The Greek version is Gaia from whom all live sprang and who personifies the interconnected ecosystems of Earth. The Earth on Turtle’s Back is a story from Native American tradition about a world of all water in which animals bring soil up from its depths that grew to become the Earth.
Mothers, cultural histories, and healthy ecosystems, are all cause to celebrate. What better way than with green gift-giving ideas that also honor Mother Earth?
Read more at Go, Green Team!
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Nurses Week focus on good health for nurses, promotes resilience
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
Anneleen Severynen builds resilience spending time with her chickens.
Burnout is a problem in many professions – and particularly in nursing. For National Nurses Week this year, the focus is on promoting good health for nurses themselves. Within Public Health – Seattle & King County, this fits squarely with many efforts to help people overcome the impacts of burnout and “secondary trauma” (which comes with providing intensive, compassionate care to vulnerable populations).
At the core of this work is resilience – the capacity to recover from adversity.
Anneleen Severynen, a Public Health Nurse with Health Care for the Homeless Network, is one of the department’s champions for understanding the impacts of trauma and building resilience. Severynen has been with PHSKC for five years, and she has a 25-year career with a number of public health agencies, with a special focus working with homeless populations.
We asked her to explain how working with traumatized clients impacts nurses.
Read more at Public Health Insider
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National Correctional Officers and Employees Week
This week, May 7 – 13, is “National Correctional Officers and Employees Week.” To honor their service, today the DAJD Food Services Section will be providing King County Correctional Facility staff a specially prepared meal.
In 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed a proclamation creating “National Correctional Officers’ Week” to honor the work of corrections officers and correctional personnel nationwide. In 1996, Congress officially modified it to be more inclusive, to “National Correctional Officers and Employees Week.”
President Reagan said, “Historically, correctional officers have been viewed as ‘guards,’ occupying isolated and misunderstood positions in prisons and jails. In recent years, the duties of these officers have become increasingly complex and demanding…The professionalism, dedication and courage exhibited by these officers throughout the performance of these demanding and often conflicting roles deserve our utmost respect. The important work of correctional officers often does not receive the recognition from the public it deserves. It is appropriate that we honor the many contributions and accomplishments of these men and women who are a vital component of the field of corrections.”
Employee News 