Employee News
Telling the stories of King County employees
When we ended 2019, we had every reason to be optimistic, hopeful, and prepared for another year of growth in King County. But 2020 proved just how quickly things can change. It’s no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic has dominated our focus this year, as we led the response to the nation’s first outbreak of the disease. From setting up our medical command center even before the first confirmed case, to building isolation and quarantine recovery facilities, to distributing millions of masks to county residents, King County employees have been working to… Read More
Hi, my name is Cairo! I’m a 7 year-old male domestic short hair. If you’re looking for a fancy and independent gentleman who also happens to be a great conversationalist, I might just be the cat for you! My caretakers feel I would do best as the only cat in my new home; however, I also lived with adult humans and large dogs, and I get along great with both! Read more and view all available pets at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet. Have you or someone you know adopted a pet from RASKC? Let us know. We’d… Read More
Crossposted from WTD Clean Water Stories King County’s Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) is looking for operators to monitor complex industrial equipment and the flows going through them. Operators check readings and take water samples to make sure things are running smoothly. Good operators are hard to find – and desperately needed. WTD needed a way to bring in talented, new people and help them get certified as quickly as possible, so they started an Operator-in-Training (OIT) program to find and train their own operators. “Part of our program is to show people enough about wastewater for… Read More
Easy Steps to Great Grammar – Online – Confused about grammar and punctuation? This fun, 3-Session class will help you master the latest rules, avoid common errors, and write with confidence. You’ll cover apostrophes, verb tense, word usage, subject/verb agreement, commas/semicolons, style guides, how to avoid the 10 most common grammar and punctuation mistakes, and more. Class includes plenty of examples and exercises to help you practice your new skills. This course is coming up quick, starting on Jan. 6 and finishing on Jan. 20, and is held each Wednesday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Register here. Please… Read More
Salary: $79,902 – $107,459 Location: Multiple locations in King County, WA Job Type: Appointed Department: KCC – King County Council Job Number: KCFD12172020TC Closing: 1/14/2021 11:59 PM Pacific Learn more about this position or view all available positions.
This year, the Balanced You blog became an even more important source of information for King County employees, with readership doubling from 12,000 visitors in 2019 to 24,000 visitors in 2020. Articles included COVID-19 supports, well-being tips, program information, and resources for allyship. To round out 2020, Balanced You is highlighting our top 10 most clicked articles below. If you haven’t had a chance to read these, we encourage you to check them out here!
Some former Metro employees are helping people safely get where they are going in a different way. “I usually drive a Metro bus, but today I’m giving out masks to try and make sure everyone is masking up and being safe,” Jena, a Metro bus operator and Health Ambassador, said. After King County Metro Transit was forced to lay off some part-time employees due to COVID-19, the agency came up with an innovative solution: they allowed drivers facing layoff to opt into the Department of Community and Human Services’ (DCHS) Health Ambassadors… Read More
Happy Holidays to all our employees! Stay safe and warm during this busy season. Know we value you and all you bring to King County!
Crossposted from DES Express As we navigate our pandemic present, DES, along with other Executive Branch departments, is creating a plan for how work could be done in the future. Since the mandatory telecommuting order was issued earlier this year, about half of the DES team has been telecommuting and the other half have been reporting to worksites that look and feel very different. In addition, the county, led by our Facilities Management Division, will be moving operations out of the Administration Building and consolidating space where possible for countywide budget savings. Read… Read More
System updates are now complete. We appreciate your understanding and support.
Crossposted from DES Express Caroline Whalen, DES Director and Chief Administrative Officer for King County, recently received the prestigious Fred Jarrett Leadership Excellence Award. King County Executive Dow Constantine presented the award to Whalen, recognizing her for following in the footsteps of former Deputy Executive Fred Jarrett, the driving force behind Lean and continuous improvement for nine years at the County. “Throughout her 26-year county career, Caroline has been a leader who truly embodies our values, one who leads by example with both words and actions,” Constantine said. “Caroline was an early… Read More
Salary: $112,856 – $151,779 Location: Multiple locations in King County, WA Job Type: Appointed Department: KCC – King County Council Job Number: KCFD12162020TC Closing: 1/14/2021 11:59 PM Pacific Learn more about this position or view all available positions.
Hi, my name is Bella! I’m a 10 year old female Pit Bull mix. I weigh 59 pounds and am super friendly and loving, but also very strong and active. I am still working on my manners, so I would do best with a family who is willing to work with me and help me become the best dog I can be. You can find out more about me and my friends at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet. Have you or someone you know adopted a pet from RASKC? Let us know. We’d love to tell your story. … Read More
King County Executive Dow Constantine has released a video message to thank employees for their tremendous efforts and achievements in 2020. “I am grateful for your flexibility, creativity, and hard work which enabled us to pivot quickly and respond to the needs of our community,” Executive Constantine said in the video message. “We have a way to go in this journey to normalcy – and things may get worse before they get better – but they will get better.” In addition to reflecting on the achievements of employees in 2020 – including… Read More
Crossposted from Public Health Insider As the first doses of COVID-19 vaccine arrived King County this week, Health Officer Dr. Jeff Duchin answered questions and shared the latest information on rollout and distribution of vaccines. For more on COVID-19 data trends, visit our data dashboards: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/covid-19/data.aspx For more on COVID-19 vaccine planning in King County: www.kingcounty.gov/covid/vaccine Watch the video
King County today announced the honorees for the 2019 Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards, recognizing employees and teams for their exceptional contributions to performance, leadership, service, and innovation, and for helping make King County a best-run government. “These awards honor employees and workgroups for their exceptional contributions in performance, leadership, and innovation,” King County Executive Dow Constantine said. “They recognize people who are helping to build a best-run government at King County, people who show us what good looks like – what best-run government looks like – and what we can all do… Read More
Winter classes are now available. Please visit our King County Eventbrite website and our Learning and Development website for available opportunities. For more information, contact the Learning and Development Team at KCTraining@kingcounty.gov or visit Learning and Development at www.kingcounty.gov/learning.
Salary: $112,856 – $151,779 Location: Multiple locations in King County, WA Job Type: Appointed Department: KCC – King County Council Job Number: KCFD12162020TC Closing: 1/14/2021 11:59 PM Pacific Learn more about this position or view all available positions.
To allow for system maintenance, the PeopleSoft system will not be available starting at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 23. During this planned outage, the Business Resource Center (BRC) will apply vendor updates and maintenance. This work will begin on Wednesday, Dec. 23 at 3 p.m. and is scheduled to be completed by 6:30 a.m. on Thursday, Dec 24. The system will not be available for access by any County staff during this outage window. There will be a communication sent out to all County staff when the system becomes available. We… Read More
Dear King County employee, We are excited to announce that, in response to the overwhelming impacts of COVID-19 on working parents, including the closure of many in-person schools and child care providers, labor and management have agreed upon a COVID-19 Child Care Reimbursement Program to help those in the Regular Employees Benefits Plan with child care expenses incurred during the 2020-2021 school year. This groundbreaking agreement, first proposed by a King County Coalition of Unions, will cover approximately 10,400 union and non-represented employees who receive the Regular Employees Benefits Plan through the Joint… Read More