To lessen the risk of exposure to COVID-19 and to help health care providers prioritize care for those who need it most, use your phone, smartphone, or computer to access health care whenever possible. Most King County employee medical plans have free options for telehealth or virtual visits. If you need to go in-person, call your doctor first. If it’s an emergency, call 911. Check the information below to learn how to access care through your health plan. SmartCare (Kaiser Permanente) Customer Service: 888-901-4636 Hours: 8 a.m. – 8 p.m., 7 days… Read More

As King County continues to respond to COVID-19, many employees are telecommuting and working from home. With this shift in work style comes different duties and tasks, including the opportunity to manage and clean out records. This can include tasks such as filing records to Content Manager, and cleaning up records in Outlook or on shared drives.   This work is an essential job duty that can easily be done when employees are out of office, and it serves significantly useful purposes in responding to public records requests, reducing financial liability, and helping each employee do their job more efficiently. To get started, consider taking an online training course, beginning with Basic… Read More

As we work to stop the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), it’s equally important that we stop the spread of stigma and support each other during this challenging time. “We are racially just” and “We respect all people” are two of our core values. It’s as important as ever that we stay true to our values and do everything in our power to stand together against discrimination. Misinformation about COVID-19 can create fear or hostility that hurts people. Please remember that: Coronavirus doesn’t recognize race, nationality, or ethnicity Wearing a mask may be a cultural… Read More

As COVID-19 related events unfold, we find ourselves in uncertain terrain as impacts move closer to home. It’s common during these times to experience heightened anxiety or fear. While we cannot control external events, we can establish practices and enlist tools to support our resilience and well-being. Instead of suffering with anxiety, we have the ability to administer care to ourselves, our families, our work colleagues, and our communities. Join in on a free webinar to learn how to navigate these uncertain times with resilience.  Wednesday, March 18, 2020 from noon to… Read More

Due to the COVID-19 emergency, many King County employees are working remotely. Basic self-service functions in PeopleSoft, such as entering time and manager timesheet approvals, are available outside of the King County firewall and can be done remotely without using the King County VPN. Timesheet entry and manager approval (self-service functions) are available in PeopleSoft using the Login from Home link on the BRC SharePoint intranet site or by typing ess.kingcounty.gov in the address bar of your browser. Log into PeopleSoft as you normally would; you will have access to only self-service functions. (Timekeeper, Human Resource,… Read More

King County employees are continuing to deliver essential services, but several buildings will close to public walk-in access until further notice due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Employees who are not telecommuting or on leave via a prior arrangement are expected to report for work as normal. Healthy first responders and medical personnel should continue to report to work. Supervisors, managers, and leaders will provide additional information to their employees as needed. The affected facilities are: King County Administration Building, 500 Fourth Ave., Seattle King County Sheriff’s Office registry on second floor will… Read More

Approval to take IT peripheral equipment home while telecommuting With many employees telecommuting at this time in line with the County’s guidance, employees are permitted to take home laptop peripheral equipment, including monitors, to help them continue to be productive during the COVID-19 outbreak. Employees must receive supervisor approval prior to taking peripheral equipment home, such as a monitor, mouse, or other devices. Supervisors should keep a record of any equipment that is being taken home. Departments are responsible for keeping an inventory of equipment taken home. (Note: this applies to Executive… Read More

You can tune in to this livestream at 11 a.m. today where King County Executive Dow Constantine, Governor Jay Inslee, and public health leaders will provide new guidance on efforts to contain novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Watch the livestream here (starts at 11 a.m.). Please refer to the Public Health – Seattle & King County website at www.kingcounty.gov/covid and the Public Health Insider blog for the latest information, and see our list of answers to common questions for King County employees. You can also sign up for free email alerts from Public Health. When the livestream is over, a recording of the… Read More

To slow the spread of COVID-19, King County will close many face-to-face customer service operations from Monday, March 16, through at least Friday, March 27. Please see the affected services at kingcounty.gov/ServiceChanges. Employees are expected to report to work as normal unless they have a prior arrangement to telecommute or take leave. Employees will continue to provide services by phone, online, and by email wherever possible. Supervisors, managers, and leaders will provide additional information to their employees as needed. Telecommuting: Per prior guidance, employees who can telecommute are expected to telecommute where… Read More

As part of efforts to reduce exposure and slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Payroll Operations is changing the process for printing and distributing paper paychecks and direct deposit pay stubs. The following changes begin March 19:  If you currently receive a paper paycheck: Beginning March 19, all paper paychecks will be mailed via the U.S. Postal Service to the address printed on your last check. If the address on your last paycheck is not accurate, go to PeopleSoft to make changes. Now is a great time to Set Up Your Payroll Direct Deposit, if… Read More