Employee News
Telling the stories of King County employees
On March 18, King County Executive Dow Constantine and bus riders across the county celebrated the contributions of our hard-working bus drivers, Access drivers and rail operators on Bus Driver Appreciation Day. Drivers work hard to drive safely, help riders board and exit, give directions and travel advice and stick to their schedules through tough traffic – and many riders around the county took the opportunity to recognize drivers on Bus Driver Appreciation Day. See below for the video of the official proclamation of the event given by Executive Constantine to Metro’s… Read More
For hours on end, bus drivers manage to keep a schedule, check fares, give directions, remember stop requests and more, all while safely maneuvering an extra-large vehicle through unpredictable traffic, adverse weather conditions and some really tight spaces! The fact is, bus drivers don’t have an easy job; they just make it look that way. On Tuesday, March 18, join us in celebrating the contributions of our hard-working bus drivers, Access drivers and rail operators. It can be as simple as a smile when you board the bus, and a “thank you”… Read More
The Department of Executive Services (DES) held its first-ever All-Hands Meeting on February 26 with more than 500 employees in the 832-person department taking part in one of the two sessions. The All-Hands Meeting, which brought employees from DES’ 10 divisions, agencies and offices together as one department, featured a short video highlighting a dozen DES employees talking about how they “Deliver Excellent Service” every day; an overview of DES’ “clarity map” that will guide the department over the next 10 years; the results of a recent survey of DES employees focusing… Read More
Meet Tony, who’s been booked into King County Jail more than twenty times. He has Hepatitis C, an enlarged liver, and a long history of alcoholism. He’s getting treated while in jail, but what happens when he gets out? The link between jail-time and medical needs — and how the Affordable Care Act can change the equation — is the focus of Ruby de Luna’s new report for KUOW. The revolving door for jail prisoners — who come back multiple times — often has a link to inaccessible medications or untreated drug and alcohol addictions. For… Read More
Over the past few years, the Department of Judicial Administration’s (DJA) management team has held an employee contest to design a logo to go along with the departmental theme for the year. The 2014 theme is “Better Together.” This theme reflects how successful we are when we all work together, across divisions, up and down the chain of command. DJA employees are truly skilled and talented, and the logo submissions just keep getting better and better, making the decision more difficult each year. Congratulations to the winner of DJA’s contest for her… Read More
The Department and Community and Human Service’s YouthSource employees have brought a new way of delivering great customer service to youth in South King County that’s making it easier for clients to access important resources and services. YouthSource, a service of DCHS’ Community Services Division, is a youth one-stop center located at WorkSource Renton that offers a full array of programs for young adults, ages 16-21, who have dropped out of high school. YouthSource’s programs focus on education, employment and leadership development. It also provides connections to youth programs, community resources for… Read More
It’s tax time. Do you know how to document your charitable deductions through the workplace? One of the great benefits of workplace giving is that you have all of your documentation in one place. Payroll Deduction: Copy of Pledge Form or Printout from PeopleSoft and last pay stub of the year. Time Donation: Copy of Pledge Form or Printout from PeopleSoft, Letter from EGP, and Time Donation Paystub/last paystub of the year. Read more here. All tax situations are different and may require additional documentation. The EGP cannot provide tax advice; for… Read More
To read the most recent issue of Retirement Outlook with the latest news from the Washington State Department of Retirement Systems (DRS), go online to http://www.drs.wa.gov/outlook/active. There, you can also read past issues of the Retirement Outlook newsletter. If you have questions, contact King County Benefits, Payroll and Retirement Operations at 206-684-1556 or kc.benefits@kingcounty.gov.
Solid Waste Division’s outreach to the Spanish-speaking community received two awards from the Puget Sound chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) at its annual Totem Awards Celebration February 6. The Recicla más. ¡Es facilísimo! Spanish language curbside recycling program received two certificates of excellence this year. One certificate is for radio advertising, multicultural communication category, in which the radio ad was recognized for its research into the audience needs and identification of cultural elements which would resonate with the audience, making the radio ad groundbreaking in its approach. The… Read More
Starting March 10, employees can apply for one of 10 internal Bridge Fellowships that will help them develop their careers, grow their organizational knowledge, and enhance their leadership skills at King County. The Internal Bridge Fellowship Program is a one-year, formal development program that is open to all regular (full-time) and TLT employees. Ten fellows will be selected for the first cohort. Candidates can be individual contributors, supervisors or managers. Each candidate must have leadership potential (demonstrated at work, at home, or in the community) and a desire to advance across the… Read More
The Children and Family Justice Center (CFJC) communications and outreach effort also won a Certificate of Excellence from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Puget Sound Chapter. The award was given in the Community Relations Program category for the communications planning and work that culminated in the successful Public Open House in March 2013. Congratulations to the CFJC communications team on this prestigious honor.
Application deadline: First screen date will be 3/18/14 Salary: $75,400.00 – $95,576.00 Annually Department: Department of Natural Resources & Parks – Director’s Office Description: This position will report to Department of Natural Resources and Park’s Chief Financial Officer as part of a team (including an existing Project/Program Manager IV and a Strategic Development Analyst, with administrative support from an Administrator II) which provides technical guidance and leadership to multi-agency and multi-disciplinary teams within DNRP’s four diverse operating divisions. This team supports the DNRP divisions across a range of functions, including business planning, financial… Read More
“This morning started out really rough for me. My car broke down so my only way of getting to school was the bus. As I started towards the bus stop I noticed the 106 coming so I started running, still more than a half block from the stop the bus pulls over and waits for me. I was so thankful for this act of kindness ‘cause she made it possible for me to get to the connecting 71 and arrive at school with time to spare. I don’t ride the bus that… Read More
“I just got off the route 14 to Mt Baker station and had a Wonderful experience with my driver. He was thoughtful, encouraging, kind, and caring. I could tell he really took the time to get to know his riders and make them feel comfortable. :)” – Kirra M. On hearing of the customer’s comments, Operator Brooks said getting this commendation was the best part of his morning, and he was very thankful to hear it.
Application deadline: Tuesday 02/25/14, 4:30 p.m. Salary: $32.19 – $40.81 Hourly / $66,955.20 – $84,884.80 Annually Department: King County Department of Information Technology Description: King County is in search of two Electronics Communications Specialists (ECS) who will perform highly skilled technical work as an expert in land mobile radio systems and other electronic equipment, including the 800 MHz Regional Public Safety Communications System, digital microwave networks and supporting computer systems and networks. One position is Career Service and the other position is a Term-limited Temporary position with an anticipated end date of… Read More
The 2014 Healthy Incentives program started on February 14, and if you want lower out-of-pocket healthcare expenses, here’s what you can do: Start when you’re ready. Take your wellness assessment and finish an individual action plan any time between February 14 and July 31, 2014. No more separate deadline for the wellness assessment. More ways to earn silver. Complete either the wellness assessment or an individual action plan to earn silver. Enter activity any time online. Once you register for the new StayWell online individual action plan, you can enter activity when… Read More
In the early morning hours of Friday, Jan. 24, hundreds of King County residents gathered at dozens of meeting points throughout the County to walk their carefully assigned areas and count the people they saw on the streets, sleeping on benches, huddled in makeshift shelters or camping in cars. It was the annual One Night Count of homeless persons, coordinated by the Seattle-King County Coalition on Homelessness, with funding support from the Committee to End Homelessness (CEH). On that night, a total of 3,113 people were counted outdoors without safe and secure… Read More
King County Executive Dow Constantine outlined an agenda for addressing what many consider to be the generational challenges of our time in the first State of the County address ever delivered from an unincorporated area of King County. At a special meeting of the Metropolitan King County Council on February 10 at White Center Heights Elementary School, Executive Constantine framed his policy agenda for meeting two of the “greatest generational challenges” of our time: building equity and opportunity, and confronting climate change – Building equity will mean creating access to opportunity – access… Read More
After Beth Gunn’s bicycle was stolen, she was astonished to see it heading toward her on the street—in the bike rack on the front of a D-Line bus. She stopped the bus and told the driver that her stolen bike was in his rack. That driver was Matt Leber (AKA VeloBusDriver), a fellow bike commuter and bike-transit blogger. While they spoke, a couple of passengers left the bus through the rear doors. When Leber asked the remaining passengers who owned the bike on the front of the bus, no one answered. After… Read More
When Stanley Caberto (left) gets a work order to fix equipment, the first question he asks is “What’s causing this equipment to break down?” – because he knows from experience that he can do more than just replace a part – he can find a permanent fix. While it’s the treatment plants that often get the most attention, Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) has dozens of offsite facilities that need the same operations and maintenance that the plants do – including 25 regulator stations, 47 pump stations, and over 40 combined sewer outfalls and… Read More