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Get ready to ShakeOut on October 20
King County will participate in the Great Washington ShakeOut earthquake drill on Thursday, October 20. At 10:20am, a PA announcement will go out in most County buildings, asking you to Drop, Cover, and Hold On just like you would do in a real earthquake. Expect more information about the drill in next week’s Employee News. For details about the Great Washington ShakeOut, visit http://www.shakeout.org/washington.
Social Media Spotlight: EcoConsumer Twitter
The King County WA EcoConsumer public outreach program, in the Solid Waste Division, deals with the environmental impacts of our purchasing decisions and daily activities. It offers programs and resources to help King County residents balance consuming and conserving, to change their behavior and encourage others to help prevent waste. Follow EcoConsumer on Twitter today! Click here to view all King County social media pages.
Sharing our know-how across the globe
Crossposted from King County Wastewater Treatment Division Many developing Asian countries face unique challenges delivering quality wastewater services. In an effort to mentor these communities, a team of Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) employees participated in information sharing with a growing utility called URENCO in Dong Hoi, Vietnam. After visiting Vietnam, Dave Jurgens, reliability engineer, realized it’s not only an infrastructure challenge, but also one of culture. “The treatment plant is within a river delta with a lot of farmland. Waste is conveyed primarily from Dong Hoi, a fishing town of about 120,000 people,” he said…. Read More
Best Starts for Kids gets started
Joined by members of the King County Council, Executive Dow Constantine signed Best Starts for Kids. The voter-approved levy will invest nearly $400 million in child and youth development across King County over the next six years. View the video below to watch the ceremonial bill signing.
Kudos! Management team volunteers time to United Way Day of Caring
Shared from the DCHS Touching Base Newsletter Members of the Department of Community and Human Services’ management team participated in the annual United Way Day of Caring on Friday, Sept. 23. The staff met at 8:30 a.m. at the Children’s Therapy Center (CTC) in Kent, WA and spent the day improving the CTC campus. Some of the team spent the day cleaning and sanitizing the children’s toys and playrooms and other interior spaces. Others worked outside to spruce up the CTC grounds, lawn mowing, weed whacking, pruning hedges, raking, seeding, and sweeping…. Read More
Mark Isaacson selected as Wastewater Treatment Division director
Mark Isaacson will become the Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) director beginning October 10. Mark has been the director of the Water and Lands Resources Division (WLRD) for the past 11 years, leading a large number of environmental programs and seeing the division through tough economic times and on to a period of growth. Mark has established a very stable division with multiple revenue streams. Prior to leading WLRD, Mark was the assistant division director and prior to that worked in the WTD for three years leading the implementation of the division’s productivity… Read More
Your home, your stream, your future
Join us in developing the Bear Creek Watershed Plan! Learn about living in or near the Bear Creek Watershed and how stormwater is managed affects you, your property, and the health of Bear Creek. The workshop will be held Thursday, October 13, 2016 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Woodinville City Hall, address is 17301 133rd Ave NE Woodinville, WA 98072. King County and its partners are collaborating to reduce stormwater pollution and restore and protect stream habitat in the Bear Creek basin. Hear about our work over the last two years,… Read More
Wet and windy weather is here!
Wet and windy weather has arrived and is expected to worsen over the coming hours. Please prepare for possible disruptions and delays in this evening’s commute and again this weekend as we face two consecutive storm systems forecast by the National Weather Service. High winds and rain might create potential travel delays, power outages, and temporarily closed roads. The King County Department of Transportation recommends Metro bus and water taxi riders and people who travel unincorporated county roads monitor weather reports and connect to information available from King County, including travel alerts. Resources… Read More
Inclusion Works!
In observation of King County’s Disability Awareness Month, we would like to highlight a success story in progress …and an employer who is taking steps to ensure a more inclusive and diverse workforce that recognizes the professional contributions of individuals with behavioral health disabilities. Meet Nick… Nick is an Inventory Specialist at Amazon who ensures that multiple Amazon locations are fully stocked with supplies for his hard-working colleagues. He recently celebrated nine months as a full time Amazonian, and has received praise from his supervisors. Nick moved to Seattle in 2006, looking… Read More
The Annual Employee Giving Drive and National Hispanic Heritage Month
The County’s 2016 Annual Employee Giving Drive began last week, and this year’s goal is to raise $1.82 million! The Employee Giving Program is a philanthropic resource for King County employees that benefits county employees by providing prescreened nonprofits, allowing you to plan your giving, making it possible for you to donate time (vacation or compensatory hours), and offering anonymity. In observance of Hispanic Heritage Month, the following are four nonprofits serving the King County area that are eligible to receive donations through the Employee Giving Program. Take a look at the services… Read More
Facilities Management Division goes deep for employee survey, focuses on language, access and privacy
Judy Hairston, Customer Relations and Employee Engagement Manager, wants to make direct contact with all 324 employees in the Facilities Management Division (FMD) during the employee survey period. It’s important to her because she wants people to know she is accountable to them in her new role overseeing employee engagement. “I know people have concerns about confidentiality and follow-up and I think being able to see my face and ask me questions helps.” This is no easy task in a 24/7 operation, but FMD’s team of three is committed to improving on… Read More
Five questions with Kara Hannigan, Training and Organizational Development Manager, Human Resources Division
Why did you start as a Training and Organizational Development Manager with King County? I’ve worked in learning and leadership development for many years across different sectors. Initially as a high school teacher, then training librarians and patrons to use computer applications and the Internet while working for The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and most recently, at Starbucks leading management and leadership development. What I love about learning and development is that, in an organization that cares about its employees and makes learning a priority, you can really make a difference…. Read More
Payroll beefs up security for direct deposits
To better protect the security of your banking information in PeopleSoft for direct deposit, beginning this week, bank account numbers will be masked in Self-Service except for the last four digits. Previously, the entire bank account number was visible. You will only see the entire number when you add a new bank account; after that, only the last four digits. This change can be seen in two different areas of PeopleSoft Self-Service: Direct Deposit and View Paycheck (see examples below). Self Service > My Payroll > Direct Deposit Self Service > My… Read More
Tech Tip: Cyber security and social media
There are more than 1.6 billion social network users worldwide. This is why cyberattackers love social media. In fact, one recent study reports more than 600,000 Facebook accounts are compromised everyday. Here’s the lowdown on their favorite attacks: Like-jacking: occurs when criminals post fake Facebook “like” buttons to webpages. Users who click the button don’t “like” the page, but instead download malware. Link-jacking: this is a practice used to redirect one website’s links to another which hackers use to redirect users from trusted websites to malware infected websites that hide drive-by downloads… Read More
The annual Employee Giving Drive is underway
The County’s 2016 Annual Employee Giving Drive has begun! Last year’s drive raised more than $1.75 million for hundreds of nonprofit organizations. This year’s goal is $1.82 million. This is the power of our workplace giving program. We can harness our individual actions to make a substantial collective impact in areas such as the access to education, food and hunger, and the arts. The Employee Giving Program is a philanthropic resource for King County employees, and benefits county employees by: Providing prescreened nonprofits Allowing you to plan your giving Providing you the… Read More
County recognizes and celebrates value of workers with disabilities, proclaimed October Disability Awareness Month
As the Metropolitan King County Council declared October as Disability Employment Awareness Month in King County, the Council celebrated the talents and contributions of county employees with temporary or permanent disabilities serving the public. “Families and communities within King County are enriched by the diversity and perspective of those living with a disability,” said Council Chair Joe McDermott. “We must continue to strive to address the injustices that linger and remove the barriers that remain, so that all lives are equally valued, no matter ability.” In addition to the Council’s reading of… Read More
Employee survey participation continues to grow, nearing 50 percent in some departments
The 2016 Employee Survey, open until Friday, October 21, continues to gain responses, with some departments nearing 50 percent. View the data on the survey website to find out how your department is doing. As a reminder, King County is committed to increasing equity, fairness, opportunity and social justice in all we do. This includes equity in our employee experiences. We are asking for you to complete demographic questions so that we can learn whether employees with different backgrounds and characteristics have significantly different work experiences at King County. This information will… Read More
Featured Job: Communications Manager
Closing Date/Time: Wed. 10/12/16 11:59 PM Pacific Time Salary: $92,830.40 – $117,665.60 Annually Job Type: Career Service, Full Time, 40 hrs/week Location: King Street Center – 201 S Jackson St, Seattle, Washington Department: Department of Transportation – Director’s office Description: This exciting career service opportunity is open to all qualified candidates. The position manages the Department of Transportation’s Office of Communications and reports to the Department Deputy Director. The Communication Manager supervises eleven staff members in the Director’s Office who perform a wide range of duties, including strategic communication planning, management of… Read More
KCIT presents Hands on Technology Day at Chinook Oct. 10
On Monday, Oct. 10 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Chinook lobby and rooms 121, 123 and 124 will host KCIT Tech professionals ready and willing to help. We have tables and booths and room dedicated to King County employee support. Bring your device (county-issued laptops, smartphones, tablets) to our HelpDesk for repairs. Join us in person or via Skype for Skype tutorials including: Noon: How to set up a Skype Meeting to allow both internal and external people to attend the meeting for the sharing and brainstorming of ideas and information…. Read More
Indigenous Peoples’ Day Monday, Oct. 10
Seattle voted in 2014 to honor Native Americans, and their contributions to our history and achievements, on what has traditionally been celebrated as Columbus Day. Now the second Monday in October is officially Indigenous Peoples’ Day in Seattle. It’s an especially poignant turnaround given that in 1865 the City of Seattle passed a resolution banning Native Americans from living in Seattle. Indigenous Peoples’ Day also recognizes that we all are living on Indian land, and that without the displacement of its first inhabitants, none of us would be here. The day also… Read More
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