Employee News - September 4, 2019

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Highlights

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Balanced You Worksite Fund: Investing in Your Health and Well-Being

As we continue our efforts to make King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive, we are also working to make our worksites more supportive of the health and wellbeing of all employees.

One way that we are doing that is through the Balanced You Worksite Fund, a competitive process brought to you by the Balanced You team and part of our Investing in YOU strategy. Read more.


Southbound SR99 corridor buses routed to Fourth Avenue, improving evening commute 

West Seattle, Burien, and neighboring area bus riders will see more consistent travel times starting Monday, Sept. 9, 2019. After monitoring travel and transit times for buses on First Avenue and identifying significant impacts for commuters, officials from King County Metro and Seattle Department of Transportation announced a service revision that takes southbound buses off First Avenue and on to a pathway that utilizes Second Avenue and Fourth Avenue South. 

Metro will establish a long-term stop on Second Avenue Extension South between South Washington Street and South Main Street to replace the southbound stop at First Avenue South and South King Street. 


Employee Spotlights

15 Minutes with Airport Director John Parrott 

Meet new King County International Airport Director, John Parrott, as he talks about moving from Alaska to take the reins at Boeing Field. 

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Announcements

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King County Executive and DNRP Director recognize employees at annual picnic   

King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) held their annual employee picnic on the patio of King Street Center Thursday, Aug. 29, and were joined by some special guests. 

King County Executive Dow Constantine and DNRP Director Christie True thanked employees for a job well done and announced raffle winners. The department also hosted its own version of “Family Feud”, “Survey Sez” with Solid Waste Division Director Pat McLaughlin as host, and Deputy County Executive Rachel Smith was the head of one of the “families.”  

The picnic was a great opportunity to thank DNRP employees for their many achievements this year. Their hard work and professionalism was also recognized by King County voters, who recently approved the 2020-2025 Parks, Recreation, Trails and Open Space Levy. 

Image by Isabelle Trujillo, Communications Intern at King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks 


Bringing the region together to fight homelessness: Seattle and King County unveil new authority to unify response systems and services 

Crafted by Executive Constantine and Mayor Durkan, legislation now before the King County Council and Seattle City Council establishes the King County Regional Homelessness Authority to oversee policy, funding, and services for people experiencing homelessness countywide. The legislation includes a proposed Interlocal Agreement (ILA) and a Charter that authorizes the creation of the new Public Development Authority (PDA) to administer and oversee regional homelessness efforts. 

“The new regional authority represents a concerted effort to increase coordination and collaboration of our planning, resources and service delivery countywide to achieve a more efficient and effective response to the needs in our community,” said Executive Constantine. “We are determined to create a service system that seeks solutions to the disproportionality of homelessness among communities of color and listens to the voices of those with lived experience of homelessness as some of our most insightful consultants. Our vision is a homeless response system that is fair and just for all.” 


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Untold Stories: Lunch and Learn, Sept. 10 

As part of the Equity and Social Justice (ESJ) Initiative, King County government has prioritized race to address the historical and persistent inequities in our communities. Such inequities are experienced by the county’s own employees, both on and off the job. US–The Untold Story Project, sponsored by the ESJ Literary Project team, is excited to launch its 2019-2020 program. 

Come learn about the Untold Story Project, read stories, engage in conversations, and learn how to get involved in the Untold Story Project at this one hour Lunch and Learn!  

  • Sept. 10, 2019, noon – 1 p.m., King Street Center, 201 S. Jackson St., Room 8279, 8th Floor (Director’s Conference Room) 

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2019 Balanced You Worksite Fund recipients announced 

The Balanced You Worksite Fund is a competitive process brought to you by King County’s Department of Human Resources. The purpose of the Worksite Fund is to empower employees to make creative improvements to improve the health and well-being at their worksites.  

Today, Balanced You released the list of 2019 Worksite Fund recipients. This year, King County received over 150 applications and is investing over $100,000 in 44 projects reaching employees across the county.   

Projects are funded in a range of categories, including mental health. Mental health is an important part of overall health and well-being. Read more.


New Vanpool Pilot Program - 100% Metro Vanpool and Vanshare subsidy 

Starting October 1, the King County Employee Transportation Program (ETP) will cover the Metro Vanpool or Vanshare program for all King County employees who choose to form a new group or participant in an existing Metro vanpool or vanshare group.   

Currently, the King County ETP provides $65 per month towards the cost of your vanpool.  ETP has always provided a vanpool subsidy to King County employees, but now we are offering our employees a 100% Metro Vanpool and Vanshare subsidy.   

This is a one year pilot program that is available to all King County employees receiving transportation benefits! Read more.


Know how to register to vote 

Do you know how to register to vote? In King County, you can register to vote online or by mail until eight to days before an election or in-person through Election Day. Registrations done by mail need to be received, not postmarked, by the eight-day deadline. Learn more. 

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Life Cycle device replacement milestone 

The King County Information Technology (KCIT) Customer Support Services Provisioning team has deployed its 2,000th life cycle device replacement in August. LAN Administrator Daniel Co performed the deployment, bringing replacement equipment to Metro Administer Sara Stefano (pictured). The team is working towards replacing all Windows 7 devices by the end of the year, when Microsoft stops supporting it.  

The team has almost doubled its monthly deployment numbers in the past two years, from an average of 235 a month in 2017 to an average of 461 a month in 2019. “The team has greatly matured in the past few years, and they’re making great strides,” says KCIT Enterprise Manager Harry Clark. 

 The deployment team emphasizes the most important aspect of the process is ensuring users are present at the time of deployment. When users are not present, it slows the process considerably, since the deployment team can’t address any individual needs or issues.  


Snow emergencies will now mean free Metro transit 

On August 28 the Council approved legislation sponsored by Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles that would waive enforcement of Metro transit fares when Metro activates its Emergency Snow Network to encourage people to use transit and avoid driving during severe snowstorms. 

Metro customers will be able to ride without paying the transit fare while the Emergency Snow Network is in effect. The legislation increases accessibility of Metro transit service for those experiencing homelessness in need of shelter and encourages all residents to avoid driving during severe snowstorms. 

“Like our policy of free fares on New Year’s Eve, this legislation is about promoting safety,” said Kohl-Welles. “It will encourage people to stay off the roads and get to where they need using a safer mode of transportation – regardless if they have an Orca Card or enough money to pay the fare.” 


Training Spotlight

Defensive Driving, multiple dates: Dedicated to enhancing driving skills, reducing collisions and controlling insurance costs, this course focuses on accepting personal responsibility while operating a motor vehicle. Knowing why your vehicle performs the way it does, and understanding key concepts of safety, can reduce your chances of serious injury. A key objective of Defensive Driving training is to influence a person’s driving behavior. This we attempt to achieve through classroom interaction with not just the instructor, but with the other students as well. This certification is valid for 3 years. Register and learn more. 

View more training and development opportunities at www.kingcounty.gov/learning. 


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Pet of the Week: Bernard 

Bernard is a 5 ½ year-old, male, shorthair gray tabby cat (A579142). His personality color is RED, meaning he is a spirited cat with a fun-loving personality. Bernard is outgoing, playful and energetic. He may be sensitive to handling and can get overstimulated, so he would do best with a family who knows when to give him a break. This fun guy loves to play and can sometimes be rough and rowdy. He gets along with some other cats, but may be too much for others. He has also lived with a small dog in the past and would do well with a dog who is tolerant of his play style. Bernard has tested positive for Feline Immunodeficiency (FIV), which means he should live as an indoor-only cat. 

Read more at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet. 


Featured Job: Project Program Manager III 

Salary: $86,344.54 - $109,446.48 Annually 

Location: Seattle, WA 

Job Type: Career Service, Full Time, 40 hrs/week 

Department: DNRP - Natural Resources & Parks 

Job Number: 2019PM10524 

Closing: 9/15/2019 11:59 PM Pacific 

The Solid Waste Division (SWD), Recycling and Environmental Services (RES) section is recruiting for an enthusiastic team player to serve as the primary resource to RES for management and analysis of numerical data, including project expenditures, budget balances, and county-wide solid waste and recycling tonnage data. The position will require data analysis skills, knowledge of contract management, development of budget documents, and the ability to work closely with multiple individuals and groups, including SWD Financial and Planning staff, solid waste staff from city and state agencies, and privately-owned hauling companies.

This position will develop and manage the RES section budget, create and reconcile budget reports, manage Oracle reports, work directly with SWD finance staff, communicate regularly with the Hazardous Waste Management Program finance staff, communicate with RES staff regarding contracts, contract amendments and reconciliation of monthly, quarterly and annual financial data.

Learn more about this position or view all available positions. 


KC Headlines


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