Nominations are now open for the Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards
The Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards recognize individual employees and workgroups whose innovations and improvements are delivering excellence for our customers, our organization, and our region.
This year, the awards will honor Executive branch employees and teams for their exceptional contributions in leadership, innovation, and Lean maturity in the past 12 months. There are three award categories:
- Innovation Awards: People, Cost, Service, Equity and Social Justice, Climate and Environmental Stewardship
- Leadership Excellence Awards: People Leader, Individual Contributor, Fred Jarrett Award
- Road to Excellence Awards: Divisions that achieve Stabilization Level or higher on all categories of the Lean Maturity Model
The nomination period is now open through Feb. 20, 2023, and anyone can nominate employees or teams for the Innovation and Leadership Awards. Review the nomination criteria here.
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Crossposted from the DES Express
Brian Becker spent the first 16 years of his career as a professional chef. Now he’s got nearly that much experience as a mechanic. Becker sees many similarities between the two careers. Plus, his dad was a mechanic and he grew up tinkering with cars, so it seemed like a natural transition.
Becker has been a heavy-duty mechanic at Fleet Services for about four years, and is one of six field mechanics there. His job is to service all sorts of vehicles and equipment at the wastewater treatment plants at West Point, South (in Renton) and Vashon Island, as well as respond to “road calls,” emergencies that come up. He’s also a backup mechanic for King County International Airport – Boeing Field. Read more.
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Reminder: Leave donation programs revised
King County recently replaced the employee donated leave programs with two similar programs that better comply with IRS tax requirements: The Employee-to-Employee Medical Leave Donation Program allows you to donate your accrued leave directly to another employee. The Emergency Medical Leave Fund makes permanent the emergency leave fund started during the pandemic and allows you to donate accrued leave and request donations from a central fund. Read more.
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Make tax season less taxing with My Secure Advantage
For many of us, filing your taxes can cause anxiety. Using your financial wellness benefit, My Secure Advantage (MSA), there are several ways to take the stress out of this tax season:
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Consult an MSA tax specialist - Have tax-related questions? Talk with an MSA Money Coach to get answers and talk through your options. Call 1-888-724-2326 to schedule an appointment. King County employees get 90 days of free money coaching every year.
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Assisted tax prep - Taxes can be confusing and time-consuming, so why not have a tax professional handle your tax prep for you? See MSA Assisted Tax Prep for more details and information on the 25% discount available to you.
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Do It Yourself (DIY) tax prep - If you like to complete your own taxes, make it quick, easy and cost-effective with MSA’s 25% discount on do-it-yourself online tax filing services. See MSA DIY Tax Prep to get started.
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IE web browser is no longer supported – please use Edge
Microsoft is disabling their Internet Explorer (IE) web browser in favor of Edge. Going forward, any links you click will automatically open in Edge rather than IE. You can manually open Microsoft Edge by searching your Windows start menu in the lower left corner of your screen. For easier access, you can add the Edge browser to your task bar (the bottom ribbon on your screen) by simply right clicking on the Edge icon and selecting the “pin to taskbar” option.
The Edge browser is expected to work with nearly all websites; however, if you encounter an issue with Edge that impacts your work, please submit a Helpdesk Ticket.
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Is your internet unreliable? Help improve our nation’s broadband investments
The Federal Communications Commission recently published a new National Broadband Map, which attempts to show where internet service is and is not available for every location in the country. The map will guide how the Federal government spends $42.45 billion to expand high-speed internet access across the nation and it’s important to get it right.
You can look up your address to make sure the map is accurate in terms of internet service availability and speed for your home or business. If you spot a problem with the map, you can submit a formal challenge through the Washington State Broadband Office.
For more information about how to access the map and file a challenge, if necessary, you can visit the Washington State Broadband Office webpage.
Employees are invited to join the Anti-Racist White Action Group
Join us for the monthly Anti-Racist White Action Group (ARWAG) meeting on Jan. 24. We will welcome David Elliott from the Partnership for Youth Justice Program with King County Superior Court. He will share an opportunity to serve on Community Accountability Boards that support programs preventing youth from becoming involved in the criminal justice system. Then we will spend time in our new ARWAG Workgroups (Education & Training, Partnerships and Community, and Human Resources and Data), drafting each group's mission, capacity, and goals for 2023. This is important agenda-framing work for the year.
Hope to see you there!
ARWAG is one of the county’s Affinity Groups (also called Employee Resource Groups) that addresses racism and other forms of oppression to advance the county’s equity and social justice goals. Email arwag@kingcounty.gov to join this group, get the meeting notices, or for any questions.
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Training Spotlights
Brain-based Time Management – Online – This hands-on 3.5 hour online class will show you how to support your brain so you can be more efficient with time, more effective in planning, and experience less stress and feeling overwhelmed.
- The next session is Thursday, Jan. 26, from 8:30 a.m. to noon, with a fee of $50. Register here.
Communication and Problem Solving Skills – Online – Join instructor Lenny Borer for this one-day training. He will address communication and problem-solving skills with the public and with co-workers. This class covers skills for effective listening, speaking, handling conflicts, and managing defensive behavior.
- This class takes place on Tuesday, Jan. 31, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a fee of $85. Register here.
Please visit our King County Eventbrite website, our Learning and Development website, and our Career Support Services website for more learning opportunities. For more information, contact the Learning and Development Team at KCTraining@kingcounty.gov or visit Learning and Development at www.kingcounty.gov/learning.
Pet of the Week: Dallas
Hi, my name is Dallas and I'm available for adoption! I'm a 9-month-old male American Bulldog mix, with black and white colors. When I first arrived at RASKC I was very shut down and afraid of everyone and everything. However, my caregivers worked tirelessly with me and I've learned to trust humans again.
You can find out more about me and my other friends on our website at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet. Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC) has moved back to walk-in services. Find out more information about our adoption process on our website. If you have more questions, contact RASKC via phone at 206-296-7387 (PETS) or email pets@kingcounty.gov.
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Featured Job: Security Screener
Salary: $48,609.60 - $61,609.60 Annually
Location: Multiple locations in King County, WA
Job Type: Civil Service, Full Time, 40/hrs Wk
Department: KCSO - Sheriff's Office
Job Number: 2023MA17816
Division: Support Services
Closing: 12/31/2023 11:59 PM Pacific time
The Security Screener position is a great opportunity to become part of the King County Sheriff's Office team! If you have a passion for customer service, public service, public safety, and working in a team environment, where every day brings new challenges, this may be the job for you. Security Screeners are tasked with the important role of keeping the building occupants safe while establishing the tone of everyone's visit.
Learn more about this position and view all available positions.
King County Headlines
Metro Matters: Lynnwood Link Connections: Metro hosts virtual open houses on proposed bus improvements for future light rail stations
Best Starts for Kids: Best Starts is Seeking Community Members to join our Home-Based Services RFP Review Panel!
Public Health Insider: What to do if a rat comes up your toilet
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