Watch the Latest Listening Session on Social Justice

Our Employee Resource Group Council hosted a listening session on social justice, equity and identity on Thursday, Sept. 10. Watch the archive and challenge yourself!

The ERG Council invites employees to participate in the CA4Health Racial Equity and Social Justice 21-Day Challenge. The challenge is designed to help us discover how racial, social and environmental injustices impact our community, to connect with one another, and identify ways to dismantle racism and other forms of discrimination.

Participants will dedicate approximately 30 minutes each day on activities such as reading an article, watching a video, reflecting on personal experiences and more.

The challenge starts Sept. 14. Register now.

For questions, suggestions, or to get in touch with the ERG Council, please email ergcouncil@sdcounty.ca.gov.

Remembering 9/11

Flags are flying at half-staff at all County facilities today in tribute to first responders and all those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

ERG Event: Millennials Guide to Savings

The LGBTQ & Allies Association Employee Resource Group will host a “Millennial’s Guide to Savings” webinar with San Diego County Credit Union on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 12:30 p.m. The financial webinar will cover tips and suggestions on planning for retirement, building an emergency savings and become financially independent.

Register for the event now.

Kudos for a double emergency response

Message from CAO Helen Robbins-Meyer

Labor Day weekend turned out to be no holiday for many of our colleagues. While most San Diegans did their best to hide from heat and smoke, hundreds of County employees were busy tackling twin emergencies of fire and COVID-19.

The Valley Fire destroyed a number of homes and drove residents from a broad section of East County. On top of all the staff called on to handle the response, another 200+ employees volunteered to work shelters if more evacuations were needed. Thankfully, that wasn’t necessary, but I am so touched by the desire to help.

Even with the fire still active, we’ve already started on recovery for people who lost property. My thanks in advance to everyone involved in that long process.  

This fire struck as we head into peak fire season, and as we’ve seen horrific wildfires around the state. It’s all the reminder any of us needs to be prepared. Have a plan for yourself and family, pets included. Stay informed. Make sure your cellphone is signed up with AlertSanDiego, especially if your home has no landline.

Meanwhile, our team fighting COVID-19 had a new challenge: a spike in cases among students at San Diego State. This meant an intense effort in cooperation with the school to limit the spread of the disease. That started last week, ran all through the weekend, and continues. Of course, that’s after months of tireless work by so many employees to control the pandemic.   

And another huge event is approaching quickly: the November presidential election. I discussed all the changes coming in a recent message and the special staffing it will require. Employees are stepping up again, with more than 400 volunteering to be assigned to our Registrar for nine days leading up to the election.

This year has demanded so much of everyone, and you continue to come through time and again. The commitment to serving our residents is unparalleled. I don’t have words to tell you how much I appreciate your work and how proud I am to be part of such a dedicated team.

2020 has been a tough one, and it may have more to throw at us yet. As I’ve said before, please take care of yourself, look out for each other. And thank you again for all you do.

Attend a Virtual Open Enrollment Fair

This year’s Open Enrollment fairs are coming straight to you! The Department of Human Resources will be hosting several online virtual information sessions with benefit providers. See the schedule and mark your calendars.

“Attend” an Open Enrollment fair to learn about plan changes for next year and meet with benefit providers Allstate, EAP, ASIFlex, Delta Dental, Kaiser Permanente, Lincoln Financial Group, MetLife, PerkSpot, Optum Bank, UnitedHealthcare and VSP.

The Open Enrollment fairs are scheduled from Sept. 9 to Sept. 24

Open Enrollment is from Sept. 28 to Oct. 22.

Learn more about Open Enrollment, including what’s new, on the Open Enrollment website.

It’s National Payroll Week

Celebrating National Payroll Week makes cents! The week recognizes payroll professionals who make sure employees are paid timely and accurately.

There are about 320 payroll professionals that help process over 494,000 paychecks for approximately $1.54 billion a year for our workforce.  Plus, this year they have been extra busy with payroll for temporary election employees and COVID-19 contact tracers.

A big thanks to our payroll professionals during National Payroll Week and every week!

County Employees Asked To Be Alert, Prepare to Evacuate If Needed

Be prepared and alert as Santa Ana winds could cause the Valley Fire to grow overnight.

Dangerous fire weather is in the forecast, please be prepared at home to keep yourself and your family safe especially if you live in the areas around the Valley Fire.

We also want to thank all the County staff who are supporting the Fire Response.

The Valley Fire, which has grown to thousands of acres in just a few days, is a growing threat to communities in San Diego County with the Santa Ana wind event forecast for today. Residents, particularly those who live in communities around the fire perimeter, are asked to be ready to evacuate in 15 minutes or less.

Santa Ana winds are projected, at this point, to pick up in the evening hours, so it is important that residents be ready to go before then. In some previous fires, residents have been given less than 15 minutes to evacuate and were alerted in the overnight hours.

“We want to remind people to get prepared to evacuate in case it is needed and stay alert to the weather conditions, news and notifications from officials. This is an active fire and it can change directions and intensity depending on weather, so it’s important to take warnings and orders seriously,” said Jeff Toney, Director of the Office of Emergency Services. “We also want people to know that if they do not feel safe, they can evacuate early. People do not need to, and should not, wait for an official evacuation order.”

This map shows evacuation orders and warnings and the fire perimeter as of 8 a.m. Sept. 8.

• Be sure your cell phone is registered with AlertSanDiego, the county’s regional notification system to receive the warnings directly to your mobile phone. People may also register their VoIP phone numbers or emails as well.

• Residents may also download the ReadySanDiego SDEmergencyApp which also provides emergency information such as incident updates, shelter locations, evacuation areas and hazard perimeters.

• Tune in to local news coverage on the fire. The main Emergency Alert System radio stations for San Diego County are KOGO AM 600 and KLSD AM 1360.

• Now is the time for households to review, or create, a personal disaster plan in English or in Spanish. The guide includes disaster preparedness and immediate safety tips that can be used in any emergency. Among the tips are what you need to know about evacuations and suggestions on what you can take with you. Residents may also consider various routes to take to leave the community, know more than one in case one is not safe to use due to the emergency.

• Check on elderly or neighbors who might require assistance evacuating.

• Have a plan to shelter large animals or livestock and if possible, evacuate them early. If you need assistance evacuating call (619) 236-2341.

• Take household pets with you whenever possible.

• If you have a life-threatening emergency, call 9-1-1.

• Visit our preparedness website org.

Attend a Social Justice Listening Session

All employees are invited to join our Employee Resource Group Council for a listening session on social justice, equity and identity on Thursday, Sept. 10 at noon.

This session will center on Black voices in order to improve our County workforce and customer service experiences.

Attendees are encouraged to listen and participate. If you prefer to remain anonymous, send questions/comments to ERGCouncil@sdcounty.ca.gov by Sept. 9.

The virtual event will be on WebEx. The meeting ID is 133 437 6736 and password is 12345. You can also join by phone by calling (470) 238-5742.

The session will be recorded and posted to InSite after the event.

See the flyer.

Excessive Heat Warning Issued

The National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning for San Diego County Mountains, Deserts, Valleys, and Coasts, effective until Monday, Sept. 7 at 8 p.m. Dangerously hot conditions with high temperatures of 90 to 121 degrees expected.

Learn more on sdcountyemergency.com.

CAO: The Next Steps in Diversity & Inclusion

Message from Helen Robbins-Meyer, Chief Administrative Officer

In the wake of another police shooting of a young black man in Wisconsin and the events that followed that led to more tragic deaths, we all continue to struggle with our feelings about equity and racial justice, while recognizing there’s so much that must be done. 

As CAO, I want to definitively state that I cannot tolerate discrimination and racism in our workforce. Blatant racism is easy to address. Let me assure you, we will. But it’s the systemic and unconscious things we all do that are every bit as hurtful individually and harmful to our workplace. And it crosses all skin colors, cultural and religious beliefs, and sexual identities. That’s why we have to tackle this journey together with open ears, open minds and open hearts. 

We have started that process, and our Diversity & Inclusion Executive Council put together a summary of recent and coming actions. I am inspired by their work and excited for what’s to come. I encourage you to take a look at The Next Steps: Diversity and Inclusion.