Dear colleagues,

As part of our county-wide planning for a significant disaster, emergency, or adverse weather event, such as our Emergency Snow Network, King County Metro leaders have been asked to prioritize which functions and services will be provided, which can be delayed or suspended, and which employees are considered mission-critical or non-mission critical.

Every Metro employee has a specific employee designation, which includes the following:

• First responders: Employees who, in the early stages of an incident, are responsible for protecting and preserving life, property, evidence, the environment, and restoring order.
• Mission-critical (levels 1 and 2): Employees who provide for and maintain the critical functions of county services. Mission-critical employees (level 1) must be available to perform their duties as determined by their agency management and are expected to report to their usual county worksite as normally scheduled. If unable to report to their worksite, the employee must contact their supervisor to report their status, receive an assignment, and/or be directed to an alternate worksite location. The employee may also be assigned by agency management to telecommute and telecommuting agreements should be put in place prior to an emergency. If they are unable to report, they may request leave (other than sick leave). Telecommuting agreements are a business decision determined by your division/section leadership.
• Metro defines mission-critical employees (level 2) as staff that possess skills and/or abilities to perform critical functions but may not be required to report to their worksite during initial critical emergency response. These employees must contact their manager/supervisor to receive an assignment and/or be directed to their worksite or an alternate work location, as determined by management. If they are unable to report, they may request leave (other than sick leave). Telecommuting agreements are a business decision determined by your division/section leadership.
• Non-mission critical: Employees who staff important county functions or services that may be suspended in an emergency while essential functions are prioritized. These employees do not need to report to their usual county worksite or contact their manager/supervisor. However, it should not be presumed that non-mission critical employees won’t be asked to report to work during an emergency, only that in the initial impact period, the functions they perform may not be required for emergency response or business continuity of essential functions. Telecommuting is not an option, but non-mission critical employees will receive regular pay in the event of an emergency.

The following groups have been designated as first responders or mission critical (level 1 or level 2):

• Generally speaking, all Division Directors, AGMs, supervisors, managing directors, and chiefs are mission critical
• All Bus Operations employees are mission critical
• All Marine employees are mission critical with the exception of one TLT
• All Rail employees are mission critical
• All VM employees are mission critical with the exception of painters, upholsters, and damage estimators
• All Facilities employees are mission critical
• All Safety, Security, and Emergency Management employees are first responders or mission critical
• All Contracted Services employees are mission critical
• All Customer Communications and Services employees are mission critical except for warehouse and advertising sales employees

I also encourage all of you to take some time to individually prepare for an emergency to keep you and your loved ones safe. Take Winter by Storm and Make it Through are great resources to get you started.

People depend on transit as a lifeline, especially during snow storms and other emergency events. Thank you for the hard work you do every day to keep our customers and each other safe. We don’t move a mile without you.

I appreciate you,

Terry White
Deputy General Manager