Careers

Oct. 27 Hot Topics


Please Note: This is a copy of an internal PUD newsletter. We provide it here to keep you updated on information going to employees. We have removed links from the original newsletter because the linked content cannot be accessed from the Internet.

To: Commissioners, all PUD employees
From: Communications Department
Subject: Hot topics for discussion the week of  Oct. 26 - 30, 2009.

(This advisory is sent to encourage districtwide discussion and awareness of key PUD issues. The intent is to give managers, supervisors and employees suggestions on topics they might discuss during departmental meetings. Contact Kimberlee Craig, Ext. 4320, or Christy Shearer, Ext. 4258, if you have questions.)

On the District Calendar   

On the air
Commissioner Dennis Bolz will be interviewed at 8:40 a.m. Tuesday on KOZI Radio (93.5 FM) about budget and conservation discussions at Monday’s board meeting. 

Commission meeting news
At Monday’s meeting:

Stay well
The employee wellness screening runs Nov. 2-6. Here are the dates and locations:

In addition to wellness testing, Therapeutic Touch will provide chair massage at the sessions to demonstrate the health benefits of massage. This will be done at no cost to the PUD. The 10-minute sessions are first-come first-serve with three massage therapists at Rock Island, Rocky Reach and Headquarters.

Electric Toasters hosts fall Open House 
Want to be a better speaker? Learn by doing -- among friends -- with the Electric Toasters. You're invited to attend our Open House at noon Tuesday, Nov. 3, in the PUD Auditorium. Bring your brown-bag lunch; we'll provide the coffee and cookies. Questions? Contact Kelly Cordell-Stine at ext. 4762.

Get your vehicle ready for winter
If the vehicle you drive had snow tires last year and you’d like them installed after Nov. 1, please fill out the Fleet Automotive Repair Request to get your service scheduled.

Reminders on managing furlough 
Human Resources wants employees to know there is a way to handle the gift or PL forfeiture exchange of furlough in less than eight-hour segments. The option only can be used if the gift or the exchange for forfeited PL results in reducing the furlough balance to zero for the beneficiary or the employee exchanging (forfeiting) PL.

Circumstances vary, but the deadline is Dec. 4 for processing a gift of furlough or to request an   exchange (forfeiture) of PL. Examples of cases where the procedure would be allowed are posted on the Contingency Planning page of PUDToday with other furlough information.

Contact Jennifer Dixon in payroll, ext. 4655, or Beverly Freeman, benefits manager, ext. 4448, if you have questions. 

Take the United Way challenge     
Puget Sound Energy will donate 25 cents for every $1 pledged to United Way by PUD employees through Nov. 8, and General Manager Rich Riazzi has pledged to donate an additional $10 for each new PUD donor this year (to a maximum of $1,000).  Forty-five PUD employees returned their pledges for the 2009-2010 campaign last week, securing (and exceeding) the match of 50 cent per $1 donation from Puget Sound Energy of up to $5,000.  PUD pledges so far total $17,015.

“Live United” is the theme of this year’s United Way of Chelan and Douglas Counties fund-raising campaign.  Kris Pomianek in Licensing, ext. 4186, and Irene Godfrey, strategic financial planning, ext. 4866, are once again coordinating the PUD’s pledge effort, which runs through Nov. 13. Look for donation forms sent to all employees by inter-office mail.

PureSafety training deadline next month
Required training for 2009 must be completed by Nov. 30, 2009. Click here to log in. To access required online training from the PUDToday homepage, go to:  Tasks>Training> Links>PureSafety. Please contact Tracy Dunning, ext. 4491, or Dave Parkhill, ext. 4132, if you have any questions.

Get to know the new Maximo
The District will change to the new version of Maximo - v7 – on Jan. 4. All employees who use Maximo or will be using it need to attend training classes. Sign up in PeopleSoft with course numbers from the calendar on the Maximo Training Intranet site. “Navigation Training” is a pre-requisite for any additional training – PCS, work orders, etc. Click here to learn how to view available classes by subject. Have questions? Contact Maryann Wood, ext. 4004.

We built it and the salmon are coming 
“Wow, that’s more than I expected” said Jeff Osborn, PUD fish biologist and license program coordinator, after the most recent survey of the new  tailrace and channel fish habitat built below the Chelan Falls powerhouse. Last Friday there were 161 adult Chinook salmon and 84 egg nests (redds) made by spawning salmon in the two areas - 63 fish and 20 redds in the new habitat channel and 98 fish, 64 redds in the tailrace.  The $16 million project was finished earlier this fall as called for by the new license to operate Lake Chelan Hydro Project. 

Daylight-saving time ends on Sunday
Get ready to “fall back” on Sunday as daylight-saving time ends for the season. We return to standard time at 2 a.m. on this Sunday, Nov. 1. Remember to reset your clocks and enjoy the extra hour.    

Thanks for patience during the computer systems outage
Many people worked long hours last Thursday and into the early morning hours of Friday to fix a water leak that resulted in the PUD’s computer systems being shut down. Facilities staff thank those who did the repairs and all the employees whose work was interrupted by the network outage. Employees from the PUD Water Department, IT, Networks, Dispatch, Engineering Services and Facilities all helped restore service.

Repairs were needed because a leak was discovered in the chilled-water pipes that cool the District's data center, System Operations and the computer equipment rooms at the Confluence Technology Center. It had to be fixed immediately, which meant it couldn’t wait until the weekend. Unfortunately, it took longer to repair than planned. Temperatures in the data center increased to near critical levels, which required the computer networks to be shut down.