Voting

Staff are encouraged to vote in city, coutny, state and national elections.  Most employees can vote during early voting or before or after work.

Consult the city policy for additional information: 

http://www.houstontx.gov/hrpolicies/files/301.pdf

Thanks,

Laurie

Changes in Security

Hello,

The alarm monitoring company has changed to Koetter Fire and Protection and their subsidiary Rocman Security.  It will take 6-12 weeks to fully transition to the new company.

One of the main changes with the new system is that all after hour calls will be directed to the On-Call Security staff.  They will inform the monitoring company to either 1) disregard the alarm, 2) send Blackhawk Patrol, or 3) contact HPD. 

Only in the event of an actual break in will they then call the NL Administration On Call person.  NL Admin will then in turn call a key holder at the building--the manager or their designees.  Branch staff who are on the after hours call list still have the responsibility to answer the phone call and meet the on call security person at the building to identify if anything has been stolen or damaged.  Security will make arrangements for any doors or windows to be boarded up. 

If there are any special events that would cause staff to enter the building early or late, or if someone accidentally sets off the alarm, please let the on call security person know.  If there is an event planned in advance, please email Frederick Lee and copy Mary Wilson, Quin Harris and Mark Enax.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Laurie

WPR Reminder

Don't forget, Work Progress Reports are due 10/22/12 for non-supervisors!

Thanks,

Laurie

Door Count next week

Door Count starts Sunday October 14th and runs until Saturday October 20th.

The only two things that need to be counted are Visitors (on an hourly basis) and in-house use on a daily basis. These numbers are very helpful for us to make decisions on services, staffing, and capital improvements.

Here is a template for the count that you may use if you wish. https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B6pUcgF0fjLbVFVjU1ZLOXY0Tms

Let your Team Leader/Coordinator know if you have any questions or contact Steve Hill.

Thanks, Laurie

HEAR Training

In July, HR announced the new employee performance management process, the Houston Employee Assessment and Review, or HEAR for short. Since then, Administrative Procedure 3-20 (AP 3-20) on the HEAR process and the HEAR Process Guidelines have been approved, signed and released.
Now it's time for training
All supervisors and managers will be required to take a 15-20 minute web-based training on AP 3-20 before registering for a seven-hour face-to-face training on the HEAR process.
You have been registered for this web-based training in the city's Learning Management System (LMS) and should have received an email confirmation from the LMS adminstrator. You should encourage your employees to take it as well so that they can know more about the new HEAR procedures.
Face-to-face HEAR training sessions begin in early October and run through December. Sessions are available at the E.B. Cape Center as well as other sites across the city.
HEAR training details

• Both registration and manager approval are required
• Submit a time-off request in KRONOS (Code: TRGM for municipal employees and TRNG for classified employees)
• Late arrivals and walk-ins are not accepted, and a 15-minute tardy rule will be strictly enforced
• Download, print, and bring your training materials to the session (Instructors will have limited copies of the training manual)
• Bring a “current” goal or job duty for one of your employees to class (required)

Log on to the LMS system to take the web-based training and schedule a session for the class.

Read the HEAR Guidelines before your session.
Let your Team Leader or Coordinator know if you have any questions. Thanks, Laurie

Drivers' License Request Form

Hi - As per the email from Sharon Alvarez to complete and send the completed Drivers' License request form to her by October, 10th, 2012, I wanted to share some information with you all. The form asks for Department # and that is 3400. Please enter 3400 in the box for Department Number. Please feel free post a comment here or call your Team Leader for any question you may have about this. Thanks, Shammi

JAWS and ZoomText - Disabilities Awareness Month

Access on Demand!!! National Disabilities Awareness Month Houston Public Library has two 17-inch laptops with JAWS (screen reading software) and ZoomText (screen magnification software) available for in-house use. Customers may request this equipment by contacting staff at any Houston Public Library location, over the phone, or via e-mail. Please send an email request to the IT HelpDesk on the customer's behalf. With advance notice of 24 hours, these laptops can be shipped to any Houston Public Library location. A 24 inch monitor is also available upon request. http://www.houstonlibrary.org/disabilities-awareness-month Thank you so much for sharing this important resource with our customers! Thanks for sharing and caring! Mary