Wednesday August 11 2021 Update

Welcome to Wednesday!  We made it through the primary election yesterday.  Kudos to Amanda Ercanbrack and Janene Weiss for all their work and to the County Elections Office who did the heavy lifting for the election.  Voter turnout for the election is about 20%, which is very good for a primary.  The election is the solid foundation for the governance of the City every two years, and having voters feel a sense of confidence in the process is important.  Results will still trickle in over the next week or so as mailed ballots are opened, and will be finalized for the election canvass on August 24.  

We also had a meeting today with Eric Edwards and his staff at the Utah County Health Department.  We talked at length about what the City can do to encourage our residents to make informed decisions about Covid-19 vaccinations.  The City Council has tasked us with preparing a plan to increase the vaccination rate in Provo, and we determined to work closely with the Health Department team in finding a path forward that can make a difference.  Watch for more details coming in the next couple of weeks as we flesh out a plan.

UPCOMING CITY EVENTS

Crochet Club: Crochet Basics I August 12 6:30 - 7:00 pm

Crochet Club: Bags I August 12 7:00 - 8:00 pm

Tween Academy: Jade Mountain Academy I August 21 11:00 - 1:00 pm

Provo City Library Writing Group I August 21 1:00 - 2:00 pm

Rock The Canyon I August 28 4:00 pm - 8:00pm
Blue Skies Concert Series I Wednesdays through September 22

YOUR VOICE

I wanted to close the loop on a recent Daily Update poll on how employees feel about their jobs and how the City supports them.  

What do you like most about your job? (Hint - it's about the people)

• My schedule
• Excellent job security 
• The people I work with.
• I enjoy that my job comes with many different responsibilities. I never get bored from doing the same thing every day. 
• Decent pay and my coworkers 
• Knowing I did my best
• Helping people understand government better
• Problem solving
• Interacting with employees from other departments
• The 4/10 work schedule!
• The challenges
• The people I work with
• The people I work with
• It is interesting, and it affords me an opportunity to help improve the quality of life in our community.
• Always something new, and generally get the chance to make life better
• The people I work with/for.
• I work with amazing people.
• Helping people
• Coworkers
• Stability
• 4/10 work weeks
• Coworkers
• The work environment
• The work environment and job tasks
• My coworkers.
• The laughs and hearing people laugh
• Flexibility, independence
• Coworkers
• The people I work with
• The people I work with
• Flexibility
• We make a difference
• The people I work with.
• Feeling like I am making Provo a better place
• Everyday is different and brings new challenges. 
• Helping people
• The great people
• The people I work with
• Fairly decent pay and benefits
• Doing something different every day! And interacting with people!
• Doing what I love + flexibility
• The work and engagement to educate people
• The Hours and the over all work that I get to Perform 
• My favorite thing about my job is working four-tens. 
• My favorite thing about my job that's actually relevant to my job is working with so many amazing city employees
• My team. The work we do for the residents.
• The people I work with.

What do you like least about your job? (Hint - it's about the "system")

• The pay
• Poop and poop water.
• The criminals I deal with at court.
• Not many people understand my job, which makes it difficult to ever really take a vacation. Coverage options are very limited. 
• The fact that there is nowhere to grow within the next two decades
• Cold weather
• Politics
• 10 hour work day
• Uncomfortable office chair
• Doesn't pay enough for me to even afford a studio apartment on my single income.
• The inconsistencies
• The Compensation
• Sitting at a desk all day
• When those with whom I interact fail to improve their situations.
• Telling people no.  
• Sometimes the hours are long.
• The pay wage is low, so I work 2 jobs.
• Dealing with hard manager-type of things
• Limited cross-departmental training 
• Management
• The 10 hr days
• Love the three-day weekends, but four-tens are becoming less conducive to family life and regular exercise during the week. :(
• The commute
• When a customer starts yelling
• Being up at night.
• Nothing 
• lack of resources
• Deadline pressure
• That I have to go into work.
• Lack of leadership involvement
• Snow removal
• Trying to transition to all digital.
• How slow projects move
• Sometimes the call-out hours come at the most inconvenient times. 
• Feeling like I have more assignments than I have time to complete.
• Failure to communicate - unanswered emails
• The commute 
• (Sometimes) interacting with people.
• No option to advance 
• The feeling of having to walk on eggshells around others that think they are the boss 
• Talking to angry constituents
• City politics / lack of clear direction and accountability.
• The stress.

Great feedback.  Thanks everyone for weighing in.  We will be looking at your responses and figuring out how we can do better.

NEWS YOU CAN USE

• Artist Rich McCor has created clever paper cutouts that transforms architecture and landmarks into amusing scenes.
• Westminster College announced that students and employees associated with the school are required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine by October.
• A Utah Department of Health survey discovered the top five reasons Utahns don't get Covid-19 vaccines.

PROVO SOCIAL MEDIA

EMPLOYEE / DEPARTMENT HIGHLIGHT

This week we want to highlight Brandon O'Brien, who this past Spring, completed his Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Science from the University of Phoenix while working as an operator at the wastewater treatment plant. Way to go Brandon!  If you see Brandon around, offer your congrats! 

FUN STUFF

For many of our employees who grew up dancing in the 90's, this little music video is for you!  I have shared music from the acapella group Pentatonix before, but this is a mashup of 90's dance music covers from a variety of artists.  I hope you enjoy a brief break from work to listen to some of the best of the 90's dance music - just be careful not to pull too many muscles with your 90's dance moves.  😏

See you tomorrow with the ever popular weekly edition of my favorite Internet memes!

Wayne