Public Works employee receives Outstanding Service Award

Angie Haslag poses outside Jefferson City Municipal Building where she
works as an administrative assistant for the Public Works Department.
Angie Haslag poses outside Jefferson City Municipal Building where she works as an administrative assistant for the Public Works Department.

When Angie Haslag listened to Jefferson City's 2017 Outstanding Service Award nominations, she thought the comments were about a different city employee.

"They were reading off the nominations and all that and what everybody says, and I thought, 'Oh, that kind of sounds like so-and-so in our Finance Department.' And then suddenly, they were like, 'And she's willing to help out at the front desk anytime,' and all of a sudden I knew and just thought, 'Oh my gosh.' I was in total shock," Haslag said, laughing.

She described herself as a shy person who avoids the spotlight.

Haslag started working as an administrative assistant for the Jefferson City Public Works Department in 2011 and before that was an administrative technician for five years for the department. While her job mainly entails processing accounts payable and invoices for the department and working on employee payroll, she does little jobs around the department, occasionally helping at the front desk or organizing department events.

Since Haslag joined the Public Works department, she's seen a variety of changes, the biggest being the separation of the old Jefferson City Community Development Department. That department split into the Public Works Department and the Planning and Protective Services Department in 2011.

While she enjoys seeing the projects the department works on, Haslag's favorite part of the job is interaction with the city's different departments and divisions.

"I love the people who work here," she said. "My coworkers just make it nice to come here and they're just fun to be around. And I get to interact with other departments, not every day but sometimes. You get to know other people in the other departments through, like, invoicing problems or whatever. You just get to know a lot of other people through this job."

After attending Lincoln University for a year, Haslag started working full time at Mid-City Lumber in Jefferson City, where she also worked with invoices and payroll. Having that background helps her as an administrative assistant because she learned how to process a variety of paperwork, she said.

When Haslag first started with the city, she wished someone would have told her to not be scared to ask questions, especially when her job involves working with the different departments.

"Just be open with other departments and divisions that can help you out and answer your questions," she said. "I rely on other divisions in the city to help me do my job, and hopefully, they can come to me if they have a question on what I do. We all just kind of work together."