The geographic location of employment in the region is a crucial input to accurately model—and plan for—the substantial fraction of travel that occurs between home and work. However, the unemployment insurance reporting that serves as the basis for our employment location database has an important limitation: in many instances, large employers report one centralized payroll office rather than listing the places where its employees actually work.

In order to address this issue, supplemental efforts are undertaken to request more accurate information. The State Employment Security Department (ESD) asks private sector employers to list separate workplaces using a Multiple Worksite Report (MWR). To further improve data quality for our region, PSRC itself contacts the following employers:

The Boeing Company: A regionally significant employer with numerous locations, the Boeing Company voluntarily provides employment location and count information to PSRC annually.

Schools: Location and employment totals for all primary and secondary schools are provided annually by the Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI).

Government: Location and employment counts for local, state, and federal government entities are collected periodically by PSRC through direct correspondence with each government, department, or agency.

This supplemental information includes only job counts and locations. PSRC does not collect any confidential employee information.

PSRC sincerely appreciates the participation of these employers in helping improve job location data. An accurate geographic depiction of the jobs they provide to our region helps to enhance the quality and relevance of planning efforts here at PSRC, and those of our local member jurisdictions.

Questions? Contact: Alicia Lazzarini, alazzarini@psrc.org, 206-464-6174

(For questions about the employment database, please refer to covered employment estimates.)