It supports 42 percent of our state’s workforce, so it’s pretty safe to assert that the tech industry in Washington is nothing short of vital.
That’s what Geek Wire, a technology news site based in Seattle, reported after Monday’s Technology Alliance’s annual State of Technology Luncheon, the premier annual gathering for Washington’s innovation community, which had more than 700 people in attendance this year.
According to the TA’s findings presented at the event:
- In 2013 more than 460,000 people were employed in Washington’s technology-based industries, that’s 14 percent of all employment and $55 billion in payroll.
- With multiplier effects, the tech industry supports 1.4 million jobs, which is about 42 percent of the workforce.
- For every 100 tech jobs in the state, another 200 jobs are created in industries such as retail, law and finance.
For more cool charts, go to the Geek Wire story here.
Cheryl Vedoe, a board member of the TA, said the state’s tech economy is diversifying and growing stronger, but that we continue importing tech talent. She stressed that the state must take steps, including additional capacity in colleges and universities, to ensure Washington can grow its own new generation of technologists to fill those jobs.
The Technology Alliance is a statewide nonprofit organization that has been advancing excellence in technology education, research and entrepreneurship through programs, events, data analysis and policy activities for over twenty years. Check out their research studies and reports here.