Seattle and Tacoma Seaports Drive the Pacific Northwest Economy
By John Wolfe, CEO for the Northwest Seaport Alliance
Recently the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma and the Northwest Seaport Alliance released a first of its kind collaborative effort to measure the statewide economic impact of our Puget Sound ports. From the airport, to our marine cargo gateway, from the fishing fleets to the ecosystem of industrial lands that support all our port’s activities, these ports have a regional to global impact.
Collectively, the three agencies supported 265,000 jobs in 2023, the year that was evaluated, generated $17.7 billion in wages and benefits and nearly $55 billion in business output.
One of the reasons this collaborative approach to our economic impact is so important is because of the ecosystem of facilities, industrial lands, infrastructure, and people who support our work. None of us operate in silos. It doesn’t matter to a worker at a cold storage facility whether their job is related to refrigerated cargo about to head out to Asian markets, or fish freshly caught from off the coast of Alaska. Our industrial lands support warehousing, manufacturing, fabrication, and repair facilities that serve all lines of businesses, and our transportation corridors move people and goods through the Puget Sound and beyond. There is a vast network of supportive industries intrinsic to the success of our region’s ports.
The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) handled nearly three million TEUs in 2023, and over 3.3 million TEUs last year. We are also a key gateway for auto imports, farm equipment, and breakbulk cargo. There were an estimated 52,100 total jobs related to these lines of business in 2023, and 18,000 of those were direct jobs. NWSA cargo operations supported an estimated $4.4 billion in total wages and benefits, and nearly $14 billion in total business output throughout the state of Washington.
The direct jobs – such as longshore workers, truck drivers, and rail workers – are a key metric for our success, and the analysis also evaluated indirect jobs and induced economic impact. For example, a job at a store where the goods coming through the port are sold (indirect) or a port worker spending their wages in the local economy (induced). Together, these represent overall impacts of port activities, demonstrating the amplifying economic effect our agencies have across the region.
Equally important is what these definitions do not include. Not represented in these economic impact categories are other maritime partners like farmers, exporters, importers or manufacturers. It does not include the tens of thousands of people in Washington state, and throughout the US, whose jobs are tied to activity through this gateway. And if our ports did not exist, many of those jobs wouldn’t exist either.
We have seen firsthand how disruptions in the NWSA gateway have ripple effects across the world. Whether the supply chain challenges of COVID, or the recent unpredictability driven by tariffs, we can see evidence of this analysis’ findings in the disseminated impact from these events. There are immediate impacts to those direct jobs, whether longshore shifts or truck trips, and they continue down the line including warehouse staffing and the impacts to farmers and agricultural exporters. Here in the Puget Sound, we are the second largest agricultural gateway in the US, and the NWSA is second for refrigerated exports. Disruptions in our supply chain, whatever the cause, have real impacts from farmers in Idaho and to consumers in Michigan.
This economic impact analysis helped validate something already familiar to us- how critical trade through our ports is to Washington State. We know that Washington State is one of the most trade dependent states in the country, and we often overlook the robust supply chain and ecosystem that entails. That is why we take our mission of economic prosperity so seriously; we know how important that mission is to the 52,000 people whose livelihoods depend on it. To the businesses across the state and the US who can meet their missions because of the existence of our gateway. And to the consumers across the US and around the world bringing food and goods into their homes from faraway places after traveling across our docks. The NWSA turns 10 this year, and what better way to celebrate than re-assessing and affirming our economic impact, along with our two home ports, across the state. We look forward to continuing to serve this role for Washington State, the US, and across the globe for years to come.
The commentary, views, and opinions expressed by John Wolfe are his own and do not reflect the views or positions of the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. PMSA does not endorse, support, or make any representations regarding the content provided by any third party commentator.
About John Wolfe
John Wolfe is chief executive officer of The Northwest Seaport Alliance. He sets the organization’s vision and strategy and guides the NWSA’s unique customer-focused culture.
Wolfe previously served as the CEO of the Port of Tacoma, a position he was named to in 2010.
Prior to joining the Port of Tacoma, Wolfe served for two years as the executive director of the Port of Olympia, and before that as Olympia’s director of operation and marine terminal general manager.
Wolfe also spent 10 years with Maersk Sealand/APM Terminal in Tacoma, most recently as the terminal’s operations manager.
He is on the boards of the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA), Federal Reserve Bank San Francisco Seattle Branch, the Washington State Fair Board, Federal Maritime Commission’s Export Innovation Team and Washington Public Ports Association Trade and Transportation Committee.
Wolfe earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Pacific Lutheran University. See full bio.