The effect of basic employment and regional factors on net migration: A study for Washington state

Relationships between net migration and basic employment, income, and regional urbanization are examined using 1960–70 census data for the state of Washington. Regression analysis indicates that changes in employment in agriculture, forestry, fishing and mining and in manufacturing have a direct effect on the rate of net migration. Change in median family income is also directly related to net migration but the effect is not as strong as that of employment. Location by region has a substantial impact on net population shifts with net inflows attributable to the urbanization which occurred in western Washington from 1960 to 1970. The employment, income, and regional effects are clarified by explicitly recognizing rapid growth in educational, governmental and retirement activity and recent large increases in basic employment which occurred in two small groups of counties. Overall, the results indicate that while the rate of net migration is responsive to changes in basic employment and family income, it is also important to recognize regional factors such as urbanization.A special note of appreciation is expressed to Mr. Sharif Masud who developed background data used in the analysis. Work was conducted under Regional Project W-118 of the Agricultural Research Center, Washington State University.