Doing business with Employment Security
What we buy and how we buy
Employment Security Department (ESD) purchases goods to operate WorkSource offices, unemployment-claims telecenters and administrative offices located throughout Washington state. Employment Security uses state contracts for most of its purchases and encourage vendors to contact the administering agencies and find out how to become a provider on state contracts.Employment Security fully supports the governor's Supplier Diversity Initiative. We encourage minority and/or women business owners to contact Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises to find out how to become a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) or Women Business Enterprise (WBE) for the purposes of doing business with ESD and other state agencies.
Frequently asked questions
What does Employment Security buy?
How do I sell my product or service to Employment Security?
What are the current opportunities for doing business with Employment Security?
How do I get on Employment Security’s vendor list?
What is Supplier Diversity?
How does certification benefit me and my business?
Employment Security buys most goods and services from statewide contracts maintained by other agencies. Below are the major items we purchase and the agency managing the contract.
| What we buy | Administering Agency |
| Office furniture (in partnership with Dept. of Corrections) | Dept. of General Administration |
| Office supplies | |
| Janitorial services | |
| Moving services | |
| Leased facilities | |
| Travel | |
| Vehicles | |
| Photocopiers and multi-functional devices | |
| Telecommunication services, including cellular products and services | Dept. of Information Services |
| Local and wide-area-network services | |
| Personal computers, servers, printers and other computing hardware and software | |
| Project-management and software-development services | |
| Management- and organizational-development services | Dept. of Personnel |
| High-performance team development | |
| Leadership-skills-strengthening services | |
| Process improvement and business redesign | |
| Performance management | |
| Document production, print-on-demand, forms and graphic design services for projects that cannot be done in-house | |
How do I sell my product or service to ESD?
We use state contracts for the majority of our purchases. Vendors can contact the administering agency directly about becoming a provider on state contracts.
- Current market conditions (to determine if a pricing has changed such that it would make rebidding worthwhile),
- Performance of the current vendor/supplier,
- Availability of new providers,
- Opportunity to improve pricing, and
- Other factors unique to the particular contract.
How do I get on ESD’s vendor list?
Employment Security Department does not maintain its own vendor lists. ESD uses Washington Electronic Business Solution (WEBS) and works with Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises (OMWBE) to locate qualified vendors for purchases that are not from state contracts.
Employment Security Department posts all formal procurement opportunities on WEBS' Web site. Once you register, you will automatically receive notices of acquisitions for the products and services your business offers.
What is Supplier Diversity?
Supplier Diversity is an initiative sponsored by Governor Christine Gregoire in July 2006. The Governor's challenge to the state: Increase contracting and procurement with minority- and woman-owned businesses through genuine outreach, opportunity, and inclusion.
How does certification benefit me and my business?
Washington state government agencies are working to increase opportunities for certified minority-owned or woman-owned businesses. Certification can give your firm greater visibility and differentiates you from your competitors.
To get certified, visit Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises' Web site, and select the Certification tab on the home page, or call (toll-free) 866-208-1064.
For more information about doing business with Employment Security, e-mail us.
