As Washington state’s unemployment rate approaches double digits, legislators are trying to curb the loss of jobs through a variety of programs. Unfortunately, city officials are poaching jobs from other cities to boost low employment rolls. Not only is this method of “job creation” counter-productive, it is also a waste of public funds.

The latest example is the Tacoma-based financial firm, Russell Investments. The company is looking for a place to construct its new headquarters and has mentioned Seattle as a possible location. In response, Tacoma has put together a package worth $148 million that includes tax breaks, a new parking garage and streetscape improvements to compete with Seattle’s tax break offer.

But even if the bid is successful, it would only save 900 jobs, which is a fraction of the roughly 15,000 Tacoma has lost since December. While stopping local employment loss is important, cities regularly go overboard when competing for businesses. A good example is the 2003 battle over the production of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. The state passed $3.2 billion in incentives to have the plane built in Western Washington.

Creating jobs via this method is a negative-sum game. Any company that can so easily relocate will likely do so regularly if not given incentives. This leads to absurd bidding contests among cities as each tries to upstage their rivals with a more ridiculous combination of tax breaks, subsidies and public expenditures for private benefit. This happened in 2001 when Chicago, Dallas and Denver competed to be the new location of Boeing’s global headquarters. The winner was Chicago, which offered the largest package, consisting of $41 million in incentives.

This type of employment poaching shifts rather than creates jobs. Moving an employee from Tacoma to Seattle will not reduce the region’s unemployment but will further impoverish both cities. While the losing city ends up with fewer jobs, the “winning” city will have only achieved a pyrrhic victory. Whether through tax exemptions or public expenditures, the winner will become poorer at a time when revenues are already low due to the recession.

The millions of dollars spent on stealing or saving jobs from other cities is money not used to produce more locally sustainable jobs. During the 1960s, Seattle’s Pike Place Market was scheduled to be demolished as part of an urban renewal plan to replace the market with a garage, hotel and park. Residents came together to save and revitalize the downtown icon. As a result, Pike Place Market has not only provided numerous jobs for more than three decades, but has become a vital tourist destination for the city.

Developing institutions such as Pike Place Market also have an added benefit of making the city a desirable place to live. Places that attract people for cultural reasons can help provide a strong workforce for potential employers.

Money spent on Pike Place Market produced the type of sustainable jobs that will fuel Washington’s economic recovery. The city and the state should focus their efforts on redeveloping infrastructure and supporting local entrepreneurs rather than getting in a bidding contest with other regions. With a little effort and planning, we can create the type of sustainable and local jobs that expand, rather than shift, employment.

Reach columnist Mike Noon at opinion@dailyuw.com.