Barrett Business Services, Inc. Announces Acquisition of Staff Leasing Division

PORTLAND, Ore., Oct. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Barrett Business Services, Inc.

(Nasdaq: BBSI) announced today that it has acquired the staff leasing division

of an Orange County, California staffing services company for $660,000 in

cash. The acquisition will be effective on November 4, 1996. The division's

annual revenues for the fiscal year ended September 30, 1996 were

approximately $10.5 million and generated a gross margin of approximately six

percent.

William W. Sherertz, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented that

"We are very pleased with this opportunity to expand our presence in Southern

California through this acquisition which adds approximately 100 companies to

our existing client base."

Barrett Business Services is a human resource management company with

offices in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Arizona, Maryland and

Delaware. Barrett reported revenues of $179.8 million and net income of

$4.1 million for 1995.

Forward-Looking Information: Statements within this news release

which are not historical in nature are forward-looking statements, which are

subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual future results to

differ materially. Such risks and uncertainties with respect to the Company

include difficulties associated with integrating acquired businesses and

clients into the Company's operations, economic trends in the Company's

service areas, uncertainties regarding government regulation of PEOs and the

staff leasing industry, and other risks and uncertainties discussed in the

Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE Barrett Business Services Inc.
CONTACT: William W. Sherertz, President and Chief Executive Officer of Barrett Business Services Inc., 503-220-0988

Released October 31, 1996