News Releases

WALNUT CREEK, Calif., January 17, 2001
Westaff, Inc. (NASDAQ: WSTF), a leading provider of essential staffing services, announces the promotion of David Wilson to the position of Vice President, Director of Information Services.

Wilson will be responsible for overseeing all functions of Westaff's Information Services Department.

Wilson joined Westaff in December of 1997 and managed the company's field automation process. In June of 1998, Wilson was given the added task of managing Westaff's IS Customer Service Department and Help Desk functions. In these roles, Wilson was instrumental in the successful rollout of Westaff's Wide Area Network (WAN) and has been a key player in supporting the rollout of Westaff's field office automation tool (WAVE). He has also helped build a solid IS Customer Service Department.

``Dave has a tremendous level of energy as well as a great customer service attitude, and he has gained the respect of both the field offices and the corporate staff,'' said Dirk Sodestrom, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. ``I am excited that Dave is willing to step into this key role.''

Before joining Westaff in 1997, Wilson was a Manager of Marketing Information Systems for three years and a Corporate Database Administrator for four years at Triad Systems Corp. in Livermore, CA. He was also a Senior Programmer Analyst and a Systems Administrator for Franklin Quest in Salt Lake City, UT, between 1988 and 1991.

Westaff provides essential staffing services to and employment opportunities at competitive businesses in global markets. Westaff annually employs approximately 270,000 people worldwide and services approximately 25,000 clients from more than 350 offices located throughout the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and Denmark. Westaff achieved fiscal 2000 system revenues more than $700 million. For more information, please contact Steve Guertin at 925/930-5300, x2239, sguertin@westaff.com, or visit Westaff's Web site at www.westaff.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding future events and future performance of the company that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. We refer you to documents that the company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, such as Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K reports, which contain a description of certain factors that could cause actual results to differ from current expectations and the forward-looking statements in this press release.