DENVER - Mountain States Employers Council today announced it is acquiring Phoenix-based Arizona Employers Council, creating the largest employer association in the nation with more than 3,500 members who employ nearly 800,000.

With this acquisition, the MSEC will have an office outside of Colorado for the first time in its 70-year history. MSEC will open its Phoenix office as Mountain States Employers Council/Arizona. Ken Pinnock, currently MSEC director of Human Resource Services in Denver, will direct the Arizona office.

Headquartered in Denver, MSEC has offices in Fort Collins and Colorado Springs.

"We are a cooperative association of employers, driven by our own members to provide services they need and desire in an economical, high-quality fashion," said Michael Severns, MSEC president and CEO. "This business model has proven successful in Colorado and the Mountain West, and we look forward to working with the Arizona business community to develop the same value proposition for employers in Phoenix and greater Arizona."