Tech Job Report Sends Mixed Messages to the IT Industry
The tech industry saw a net gain of over 7,500 new workers in June, however, those increases were offset by a loss of over 22,000 tech workers from the overall United States economy and a jump in unemployment, according to the latest tech jobs report provided by CompTIA.
Tech Unemployment Rises But Continues Under National Average
After seeing consecutive months of the tech unemployment rate dropping, June saw the rate rise to 3.7%, above the previous month’s number of 2.5%. While still lower than the U.S. national unemployment average of 4.1%, the rate increase shows that there is still a measure of uncertainty in the tech job market. It is important to note the high volatility of month-over-month data, as we saw a similar sharp rise earlier this year, which gradually subsided throughout the spring.
“As companies evaluate their hiring plans for the second half of 2024, month-to-month volatility is to be expected," said James Vallone, Executive Vice President of Motion Recruitment. "Some industries continue to see high demand for tech talent while others temporarily stagnate; hiring leaders who focus on long-term goals and production, versus making decisions based on fluctuations in the market, will set themselves up for success in both 2024 and beyond."
Tech Job Postings Slow, But IT Employment in Many Sectors Still Strong
System Design and IT/Custom Software Services remains a large part of the tech employment space, with over 2.5 million workers currently in the field, their ranks grew by 7,400 this month. While Telecommunications saw a decrease of a similar amount, Cloud Infrastructure, Data Processing & Hosting as a sector saw 1,000 more added in June than May. With just over 1 million workers, PC, Semiconductor, and Components Manufacturing followed as their numbers stayed essentially flat month-over-month.
The number of new technology job postings saw a slight decrease, with about 200,000 posted in total, down from approximately 209,000 in May. While many major cities saw small declines in new job posts, San Francisco and Denver were outliers, seeing month-over-month growth in new job postings, with an over 1,000 and 400 post increase respectively.
As strong public sector hiring continues, Washington D.C. remains the top metro for job postings with 13,240 new tech job postings this month. New York City, Dallas and Chicago take the next three spots. California topped the state's list for new tech jobs with almost 22,000 new listings, with Texas, Virginia and Florida also near the top of the list.
"Despite pockets of growth, the recent data indicates a degree of downward pressure on tech employment," said Tim Herbert, CompTIA chief research officer in a press release. "A combination of factors, including AI FOMO, likely contributes to segments of employers taking a wait-and-see approach with tech hiring."
To see where you fit into today’s tech job market, contact your local Motion Recruitment office today to learn how Motion can help you take the next step in the IT industry, whether as a hiring manager looking to fill specialized tech roles or as a worker in the tech world looking for new opportunities.