IT Employment Continues to ‘Run in Place’ in August

Alexandria VA, Sept. 13, 2023 – IT employment remained effectively flat in August with a tick down of only 0.02% month-over-month, according to TechServe Alliance, the national trade association for the Technology Staffing and Solutions Industry. On a year-over-year basis, IT employment was down 2.05% from July 2022, a net loss of 111,500 jobs. The Engineering sector showed a year-over-year job growth rate of 2.40% with the addition of 65,800 jobs during the year.

“After a significant downdraft in IT employment through April, IT employment has been effectively “running in place” the last four months. In August, the change in IT employment was barely perceptible with a tick down of only 1,300 jobs nationwide or 0.02%,” observed Mark Roberts, CEO of TechServe Alliance.

“The absence of significant changes in IT employment over the last few months is clearly reflected in the hiring process—many employers have paused or slowed their hiring decisions. While the caution displayed by employers is largely attributable to the fear of a recession—a recession that has yet to arrive—we fully expect the hiring landscape to change once there is sustained evidence that we are not headed into a downturn. Digital transformation and IT projects critical to maintaining competitiveness have not gone away with many companies feeling a new sense of urgency to pursue an AI-led strategy,” Roberts added.

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