IT Employment Growth Strong, Telecom Not So Much

The U.S. IT sector last month showed continued strong growth, adding 9,600 new jobs, while IT employment across all sectors of the economy dropped by 90,000 jobs.

That’s according to CompTIA’s analysis of the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics “Employment Situation” report. For the year, IT employment has increased by an estimated 48,900, and June marked the fifth consecutive month of employment gains.

“Despite the mixed bag of results in the tech labor market over the past several months, demand for tech talent remains strong,” said Tim Herbert, CompTIA’s senior vice president for research and market intelligence. “There will always be a degree of volatility in BLS data from month-to-month. Over the long term, we expect the growth trajectory to continue.”

Tim Herbert

Tim Herbert

IT services, custom software development and computer system design added 6,000 positions last month. This category has grown by 41,000 jobs through the first half of 2018.

Computer, electronics and semiconductor manufacturing increased by 5,100 jobs, including gains in the subcategories of electronic instruments (3,100), and semiconductors and electronic components (1,700). So far this year, tech manufacturing employment has expanded by 14,100 jobs.

Data processing, hosting and related services added 1,100 jobs, reversing May’s slight step back in employment. For the year, this category has grown by 10,000 positions. Other information services, including search portals, grew by a modest 600 jobs.

Telecommunications employment shed 3,200 positions in June. This category has shrunk by 18,200 jobs so far this year; and has shed an estimated 30,700 jobs during the past 12 months.

“This reflects the ongoing dynamic of telecom companies pursuing growth in new areas such as the Internet of Things (IoT), 5G and IT services, while contending with the maturing technologies and business models of the past,” Herbert said.