Telecommunications Bounces Back in Strong Month for Job Growth

If you’re an IT pro looking for a new job, there are emerging opportunities everywhere, even in telecommunications.

Last month, the U.S. IT sector recorded its strongest month of job growth so far this year, adding about 14,500 positions, according to CompTIA’s review of Friday’s Bureau of Labor Statistics “Employment Situation” report. For the year, tech industry employment is up nearly 72,000 jobs, with 70 percent of those positions in IT services and custom software development.

Even the telecommunications category – which experienced employment declines each month during the first half of the year – entered positive territory last month with a modest gain of 600 jobs.

CompTIA’s Tim Herbert

“For tech employment, there is a lot to like in this month’s jobs report,” said Tim Herbert, CompTIA’s senior vice president of research and market intelligence. “The July numbers align to show continuing tech employment momentum heading into the second half of the year.”

Gains were recorded in all employment categories, led by IT services, custom software development and computer system design, which added 8,300 positions last month.

Within the IT sector, the category of other information services, including search portals, added 2,400 new jobs, the highest monthly gain in this segment this year.

The computer, electronics and semiconductor manufacturing category added an estimated 2,900 jobs. For the year, tech manufacturing employment has grown by an estimated 14,400 positions.

Employment in data processing, hosting and related services grew by 300 positions.

The July unemployment rate for IT occupations was unchanged at 1.9 percent, which remains one of the lowest rates across all occupation categories, according to CompTIA.

The positive tech jobs news extended to other sectors of the economy, as employers added 75,000 core technology positions in July. Looking ahead, companies increased the number of job postings for tech jobs by an estimated 53,000, to a little more than 300,000 in July.

“An examination of the companies looking for tech talent shows that it covers much of the economy, including technology, consulting, financial services, retail, health care and defense,” Herbert said.