According to a report released by CompTIA, which operates as a nonprofit organization for both employers and employees in the IT industry, the number of tech-related jobs across every industry increased by nearly 240,000 positions in July. The substantial increase in the number of IT occupations contradicts the large number of layoffs in the IT sector by several high-profile companies over the past several months.

In the IT sector, employment data shows a net gain of 12,700 employees, which represents the 20th consecutive month of job growth. Through July of 2022, the tech industry has realized an increase of 143,700 jobs, which is a 55 percent increase over the same period in 2021. Some of the job growth can be attributed to many companies once again hiring after a hiring freeze negatively impacted the tech sector during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. In July, the unemployment rate in the tech sector sat at just 1.7 percent. This is about one-half of the unemployment rate across all industries operating in the United States.

Tim Herbert, who is the Chief Researcher Officer at CompTIA, released a statement concerning the low unemployment numbers generated by the tech sector. “The tech jobs market has repeatedly outperformed in the face of real and perceived economic weakness,” Herbert said. “The data confirms that for every layoff announcement there are other employers stepping in to take advantage of tech talent hiring opportunities.”

The tech sector jobs data released by CompTIA for July reveals a few underlying fundamentals. Employment opportunities appear to exist for just about every level of expertise and experience. Growth in tech jobs occurred in a wide variety of occupational categories, as well as in nearly every major metropolitan jobs market in the United States. Smaller markets, such as Lansing, Michigan, and Little Rock Arkansas, also witnessed a dramatic jump in the number of tech industry jobs.

Engineers and software developers represent the most demanded tech sector positions, with more than 147,000 job postings in July alone. IT project managers and IT support specialists also experienced much stronger demand in July than in previous months. Around 20 percent of open tech positions required at least two years of experience, while 13 percent of tech industry employers recruited professionals with at least nine years of relevant experience.

The Other Side of the Job Coin

Although the job market remains robust for IT professionals that have compiled at least two years of experience, the same cannot be said about college graduates in search of entry-level IT positions. According to Janco Associates, job openings for entry-level IT professionals dropped from 29,500 in June.500 in April to 18,400 in June. Janco obtained its data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The report released by Janco Associates attributed the decline in the number of entry-level tech jobs to several factors, with almost every one of the 217 CIOs polled referring to the pending recession as the most common reason why C-level executives have stopped hiring entry-level IT workers. The same poll of CIOs stated the intent to limit the extension of contracts for contract employees and consultants after the third quarter of 2022. In addition to a contraction in the number of entry-level IT jobs, the 217 CIOs polled also stated their goal to not replace departing IT workers who do not possess critical IT skills.

The report released by Janco emphasized some large companies, such as Netflix, and PayPal, have already started laying off inexperienced IT employees.

The Importance of Computer Literacy

CTO of Blumira, Matthew Warner, noted that during the last significant recession in 2008, most companies did not lay off IT workers. Instead, less experienced staff moved to managed service providers to offer technical support. “However, over the last 10 years there has been an expansion of responsibility and need for internal IT staff enhanced by the MSP supporting staff,” he said. “While there may be some reduction in headcount at certain organizations for IT, there will be open jobs available to anyone who is smart and knows their technology.”

Warner added that computer literacy, which includes the ability to solve complex technical problems, is a highly demanded attribute for any IT professional as the amount of data processed grows quickly within companies of all sizes. “While entry level is still the minority in open positions, candidates who have multiple years of experience are needed more than ever to execute on needs without additional or unnecessary oversight to maintain efficient organizations,” Warner said.

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The wild card for projecting future job growth in the IT sector is the prediction of a pending recession. However, economic data released over the past few weeks has sent mixed messages. The unemployment rate across all economic sectors in the United States remains relatively low, but the combination of rapidly rising prices and a dramatic shortfall in energy production keeps the pundits guessing as to what is to come next.

For the IT sector, professionals with at least two years of experience appear to be recession-proof.

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