Dive Brief:
- Industry analysts say companies are hiring fewer people and spending less on IT as the global markets continue to struggle amidst weak economic growth.
- Janco Associates estimated that only 5,300 tech jobs were created in the U.S. in January. In that same time frame a year ago, 15,900 IT jobs were created.
- The U.S. Department of Labor Statistics said January was the worst month of net new IT jobs since August of 2014.
Dive Insight:
With continued market uncertainty, companies are reacting with layoffs and hiring freezes, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Because IT salaries are often among the highest in a company, tech jobs are sometimes the first to go.
IT jobs had already cooled significantly at the end of 2015. Foote Partners said that December 2015 numbers made it the “second-worst month for IT employment” in 2015. Analysts said slower IT hiring may mean IT budget cuts are right around the corner. According to Gartner, IT spending was already down more than 5% at the end of 2015.
David Foote said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that the role of technology may change at large companies, as they continue to adopt cloud technologies. Companies are also looking for candidates business savvy along with their technology skills.
