Dive Brief:
- Technology workers remain in high demand despite economic concerns, with employers across the economy adding 137,000 technology jobs in November, a CompTIA review of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows.
- The unemployment rate in technology positions fell to 2%, down from 2.2% in October. This drop took place even as the overall unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%, the same as last month.
- While the numbers aren't enough to dismiss concerns over the health of the economy, the expansion in hiring should be a reassuring sign for the technology workforce, according to Tim Herbert, chief research officer at IT trade group CompTIA.
Dive Insight:
The month-to-month pulse emitted by jobs reports can help paint a broad picture for technology workers.
In November, the numbers countered the narrative of widespread turmoil for tech positions, and instead showed declining unemployment and a growing number of technology positions in corporate America.
The economy lost 116,000 tech jobs in October, but employers reversed the trend in November, despite a backdrop of high-profile layoffs and hiring freezes.
Tech unemployment continues to buck national trend
But not all signs were positive. Job postings for new tech hiring contracted in November, down to 270,000 from 317,000 in the previous month.
Companies were especially eager to hire software developers and engineers, alongside IT support specialists, systems engineers, IT project managers and network engineers, according to CompTIA.
Heading into 2023, leaders have shown no plans to lower the ambition of technology projects. Three in 5 leaders plan to increase spending on digital transformation for next year, according to a survey from BCG X.
To execute, businesses will need to attract and retain the talent needed to carry out these initiatives, a stubborn top concern for CIOs.
