Tech employment increases in still tight labor market, CompTIA analysis finds

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. (Aug. 4, 2023) — The tracking measures covering tech industry employment, tech occupation employment and the tech unemployment rate recorded positive gains for the month, according to analysis by CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the information technology (IT) industry and workforce.

Tech sector companies increased their staffing by 5,432 employees in July, CompTIA’s analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics #JobsReport data reveals. New hiring in IT and custom software services and systems design; and PC, semiconductor and components manufacturing led the way.

Tech occupations among employers across all industry sectors of the economy increased by 65,000, reversing the negative growth of the previous month. [1]

The tech occupation unemployment rate fell to 1.8%, the lowest rate since January 2023.

“Given the pace of tech hiring, it remains a fairly tight market for tech talent,” said Tim Herbert, chief research officer, CompTIA. “It continues to be an environment where employers must supplement recruiting efforts with proactive talent development strategies.”

Employers eased back on job postings for tech occupations, which totaled approximately 204,400 for the month.[2] Positions for software developers and engineers, IT project managers, data analysts, IT support specialists and emerging technologies saw the strongest demand. Positions in emerging technologies or requiring emerging tech skills accounted for about 23% of all tech job postings in July. Within the emerging tech category, 35% of job postings referenced artificial intelligence work and skills.  

Among industries, the largest share of July tech job postings came from employers in the professional, scientific and technical services sector. Companies in administrative support, manufacturing and finance and insurance were also active in the search for tech talent.

While most metro markets saw a decline in tech job postings, several ‘under the radar’ regions experienced month-over-month growth, including St. Louis, Jacksonville, Sacramento and Las Vegas.

The “CompTIA Tech Jobs Report” is available at https://www.comptia.org/content/tech-jobs-report.

About CompTIA

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is the world’s leading information technology (IT) certification and training body. CompTIA is a mission-driven organization committed to unlocking the potential of every student, career changer or professional seeking to begin or advance in a technology career. Each year CompTIA, directly and through its global network of partners, provides millions of people with training, education and certification. To learn more visit https://www.comptia.org/