Tech Unemployment Rate at Near-Record Low

More than 400,000 employer job postings for IT occupations in March 2022

Great news for IT job seekers!

The unemployment rate for technology occupations has fallen to a near-record low. Tech companies added workers for the 16th consecutive month and employer job postings for tech positions surpassed 400,000 in March, according to an analysis of the latest labor market data by CompTIA.

The solid employment numbers tracked in the latest CompTIA Tech Jobs Report contributed to the strong national employment story.

  • Employers added 431,000 jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)

  • Employer job postings for core technology occupations hit 412,000 in March, an increase of more than 29,000 postings from February and the first time the monthly count has surpassed 400,000

“The already tight labor market just became even tighter as competition for tech talent reaches near-record levels,” said Tim Herbert, chief research officer at CompTIA. “For any employer relying on the old hiring playbook, it’s time to rethink approaches to recruiting and retention.”

  • IT occupations across the U.S. economy increased by 19,000 in March

  • The unemployment rate for tech occupations is 1.3%, its lowest level since June 2019 and about one-third of the current national unemployment rate (3.6%)

  • Within the tech sector, new hiring in the IT services and custom software development occupations category (+12,300) accounted for better than two-thirds of all jobs added by tech companies in March

  • Other information services, including search engines, also recorded a solid month of jobs growth (+6,300)

Employer job postings show that the search for tech talent is widespread across industries and geographies.

  • Companies in professional, scientific and technical services (70,377), manufacturing (52,007) and finance and insurance (49,587) had the most tech jobs postings last month.

  • Demand was also strong in the information, retail trade, health care and social assistance, public administration and education services sectors.

Analysis of job posting data by metropolitan areas suggests that hiring momentum may be picking up in some markets that began 2022 with a modest level of activity. These metros topped the list of the largest month-over-month increases in job postings:

  • New York City (+3,571)

  • Chicago (+1,912)

  • Atlanta (+1,379)

  • Philadelphia (+1,279)

  • Charlotte (+1,204)

Software developers and engineers are far and away the most sought-after positions companies are looking to fill, with more than 115,000 job postings across the country. IT support specialists, IT project managers, systems engineers and architects and network engineers and architects are also in high demand.

Demand for tech talent is spiking compensation; the average tech salary now stands at $104,566, according to the most recent Dice Tech Salary Report, having risen 6.9% between 2020 and 2021. For specialized occupations such as data science, salaries are even higher: according to Emsi Burning Glass, which collects and analyzes millions of job postings from across the country, the median salary for a data scientist currently stands at $112,359, and the profession is expected to grow significantly by 2030.

Other jobs primed for expansion over the next 10 years include:

  • Cybersecurity specialists

  • Web developers

  • Database administrators and architects

  • IT support specialists

  • CIOs

As tech stacks evolve and business needs change, organizations everywhere will need a variety of technologists to not only keep things running, but also figure out future strategy. While knowing technical skills will prove invaluable to landing these positions, they’ll also demand empathy, communication, and creativity. Specializing in “hot” submarkets such as artificial intelligence (A.I.) will allow employers to negotiate for even higher compensation.

Having trouble finding tech talent? Reach out to our tenured recruiting team today.

Source: CompTIA