Dive Brief:
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The IT sector lost 28,800 jobs in May, according to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by CompTIA.
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Much of the decline occurred in the telecom category, which lost 37,200 jobs last month, CompTIA said. Meanwhile, computer and electronic products manufacturing lost 800 jobs in May.
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On a positive note, the IT services category added 7,400 jobs in May.
Dive Insight:
The slowdown in IT was not a total surprise, as jobs decreased in the U.S. overall in May. IT occupation employment across sectors also declined, with 96,000 jobs lost in May.
"Much like the rest of the May jobs report, it was a down month for both IT sector and IT occupation employment," said Tim Herbert, senior vice president, research and market intelligence, CompTIA. "While there continues to be strong demand for IT professionals—their unemployment rate remains about half of the national average—the data indicates some employers are holding off on adding additional headcount or reassessing their IT skills needs."
The report may not be as bad as it sounds, however. The downturn in telecommunications was primarily due telecommunications industry workers who were on strike and not on company payrolls during the month, CompTIA said.
The report was, however, a trend reversal from the first four months of the year, which saw 24,400 IT jobs added.
Overall, demand for IT workers remains strong. According to CompTIA, employers listed 58,700 job openings for software and application developer positions last month, 15,000 for computer systems engineers and architects, 13,900 for computer systems analysts, 13,700 for IT project managers and 13,200 for computer user support specialists.
