AI jobs drive employment numbers in tech sector

A strong national jobs report trickled down to the tech sector as AI continued to push the industry’s fortunes.

According to numbers from CompTIA, tech unemployment fell from 3.3% in September to 2.8% in October. It’s a stronger number than the national unemployment rate of 4.1%, which also saw a month over month drop.

AI is helping to drive tech jobs, Seth Robinson, CompTIA VP of research, explained in a statement accompanying the numbers. Knowledge of how to navigate the new IT reality is key, with things changing so rapidly.

“The strength in tech hiring and job postings is encouraging, but the bigger story is where the demand is occurring,” Robinson said. “Employers across industries are looking for people with software, AI, cybersecurity, data, systems, and networking capabilities, reinforcing the value of building adaptable technology skills.”

That was borne out in the job postings. Data revealed that postings for AI skilled positions were up 6.2% month over month in October, and those for AI-specialized jobs were up 9.8%.

New data from Specialist Staffing Group, published October 20, reveals that STEM positions across the US economy are heavily impacted by AI and an evolving workforce. Over the past several quarters, companies would institute layoffs in hopes that AI’s added efficiency would cut down on headcount and salaries.

But now the pendulum is swinging back, as the jobs data shows—AI is creating IT jobs as enterprises integrate the technology into their practices and look for assistance in implementation.

In late September, a report from consulting firm McKinsey estimated a reduction in “labor demand by the equivalent of roughly 36 million jobs” but in the near future, “AI could create roughly 500,000 to two million new jobs in occupations that do not yet exist or are too small to measure today.”