Number Unemployed IT Pros

The number of IT Pros who are unemployed in the US is under 100,000 - Unemployment rate is less than the national average

Historically the unemployment rate for IT Professionals and those in the Information field is less than that of the national average as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Janco reviews this data and includes it in its process of forecasting the growth of the IT Job Market.

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National Unemployment Rate versus IT Pros Unemployment Rate

In January the report from the BLS the National Unemployment Rate was 3.7% versus 5.5% for IT Professionals.

Information Technology Unemployment Rate
Unemployment rate for IT Pros

There currently are over 96,000 unemployed IT professionals and the unemployment rate for IT professionals is slightly better than the national unemployment rate.

IT Job Market Flat for FY 2024

There now are approximately 96K unemployed IT Professionals. The IT job market shrank by over 48,600 jobs in CY 2023. Overall that is a flattening of the long term growth rate pattern of IT job market.

IT Job Market Forecast

IT Pros unemployed

Number of Open Jobs for IT Prosa
Data complied and forecast updated by Janco Associates with data as of April 2024

If qualified, there are more than enough opening to proved jobs to the unemployed IT Professionals. The kicker however is that many of the unemployed IT professionals do not have the skills for the open positions.

Over the last several quarters that has been the dilemma these IT Pros are facing. There is no short term solution for this. We currently are seeing a number of these professions doing the following:

  • Get training and experience with the skills that are in demand.
  • Going into the sub-contractor market to earn income while they continue to look for positions they are qualified for.
  • Collecting unemployment while they look for a new position
  • Leaving the IT field for one where they can find employment.

Number unemployed Information individuals
Many IT Pros who lost their jobs earlier found positions in March and drove the IT unemployment rate down.

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