IT Jobs on the Rise in the US Despite Limited Talent Pool

The number of IT jobs in the United States is growing steadily, although an inadequate supply of talent has continued to pose a challenge. According to data released by the TechServe Alliance, a U.S. trade association for IT & engineering staffing and solutions firms, IT jobs rose 0.4% in January to more than 4.8 million.

On a year-over-year basis, the number of IT jobs rose 4.7% in the United States, with a total addition of 216,800 IT workers.

The demand for IT jobs appears likely to remain strong in the months to come but generating new talent should be priority, says the trade association, which releases monthly updates of IT jobs in the United States.

The United States also posted a 0.2% increase in engineering jobs in January. On a year-over-year basis, the number of engineering jobs rose 1.8% in the United States, adding 43,700 engineering workers to reach a total of more than 2.5 million.

“In January, IT and engineering employment showed strength as we kicked-off 2015. Following robust growth in 2014, all indications are that we will have another strong year for IT and engineering employment in 2015,” said TechServe Alliance CEO Mark Roberts.

However, Roberts warned that industries dependent on IT might run out of steam if the workforce is not expanded.

“Without a significant increase in the availability of talent by growing the domestic IT and engineering workforce or increasing the availability of high-skilled foreign professionals, all industries dependent on technical talent will continue to be at risk of not having their needs fully met,” Roberts added.

The IT employment market in the United States has undergone a sea change in the past few years.

When the recession hit the U.S. economy in 2008, many firms laid off IT workers and then shifted to consulting firms and contract workers to fill the gaps and take on new projects, but now more and more companies are replacing their contract IT workers with full-time employees.