Stimulus could boost IT job prospects

The outlook for IT jobs in 2009 may not be as bad as some observers suggest. While some indicators and surveys are showing some declines in tech jobs, none predict a precipitous drop. In fact, a federal economic stimulus package may even add IT positions.

"IT jobs are relatively safe in the aftermath of the economic meltdown compared to jobs in general," said David Foote of Vero Beach Fla.-based Foote Partners LLC , which analyzes IT wages and hiring data.

While 853,000 U.S. jobs in all industries were lost in October and November, 9,000 were gained in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics categories of "Computer Systems Design and Related Services" and "Management and Technical Consulting Services," said Foote.

The IT job market is stable, said Foote, "because a lot has happened to show businesses that IT is really our edge."

Robert J. McGovern, CEO of JobFox Inc., a career site in McLean, Va., is bullish in the belief that hundreds of thousands of tech jobs will be created from the federal stimulus of hundreds of billions of dollars that's expected early next year from President-elect Barack Obama 's administration and Congress.

Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world

• Email
• Print
• Share
  • Slashdot
  • Digg
  • Stumble
  • Reddit
  • Newsvine