Battle for Techies Heats Up

Two years ago, the grim economy was considered by some experts as a boost for government, at least in terms of hiring skilled individuals who were laid off or recent college graduates who would have otherwise fled to the private sector. But that is no longer the case for the information technology sector, a new report suggests.

The report by TechServe Alliance -- a consulting group that analyzes Bureau of Labor Statistics data -- notes that the number of IT jobs currently stands at 4,008,600, making May the seventeenth straight month that IT employment has increased. IT employment has actually surpassed 2008 peak levels of 4 million jobs, the group noted.

Computer systems and design services added the most jobs, with an increase of 4.52 percent over May 2010. Data processing, hosting and related services added 0.29 percent jobs in May 2011, but overall employment in the field is down 0.74 percent from last year. Telecommunications jobs also decreased 3.71 percent since May 2010, TechServe Alliance found.