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Science & Technology |
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Building & Sustaining a Technology Edge
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Demand for information technology workers
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Demand for information technology workers
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What does this indicator
measure?
This indicator measures the strength and direction of the local
technology sector.
Why is this indicator
important?
In addition to seed funding and the supply of tech workers, a third
and equally important factor for the support of a technology-based
economy is the demand for technology workers. Virtually every
company must now employ information technology (IT) workers for
internal networking, supplier connectivity, and customer
support. Technology-specific companies drive new innovations
that create a competitive edge in the future. A maintained need for
technology employment diversifies the risk to workers and
encourages relocation to the area. Dallas hosts the
headquarters and/or major operating units of some of the
nation’s leading technology companies, including Texas
Instruments, Nortel Networks, and Ericsson. Approximately 5%
of Dallas’ labor force is employed in high-tech jobs, well
above the national average of 3.1%.
As a secondary effect, the presence of private and nonprofit
high-tech organizations often leads to collaborative partnerships
with local universities, contributing to technology sector
longevity.
How are we
doing?
- Dallas ranked sixth in the nation in high-tech
jobs, with 5.0% of the total workforce considered high-tech
employment, according to the Progressive Policy Institute’s
April 2001 The Metropolitan New Economy Index.
Austin led the nation, with 9.0% of its workforce considered
high-tech employment. Other top areas include San Francisco
(8.6%), Raleigh–Durham (8.0%), Boston (7.1%), and Denver
(5.1%). No other Texas cities were included in the top
20.
- A 2005 AeA (formerly American Electronics
Association) report titled Cyberstates 2005: A State-by-State
Overview of the High-Technology Industry indicates that the
National Industry Segment Rankings ranked the state of Texas as
follows:
- Second in engineering services employment
(74,100 jobs)
- Second in semiconductor manufacturing employment
(36,900 jobs)
- Second in telecommunications services employment
(104,400 jobs)
- A Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas report released
in January 2006 reports that the tech sector, after seasonal
adjustments, lost 1,300 jobs during 2005, continuing a job loss
trend that began in 2001. However, in the past two years, the
tech job market has stabilized and is no longer recording the job
losses characteristic of the early 2000s.
- A December 2005 Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas report
states the information (specifically telecommunications) and air
transportation industries in the Dallas region continued to report
job losses through 2005. The technology sector losses were
offset by gains in construction and the leisure and hospitality
industry, resulting in a net gain of 21,000 jobs for the
year.
- In 1998, more than 1 in 10 Dallas workers were
considered high-tech employees, a total of 176,000 jobs, according
to Cybercities: A City-by-City Overview of the
High-Technology Industry, released by AeA in December
2000. Although more recent data are not available, the
Telecom Corridor indicates that initial data and
reports reveal Dallas has kept its technology employee base through
the economic downturn of the early 2000s.
- In January 2006, the Texas Workforce
Commission’s Texas Labor Market Review reported
the professional, scientific, and technical services industries
employed 129,700 workers in the Dallas Primary Metropolitan
Statistical Area (PMSA) in December 2005, an increase of
1,800 jobs from the previous December.
- The January 2006 Texas Labor Market
Review also reports the information industry employed 75,900
workers in December 2005, an increase from 74,800 in December
2004.
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