Tech Outlook for 2015

The results of a study by CompTIA show encouraging trends in tech employment, particularly in the IT services sector.

The results of a study by CompTIA show encouraging trends in tech employment, particularly in the IT services sector. The report, titled Cyberstates 2015, stands as a litmus test from 2014 to gauge likely trends this year.

• Last year, the tech industry employed a total of 6.5 million workers.
• Of all employees in the private sector, tech professionals made up 5.7 percent of the workforce.
• Between 2013 and 2014, the tech industry created 129,600 net jobs.
• Payroll for tech jobs reached a combined $654 billion last year.
• Salaries for tech positions were nearly double the national average for private sector employment. The average annual wage was $100,400.
• In the candidate marketplace, applicants vied for a total of 667,200 openings in the fourth quarter of 2014.
• From startups to corporations, the survey counted 452,300 tech firms in total.
• The tech industry accounted for 7.1 percent of the United States gross domestic product.

The data illustrate the strides tech firms made last year to grow and expand their workforces. Earlier this year, the record layoffs of 2014 dominated headlines, but CompTIA's statistics give a fuller view of what is happening with staffing in the industry. Cyberstates 2015 affirms that tech companies provide professionals with the opportunity to innovate in cutting-edge fields, with excellent compensation and significant contributions to the American economy.

"Tech workers are the life blood of our industry and as such we need to continue to do all that we can to ensure access to the best and the brightest workers in the world," said said Skip Newberry, president, Technology Association of Oregon. "This means focusing on STEM education, training and improving access to high-skilled immigrants. They are going to be the future drivers of our industry."