IT unemployment rose in September as organizations shifted away from entry-level positions toward those skilled in artificial intelligence, The Wall Street Journal reported
The unemployment rate for IT was 4.3% last month, above the overall U.S. rate of 3.8%, according to the Oct. 6 story.
"With inflation, energy costs, companies are trying to cut back on expenses," Victor Janulaitis, chief executive of Janco Associates, told the newspaper. He said AI could be slowing the growth of starting IT roles such as customer service and telecommunications.
CIOs are being asked to cut back on expensive IT projects, as well as software and cloud spending, and boost their use of generative AI, the Journal reported.
Meanwhile, 26.5% of tech job postings in September were for emerging technologies, 36% of which involved AI, according to data from trade group CompTIA cited in the story. Some companies are opting to train their existing IT workforce in AI.
"Workers view it both ways," CompTIA research chief Tim Herbert told the news outlet. "In some cases, they recognize that some of their job could be at risk, but they also see it as an opportunity to free up time so that they can be more innovative."