Despite the seemingly constant use of computers, cellular phonesand Internet services, manufacturing in that sector has decreased,according to a report released last week.
The American Electronics Association, a high-tech tradeassociation representing more than 3,000 companies, said inCyberstates 2003: A State-by-State Overview of the High TechnologyIndustry, that high-tech jobs decreased by 12 percent in 2002.
It is the first time in the seven years the association hasproduced the yearly report that the United States has experienced adecrease in high-tech jobs, which, according to the association,include manufacturing of computers and electronics, communicationsservices such as cellular companies, software publishers andInternet services.
Angela Crawford, a proposal specialist for software companyInterAct Public Safety Systems, said the findings have severalpeople in her company worried.
"As much as the computer technology industry needs new minds,people abroad are dropping the pay scale worldwide due to thecountry's environment and cost of living," she said.
The industry lost 540,000 jobs nationwide, from 6.5 millionhigh-tech employees in 2001 to 6 million in 2002, according to thereport. However, predictions for 2003 are better, showing a slowingin the job market's decline. The AEA estimates 2003 job losses tobe 234,000, almost half of the decrease experienced in 2002.
The largest loss of jobs, according to the report, was in theelectronics manufacturing field, which lost 233,000 positions.Communications services lost 145,500. Software lost 146,200, andengineering and technology services lost 14,800. The only exceptionto the report was in research and development and testing labsemployment, which showed an increase.
The states hardest hit by the employment decrease wereCalifornia and Texas, while the only areas to show an increase wereWyoming, the District of Columbia and Montana.
"We worry that we have eaten the seed corn of federal researchof 20 and 30 years ago that is not being replenished," said AEApresident and CEO William T. Archery in a prepared statement.
The collapse of the Internet bubble is a major factor in thedecrease in high-tech jobs, said Alan Proffitt, associate professorfor The University of Memphis engineering technology department,said.
"There is also a big trend for high-tech work to be performed byoverseas companies," he added.
The stock market crash a few years ago that hurt or destroyedmany dot coms caused a major decline in the industry, Crawfordsaid, adding that the job demand in Europe and Asia Pacific is alsodrawing jobs away from the United States.
"Many companies are hiring their tech sector jobs out incountries like India because the wage pay is dramatically lowerthan here in the United States," Crawford said. "I have seenprogrammers making $7,000 a year in India versus $60,000 minimumhere in the United States."
If the decline continues, it can seriously hurt technology forAmericans in the distant future, Crawford added.
Students graduating in these fields may want to consider jobs inthe Department of Defense rather than in the private sector becausethe increase in spending on defense has created a lot of new,high-paying jobs that are unfilled, Proffitt said. However, many ofthese jobs require security clearance, making them harder for somepeople to obtain.
"I could double my salary right now if I wanted to move toVirginia, since I have security clearance," Proffitt said.
