UK Employers Continue to Seek Software Skills and Core IT Talent, CompTIA Analysis Finds

More than 140,000 tech job postings in Q2

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Aug 21, 2019, 04:35 ET

LONDON, Aug. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Employers in the United Kingdom continued their quest in Q2 2019 to hire software developers and programmers and professionals with core IT skills, according to an analysis of employment data by CompTIA, the leading trade association for the global technology industry.

Employers posted job openings for an estimated 141,395 information technology (IT) positions in Q2, CompTIA's examination of data from Burning Glass Technologies Labour Insights reveals. The Q2 IT job posting numbers were down 13 percent from Q1.; and lower than Q2 2018.

"This mirrors the downward direction for all job ads in the UK employment market this year compared to the highs of a year ago," said Amy Carrado, senior director, research and market intelligence, CompTIA.

The UK unemployment rate for the three-month period from March through May 2019 was 3.8 percent, down from 4.2 percent one year earlier, and the lowest unemployment rate since the October-December 1974 period.

Among the total Q2 job postings for IT occupations, some 50,329 positions for software programmers and developers were advertised. Other in-demand occupations organisations were looking to fill included IT business analysts, architects and systems designers (21,605 job ads), IT user support technicians (16,764), IT and telecommunications professionals (13,246), IT operations technicians (12,560), and web designers and developers (12,427).

"Clearly there is still solid market demand for fundamental technology skills in networking, security and technical support," said Graham Hunter, CompTIA's vice president for skills certification in Europe and the Middle East. "These foundational skills must be in place to provide the management and support for current operations as well as the emerging technologies and innovations that are taking hold."

The UK employers with the most IT job postings in Q2 were the National Health Service, Amazon, British Sky Broadcasting Group, GCI Group, and Square One Group.

"The diversity of employers with open IT positions demonstrates that the demand for tech talent extends well beyond technology companies to all sectors of the economy," Carrado noted.

The size of the UK IT workforce continues to grow year over year. It is projected to increase by more than 14,000 workers this year to 1.3 million. Additionally, job growth of 4 percent – 48,000 new jobs – is projected for the five-year period from 2018 through 2023.

The complete "CompTIA UK IT Employment Snapshot" for Q2 is available at https://www.comptia.org/resources/comptia-uk-it-employment-snapshot-2019-q2.

About CompTIA
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $5 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the more than 50 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world's economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce.

Contact:
Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
+1 (630) 678-8468
[email protected]

SOURCE CompTIA