The COVID-19 pandemic is shattering tech sector employment. More than 102,300 IT pros losing their jobs last month.

That’s according to Janco Associates. In all, the IT job market has lost 81,700 jobs this year.

Janco reduced its forecast for overall tech sector job growth to a little more than 40,000 for 2020. In March, the firm reported 120,000 new IT jobs created in the last 12 months.

Janco’s Victor Janulaitis

“IT pros who do not have a job are finding it difficult to even find contract work,” said Janco CEO Victor Janulaitis. “Until the public begins to feel they can go back to a normal lifestyle and companies open their doors, IT hiring will be nonexistent.”

No Help Wanted

Many companies are telling their IT departments to support workers with new and enhanced internet-driven applications for telecommuters, he said.

“The demand for contractor help in this effort was high initially, but now is nonexistent,” Janulaitis said. “All of this has put IT professionals in the same state as the rest of the labor market.”

Overall, there are now more than 3.56 million IT jobs in the United States. The number of telecommunications jobs continues to erode as artificial intelligence erodes more of those job functions.

“Software companies are advancing new releases without being encumbered with the overhead and inefficiencies associated with the traditional office development environment,” Janulaitis said. “Developers are now focused on solutions and getting new releases of applications implemented. That approach could be the spark that drives a wave of growth of IT jobs over the two or three quarters.”

C-level executives tell Janco that hiring has almost stopped. Tech sector employment – and IT hiring everywhere for that matter – is struggling mightily.

“The use of video conferencing has reached record highs,” Janulaitis said. “The days of when people used to travel for remote meetings will be reduced as businesses go back to work. Telemeeting will be the new way that businesses operate.”