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By Cara Garretson
The number of technology jobs eliminated during the second quarter of 2009 dropped by 60 percent compared to the first quarter, according to a recent study by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
During the second quarter of this year, 33,891 jobs were cut in the computer, electronics, and telecommunications industries, down from the 84,217 positions eliminated during the first quarter, the report says.
Combined with the recent news that some technology vendors -- including Intel and IBM -- are reporting better-than-expected second quarter financial results, there is hope that the recession may have hit bottom and the technology industry could begin to rebound.
Looking quarter by quarter, optimists might say that the worst is over. Technology job cuts in the first quarter of 2009 were the highest over the past two years, followed by 66,312 reductions in the fourth quarter of 2008. Since this year's second quarter cuts were nearly equal to the 33,644 jobs reduced during the same period last year, one could interpret that the economic decline has run its course and that rebound has begun.
But more data will be needed to make that statement a definitive one.
The Challenger, Gray & Christmas report warned that for the first half of 2009, the technology industry lost 118,108 jobs, making it the largest six-month cut in seven years. That figure nearly doubled over last year's first half, when 50,989 technology job cuts were made, according to the report. Job-cut figures for the third quarter of 2009 will no doubt help determine if the technology market is truly experiencing a rebound, or just saw a better quarter.
Analyzing the second-quarter 2009 cuts, the report showed the majority of position eliminations in the technology sector during the second quarter came from the computer industry, totaling 19,881 layoffs, while electronics companies got rid of 12,134 jobs. The biggest decline in layoffs happened in the telecommunications industry, which went to 1,876 reductions during the second quarter, down from 18,972 cuts in the first quarter.
Telecom and electronics vendors appear to be buffeted by the resiliency of the wireless market, benefitting both wireless carriers as well as device makers.
"Between the companies trying to outdo the iPhone and those helping more and more Americans disconnect their land lines for cellular-only phone communications, there are a lot of growth opportunities," says John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, in a written statement.
Computer vendors, on the other hand, aren't showing as much of a rebound because their customers are waiting for stronger signs of a recovering economy before investing in technology, Challenger says. Once those signs are strong enough, he expects IT spending to pick up as companies look to invest in the technology needed to enhance productivity before hiring new workers.
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