Among U.S. tech hubs, Seattle saw employment in its tech sector hold up best during the recent recession, a new report shows.
The report, based on data collected by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, also showed that the New York metro area remained the largest industry employer, with 317,000 tech workers in 2009, the latest period for which the BLS has combined annual industry and metro area information.
Seattle, the home city of Microsoft and Amazon.com held onto its tech jobs at a time when 53 of the 60 largest U.S. cities shed workers in the sector, according to the report from TechAmerica Foundation, the industry's largest trade group.
"Seattle held up well relative to the other big tech centers," said Josh James, vice president of industry research at TechAmerica.
In terms of resilience during the recession, Seattle was closely followed by Boston, San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia, each of which lost 2% or less of their tech jobs.
Washington D.C. was the second-largest employer with 293,000 industry workers.
San Jose, Calif., was third, and when its 225,600 tech jobs are added to those in adjacent San Franciso and Oakland, the Silicon Valley region had the most U.S. tech workers, with 394,000. Nearly one in three San Jose area workers were employed by a technology company, by far the highest concentration of tech workers in the U.S.
San Jose lost 8,600 tech jobs in 2009. However, more recent data from the BLS have shown that hiring there has begun to rebound.
The New York MSA, which included counties in New York, New Jersey and (one) in Pennsylvania, lost 3% of its tech workforce. Chicago, meanwhile, lost 5% and is now the No. 7 tech employer.
The Oakland metro area, which includes the county at the eastern edge of Silicon Valley, lost 7% of its tech jobs, the worst among the 20 largest U.S. tech centers.
Top 10 U.S. Metro Areas for Tech Industry Jobs
1. New York 317,000 tech workers
2. Washington DC 293,000
3. San Jose 225,600
4. Boston 219,800
5. Dallas/Ft. Worth 174,800
6. Los Angeles 170,000
7. Chicago 161,800
8. Seattle 145,300
9. Philadelphia 134,200
10. Houston 127,800
Write to John Shinal
