News & Analysis
Fewer engineers unemployed, but total number of jobs shrinks
Margaret Quan
10/15/2002 10:35 AM EDT
MANHASSET, N.Y. — Unemployment rates declined slightly in the third quarter for U.S. engineers, marking the first lessening of unemployment since early 2001, according to IEEE-USA. But the total of engineering jobs dipped below two million for the first time in five years, raising questions about the high-tech industry's recovery, the professional organization said.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed an unemployment rate for all engineers of 3.4 percent in the third quarter of 2002, down from 4.0 percent in the prior quarter, IEEE-USA said Monday (Oct. 14).
The total number of engineering jobs (or the number of engineers employed) declined from 2,027,000 in the second quarter to 1,923,000 in the third quarter, the association said. IEEE-USA president LeEarl Bryant called the decline "significant."
"We're not sure if these jobs will return when the economy turns up or if they've been exported to lower-costs overseas locations," she said.
Mechanical engineers were the hardest hit, losing 49,000 jobs between the second and third quarters, IEEE-USA said. Aerospace engineers lost 26,000 jobs over the same period.
The jobless rate for electrical and electronics engineers fell from 4.8 percent in the second quarter to 4.0 percent in the third quarter. In the third quarter, 674,000 EEs were employed and 28,000 were unemployed, according to BLS data. Approximately 2,000 jobs were lost from the second quarter.
The number of jobless computer scientists and systems analysts also declined to 4.6 percent (84,000 workers) in the third quarter, down from 5.3 percent (95,000 workers) in the second quarter, IEEE-USA said. The number of employed workers in those fields increased to 1,717,000, up by 35,000 over the same period.
Bryant said she is not sure if the drop in unemployment rates is an aberration or a trend.
"Despite the hopeful talk about the recession being over, U.S. engineers and computer scientists aren't out of the woods yet, not by a long shot," she said, noting that the fourth quarter is "always a prime time for job cuts."
BLS data measures the nation's unemployment rate and its total labor force, but a BLS spokesman noted that the unemployment numbers are estimates derived from samples provided by the bureau's Current Population Survey of 60,000 households each month. In addition, employment data for specific job titles such as electrical engineers "is more variable because it is based on estimates of a smaller sample than that of the overall labor force," the spokesman said.
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dekoehn
3/31/2008 9:32 PM EDT
That's because their unemployment expired & they're even more screwed now than they were before. Are you GD clowns for real ???
We were setup before we even got out of college & it's getting worse & you GD clowns are CLUELESS !?!?! All my friends have been laid off, some for good !?!?!
I've been laid-off from a job I worked at for 27 YEARS & I'm SCREWED !?!?!
Here's more ...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/20080331/bs_bw/mar2008db20080330182808
Another Wave of H-1Bs on the Way
By Moira Herbst
Mon Mar 31, 8:08 AM ET
When are you GD clowns going to get serious about a REAL UNION like the ABA & AMA !?!?!
I would have done ANYTHING ELSE if I knew it was going to turn out like this !?!?!
Don Koehn,
Burton, Ohio
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The Wise EE
4/2/2008 9:10 PM EDT
You're lucky you got to work with the same employer for 27 years. Approximately half the engineers in my location work contract because there are no permanent jobs available. I've personally known hundreds and hundreds of engineers who've been laid off. You're not unusual. Its especially tough on those a few years away from retirement to get the axe which routinely happens. They're left scrambling. No one will hire them, they're too young to collect social security and they're forced to spend any savings they do have to survive.
Yet, the corporate sweatshops and their bought and paid for congressmen keep complaining about a non-existent shortage of engineers. I've been in the business 25 years and they've always been complaining about shortages but there's never been one. We're always but one step away from the next layoff. But they've got to keep those college class seats filled.
Then they've got this H1B lunacy to drive salaries into the ground.
Also, you're right. Any engineer that's been around more than a few years is SCREWED if they get the pink slip. The highly specialized skills of engineers don't transfer to other jobs. So I'm warning every high school graduate I know to stay away from engineering. Its a disgusting career to get trapped in, especially when other more lucrative and permanent options in law, medicine, pharmacy, insurace, etc., etc. are available. Even real estate is better. No matter how bad it gets, real estate and real estate jobs will come back in a year or two. However, in engineering, most jobs get offshored and, unlike real estate, in engineering if you're unemployed more than a couple of years, you become technically obsolete. Then, you'll be competing with high school grads for jobs flipping hamburgers. And contrary to what many claim, employers won't train you for anything except how to fill out the unemployment paperwork. Its far easier for them to hire an H1B, pay them far less and train them instead of you.
There isn't much we can do. With 25+ years in the industry its too late for us. All we can do is try to survive. In addition, we can try to warn those considering an engineering career to find something else. Most engineering veterans know that the younger generation be much, much better off in another profession.
Steve
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The Wise EE
4/2/2008 9:10 PM EDT
You're lucky you got to work with the same employer for 27 years. Approximately half the engineers in my location work contract because there are no permanent jobs available. I've personally known hundreds and hundreds of engineers who've been laid off. You're not unusual. Its especially tough on those a few years away from retirement to get the axe which routinely happens. They're left scrambling. No one will hire them, they're too young to collect social security and they're forced to spend any savings they do have to survive.
Yet, the corporate sweatshops and their bought and paid for congressmen keep complaining about a non-existent shortage of engineers. I've been in the business 25 years and they've always been complaining about shortages but there's never been one. We're always but one step away from the next layoff. But they've got to keep those college class seats filled.
Then they've got this H1B lunacy to drive salaries into the ground.
Also, you're right. Any engineer that's been around more than a few years is SCREWED if they get the pink slip. The highly specialized skills of engineers don't transfer to other jobs. So I'm warning every high school graduate I know to stay away from engineering. Its a disgusting career to get trapped in, especially when other more lucrative and permanent options in law, medicine, pharmacy, insurace, etc., etc. are available. Even real estate is better. No matter how bad it gets, real estate and real estate jobs will come back in a year or two. However, in engineering, most jobs get offshored and, unlike real estate, in engineering if you're unemployed more than a couple of years, you become technically obsolete. Then, you'll be competing with high school grads for jobs flipping hamburgers. And contrary to what many claim, employers won't train you for anything except how to fill out the unemployment paperwork. Its far easier for them to hire an H1B, pay them far less and train them instead of you.
There isn't much we can do. With 25+ years in the industry its too late for us. All we can do is try to survive. In addition, we can try to warn those considering an engineering career to find something else. Most engineering veterans know that the younger generation be much, much better off in another profession.
Steve
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