Tech unemployment ticked up in September, but demand for IT talent was strong in another indication of an unsettled industry labor market.

AI continued to be a major driver of the tech labor market. As Jordan Rosenblatt, solutions consulting manager at Nexthink, told IT Brew, it’s important to balance the market’s AI skills gap with the potential the ubiquitous technology brings to the enterprise.

“You want workers that are able to take on these new technologies and utilize them effectively,” Rosenblatt said. “At the same time, we see a lot of fear in the market around AI potentially replacing people.”

Shaking up. That fear isn’t limited to the workforce. In an October 1 note to investors, credit rating agency Egan Jones reportedly warned of “complete disruption of the economy” that was “all but certain” because of the impacts of AI on white-collar work. But the picture from the ground appears more complicated.

According to CompTIA’s monthly analysis of Bureau of Labor and Statistics data, job postings for AI jobs rose by 32,327 month over month in September, for a total of 349,821. CompTIA pointed out in its analysis that job postings for AI skills have increased by 282% since May 2024.

A new report from PwC hints at the tension between the growing need for AI-savvy IT pros and the financial and educational investment they’ll require to succeed. In its 2026 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey, the professional-services firm interviewed close to 50,000 workers across the world and found that a majority—56%—don’t feel they have the resources to develop their AI skills.

“Taking one additional step to learn a little bit better about how to work with an AI is a big thing that a lot of workers can do easily,” Rosenblatt said. “But it’s also up to the organizations to guide the users and give them the training and the skills they need.”

By the numbers. The tech unemployment rate rose to 3.3% for September, with industry shedding 10,350 positions and overall tech occupations in the economy falling by around 6,000 positions. At the same time, employers logged 272,040 new IT job postings for the month.

It’s a complex, challenging landscape for job seekers, as CompTIA VP of Research Seth Robinson explained in a statement accompanying the data.

“Even in an environment where employers remain generally cautious about hiring, there is still strong demand for the core IT skills that can help companies build digital discipline and advance AI adoption,” Robinson said.

Tech unemployment ticked up in September, but demand for IT talent was strong in another indication of an unsettled industry labor market.

AI continued to be a major driver of the tech labor market. As Jordan Rosenblatt, solutions consulting manager at Nexthink, told IT Brew, it’s important to balance the market’s AI skills gap with the potential the ubiquitous technology brings to the enterprise.

“You want workers that are able to take on these new technologies and utilize them effectively,” Rosenblatt said. “At the same time, we see a lot of fear in the market around AI potentially replacing people.”

Shaking up. That fear isn’t limited to the workforce. In an October 1 note to investors, credit rating agency Egan Jones reportedly warned of “complete disruption of the economy” that was “all but certain” because of the impacts of AI on white-collar work. But the picture from the ground appears more complicated.

According to CompTIA’s monthly analysis of Bureau of Labor and Statistics data, job postings for AI jobs rose by 32,327 month over month in September, for a total of 349,821. CompTIA pointed out in its analysis that job postings for AI skills have increased by 282% since May 2024.

A new report from PwC hints at the tension between the growing need for AI-savvy IT pros and the financial and educational investment they’ll require to succeed. In its 2026 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey, the professional-services firm interviewed close to 50,000 workers across the world and found that a majority—56%—don’t feel they have the resources to develop their AI skills.

“Taking one additional step to learn a little bit better about how to work with an AI is a big thing that a lot of workers can do easily,” Rosenblatt said. “But it’s also up to the organizations to guide the users and give them the training and the skills they need.”

By the numbers. The tech unemployment rate rose to 3.3% for September, with industry shedding 10,350 positions and overall tech occupations in the economy falling by around 6,000 positions. At the same time, employers logged 272,040 new IT job postings for the month.

It’s a complex, challenging landscape for job seekers, as CompTIA VP of Research Seth Robinson explained in a statement accompanying the data.

“Even in an environment where employers remain generally cautious about hiring, there is still strong demand for the core IT skills that can help companies build digital discipline and advance AI adoption,” Robinson said.