Fox Business
Expand
Browse All Video
Watch Live

You're watching...

Looming Defense Cuts Threaten Tech Job Growth

Details

  • Description

    Dice Holdings CEO Scot Melland on the ripple effect of defense cuts.

  • Duration 4:08
  • Date

Clips

Also in this playlist...

Latest Technology

Auto-advance: ON

Auto-advance
View All

Transcript

This transcript is automatically generated

-- -- -- proximity to the Pentagon and other federal agencies has led to a booming tech industry around nation's capital.

In fact Washington DC has more high tech job openings in Silicon Valley.

According to Dice.com.

Button though looming defense cuts under these so called sequestration threatened to totally -- this job growth.

Well joining us now Scott Mullen chairman and president and C yeah so -- Dice Holdings Scott thanks your being -- see you did this survey.

About tech salaries right -- would -- We're really founded the interesting thing was that nationwide tech salaries have gone up to -- about 5%.

-- after about two or three years of -- pretty paltry gains of about 11% or even less than 1%.

So I think what we're seeing here is that on -- tight labor market that we're seeing across the country is finally forcing employers to recognize that and -- salaries.

So tech salaries are going up -- companies like.

Northrop Grumman and Raytheon all these companies that are in the DC area -- employed tech people.

Absolutely -- have large tech divisions or tech -- a large part of the defense contracts for defense projects that they have going on.

And it's it's been a -- over the last ten years you know for the area.

So we're talking about potentially 600 billion dollars in cuts because of the sequestration.

By 20/20 three who gives -- the hardest been in the area.

You know noted that you know everyone gets hit and by some amount but really it's the small players small contractors a large contract -- -- very diversified businesses.

They were could DO DV work with other government agencies and have other you know private businesses.

It's the small contractors that are highly specialized mutually dependent upon very specific government programs and -- -- the biggest surprise and -- for you.

I think the biggest surprise was we had in a major move in salaries and and that's that that hasn't happened for years and and actually you know that could be you know that could be an indication what's happening in the general economy.

I think it's really just into that it's not to Silicon Valley anymore and we were just saying break -- California taxes you don't have to I guess.

Right I mean there's there's terrific opportunities if you have the skills all across the country whether -- Seattle Austin, Texas.

Pittsburgh Minneapolis all have great tech sectors.

You're -- you -- -- -- to companies in the DC Northern Virginia area and there are already feeling the uncertainty of this I guess how do you plan when you don't know kind of money's coming anyway.

You're right it's it's a very difficult situation for many of these companies because this creates uncertainty and and -- it's very difficult to do hiring.

Or make any sort of business planning when you're dealing with such uncertainty.

And so we've actually seen that in the job growth after the first quarter of last year we saw -- decline in the overall demand -- -- positions.

In the DC market still a great still a great market still a lot of opportunity.

But not as good as it could be if we didn't have this hang over.

-- -- I don't think people think about technology when they think about defense like you just don't think that the two.

A correlated when our our defense system is entirely technologically -- And it you know tech is a big part of the defense projects each one can have software has very technical elements to it.

We also think about cyber security -- and intimacy Digg actually growing segments of what the federal government is doing in the defense industries focused -- It quickly -- a few seconds left you have a new product it's called open web positive about it -- Webb is that we're very excited about it because essentially what we're doing is we're allowing recruiters to -- information.

And backgrounds and people from their social profiles.

That are all across the web so.

You're able to take a look at the talent pool broadly in your marketplace for looking at.

Information that you would have gotten from their FaceBook profile.

-- what have you all publicly available that's really good for employers.

-- not so good for employees well I I think it's you know it's good for employees have -- quick -- Prospective employees should be aware of right we all leave digital footprints he add across the web.

And you should manage those footprints Scott -- with.

Dice Holdings you are so right.

-- -- thank you sir sir thank you their forever I like.

Load More