Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#1

Post by alvperez82 » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 11:48 AM UTC

I am a developer with nearly 20 years of experience trying to find a new job to try new things and naturally to get a higher salary, but even though I haven't been seriously involved in selection processes before, I used to feel that recruiters would respond right away, like you had to fend them off, and now they don't.

Do you get the same feeling?

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#2

Post by akerl_ » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 11:53 AM UTC

This doesn’t seem shocking. We just had a year or two of rolling layoffs across major tech companies, interest rates are high, the market is fluctuating, and all of that is affecting hiring pipelines.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#3

Post by incomingpain » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 12:03 PM UTC

Far more a general trend. We have a major transition right now.

https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/interest-rate

Most businesses never operate from an operational budget but rather debt. When rates go high, the businesses have to cut the fat. Which generally means the job market tightens.

This is but 1 factor in why the governments should be obligated by constitution to balance the budget.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#4

Post by richrichie » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 12:05 PM UTC

Things have been generally bad except for a small group of AI/ML people. If you are in your mid forties and above and lose your job, tough luck.

SPY trajectory is misleading as it is dominated by a small set of companies.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/fed-chair-powell-admits-bi...

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#5

Post by underseacables » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:52 PM UTC

I think conditions for older employees are getting worse. Teams are outsourced, either to younger people who work from home, or to other countries, making older remaining employees seem like an unnecessarily high cost.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#6

Post by BillFranklin » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:53 PM UTC

It is indeed, judging by the HN Who Is Hiring / Wants To Be Hired comment ratio [1].

[1]: https://github.com/bilbof/whoishiring-ratio

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#7

Post by cordenll » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:55 PM UTC

I feel like it is pretty bad, although I do noticed that there is a lot off interest in people who can manage self-hosted software using kamal and hetzner for example.

guys from 37 signals are really pushing the post vercel era.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#8

Post by antisthenes » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:56 PM UTC

It's interesting that finally US techies begin to understand what the job market is like for the average person since the 2009 recession.

And I mean the desirable, well-paying jobs, not the $20/hr service/food jobs that anyone can get.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#9

Post by dexwiz » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:56 PM UTC

Question, are you looking for remote work or are you located in a tier 1 or 2 city? I am not having too many issues with interviews but I am in San Francisco. One of the first filter questions I get from recruiters is location.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me, or does the job market for IT seem bad today?

#10

Post by dukeyukey » Thu, Jun 13, 2024, 1:57 PM UTC

incomingpain wrote: post #3

Far more a general trend. We have a major transition right now. https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/interest-rate Most businesses never operate from an operational budget but rather debt. When rates go high, the businesses have to cut the fat. Which generally means the job market tightens. This is but 1 factor in why the governments should be obligated by constitution to balance the budget.

That feels like the wrong lesson. Surely during downturns you want to government to step up spending to stabilise the economy, and to get safe bonds out on the market to compensate for stock market downturn?