“New York City’s technology sector employs more than 260,000 people in finance, healthcare, media, and advertising. For the last decade, The Trust’s grantmaking has played a big part in training young people, especially people of color, to work in this field. Today, though, there are news stories about the tech sector being in trouble. Nationally, tech firms are cutting jobs at a rate not seen since the start of the pandemic.
The headlines made me wonder: should The Trust continue funding tech training programs or cut, run, and fund the next hot idea?
To find out what’s happening on the ground, I spoke to Plinio Ayala, president and CEO of Per Scholas, a tech training nonprofit that started in the Bronx 25 years ago. Today this Trust grantee prepares 1,000 New Yorkers a year for jobs ranging from cybersecurity to software engineering.
Plinio assured me that there’s no need to worry. He said that technology is a ‘golden thread’ woven throughout our city’s economy. He said the tech sector has 13,000 jobs available right now, and he believed those numbers would only continue to grow in the future. Plinio added one caution: the tech downturn has slowed job placement. Generally, the average time period between training and placement has been around 30 days, and Plinio believes that might double to 60.
Data supports Plinio’s optimism. According to an analysis by James Parrott, an economist at the Center for New York City Affairs at the New School, tech employment in the city grew by 4 percent between February and August 2022.
Because one in five tech jobs—such as software engineers, data analysts, and cybersecurity experts—do not require a college degree, the field remains a great career path for young people who don’t have the time or money to pursue higher education.
Despite the pullback in the tech sector, we need to hold the line. Nonprofit tech training programs are doing what they need to do—creating life-changing opportunities for young New Yorkers.”