IT jobs decreased by 0.13% in December compared to November even as the unemployment rate for IT stood at 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to an analysis by the TechServe Alliance. Year over year, the number of IT jobs was down 0.57% in December, a net of 30,900 jobs.

“While the decline in IT jobs and the stunningly low unemployment rate in IT seem contradictory, I attribute it to the uneven impact of the economic downdraft,” TechServe Alliance CEO Mark Roberts said. “While some sectors are contracting and pulling back on hiring and even engaging in layoffs as reflected by the actions of some high-profile tech firms, other parts of the economy continue to thrive and expand their teams.”

Roberts continued, “While this ‘realignment’ inevitably creates churn which can be reflected as a decline in jobs, the unemployment rate of 2.1% tells the story — there remains a shortage of IT professionals in high-demand skill sets.”

Overall, the total number of IT jobs in the US totaled nearly 5.4 million in December, according to the TechServe Alliance’s analysis.

Separately, the organization reported engineering employment rose by 3.44% year over year in December, reflecting an increase of 91,600 engineering workers. The fourth-quarter unemployment rate for engineering employment was 2.2%.