The number of IT jobs in the US was essentially unchanged in July compared to June, according to the TechServe Alliance, a national trade association of the IT and engineering staffing and solutions industry.

IT employment in the US edged downward by a scant 0.02% in July from June. On a year-over-year basis, the number of jobs was up 0.32%, or 17,400 jobs.

IT jobs totaled approximately 5.3 million in July.

“We continue to see a very strong demand for tech talent and a shortage of qualified candidates,” TechServe Alliance CEO Mark Roberts said. “This is validated by the low unemployment rate of 2.2% in the sector and by our member companies, who tell us that job requirements from their clients still continue unabated. It is not surprising that we are continuing to struggle in growing the overall technology jobs pie because of this significant supply-demand imbalance.

“This really underscores the need for businesses to move quickly with hiring decisions, offer competitive compensation and not hold out for that perfect candidate, or they will lose the candidate to other employers in need of the same skill set.”

Separately, the report found the number of engineering jobs was up 4.08% year over year in July, reflecting an increase of 106,900 engineering workers.