Like with spring flowers, the high-tech job market in North Carolina has blossomed a bit recently.

Despite concerns that the federal budget squabbles in Washington might cut into high-tech job demand, the number of advertised openings across North Carolina actually increased in March.

But a new report warns the blossoms may not be around long. 

“So far, so good. The federal budget cuts which started to become reality on March 1 have not stopped employers from posting more job opportunities yet,” says the new IT Job Trends Report from the North Carolina Technology Association. “Labor demand in North Carolina increased in March by 5.6% compared to February.”

Then comes the caveat.

“The current job market expansion is part of the seasonal growth pattern we typically see around this time of the year. It seems unlikely
though that employers will post as many open positions this year as they did last year.”

Oops.

And a review of figures from March of the past two years shows just how weak the IT job market remains even though demand has grown three straight months.

The 3,930 listed openings in March is far under the 5,670 of March 2012 and also far below the 4,840 listed in 2011.

So much for the robust economic recovery, eh?

SkillProof, a talent management firm that provides the NCTA data, warns that the defense industry is still likely to take big hits from the budget battle. And North Carolina’s economy relies heavily on spending at Fort Bragg, Seymour Johnson, Camp Lejeune and other bases. 

However, “Labor demand from other industries expanded reasonably,” the report notes.

While demand for IT architects and consultants surged to 870 from 710 and hardware engineering grew to 300 from 180 a year ago, many skill sets are in far less demand.

Some examples:

  • Systems Engineering/Support: 1,020, down from 1,820
  • Software Development: 640, down from 1150
  • IT Management: 620, down from 900
  • IT Sales and Marketing: 250, down from 350

Look at specific skill demand, too:

  •  SQL: 510, down from 1020
  • Business Analysis: 500, down from 590
  • C++/VC++:  470, down from 740
  • Java: 470, down from 830
  • Windows OS: 460, down from 1250
  • Linux: 440, down from 1090

On a positive note, the report points out North Carolina is better off than the national average.

“The IT labor market in North Carolina easily outpaced the national average. Employers across the country added 2.3% more job
postings to their websites than in February. Overall, the need for IT workers is unbroken and we expect further growth this year.”

But how much remains to be seen.