81% of Tech Talent Looking to Move Away from Tech Hubs, says Survey | Trade and Industry Development

81% of Tech Talent Looking to Move Away from Tech Hubs, says Survey

Sep 14, 2020
A study by .Tech Domains and released in early September found that COVID-19 is placing pressures on tech talent to move to more affordable areas, reports IndustryWeek. Tech Domains talked to U.S-based technology workers in August.
 
The study found that 81% of tech workers living within 30 miles of the country’s biggest tech hubs, including the Bay Area, Seattle, New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., Austin are considering or have already made plans to move to a more affordable city.
 
“As Covid-19 accelerates remote work environments for the tech workforce, many are using the flexibility to pursue more affordable lifestyles," Suman Das, Brand Director, .Tech Domains said in a statement. “Part and parcel of that is the increase we see in the broad desire to take on freelance work. While this allows tech talent to work in ways that meet their specific needs and preferences, it's also creating new challenges for employers when it comes to managing a distributed workforce.”
 
While the entire technology workforce is affected, millennial tech workers have taken a more significant blow than other generations. They are significantly more likely than older tech workers to say that they have considered moving to a more affordable area, reports IndustryWeek.
 
Additionally, an overwhelming 84% of millennial tech workers with a full-time job say that they are more likely to consider taking on freelance work since the onset of Covid-19.
 
Key findings from the report, as reported in IndustryWeek, include:
  • 61% of tech workers saying they are working in fully remote environments
  • 74% of tech workers with a full-time job say that they are more likely to consider taking on freelance work since the onset of Covid-19.
  • Only 20% of all respondents say that once there is a vaccine for Covid-19 their ideal future work scenario is being in the office 100% of the time
 
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