Are you struggling to find a tech job on the West Coast?

By Bryan Mena, CNN

Washington (CNN) — California, Oregon and Washington have some of the highest unemployment rates in the nation, as AI reshapes the West Coast’s dominant tech industry by sharply slowing hiring in that sector.

The three states tied for the second-highest unemployment rate in the country in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, at 5.2%. Only the District of Columbia had a higher unemployment rate, at 6%.

Economists say the West Coast’s outsized unemployment reflects structural changes in its tech-heavy economy, where companies are increasingly using AI to boost productivity. That has prompted tech firms to significantly slow hiring for positions such as software developers, computer engineers and data analysts, according to Indeed data.

For people hoping to break into the industry, the slowdown has upended a long-held assumption that the West Coast is the region where those kinds of jobs are ubiquitous.

Some workers are now facing tough choices, including pivoting to another field, waiting it out, or leaving the region for better opportunities. If that’s you, share your story below.

The-CNN-Wire
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