Report shows most U.S. cities lost hi-tech jobs in 2009

Fifty-three of the country's top 60 metro areas lost hi-tech jobs last year due to the recession, according to a report released Wednesday by TechAmerica Foundation.

"Most of the metro areas we examined lost tech jobs in 2009 as the full force of the economic downturn hit the industry,” said Josh James, vice president of research and industry analysis at TechAmerica Foundation.

James emphasized the jobs lost were highly desirable with an average salary in excess of $100,000 in cities like Washington and San Francisco.

“These are the types of jobs every city wants. They are very well-paid, with 57 of the 60 cybercities having average tech industry wages that are 50 percent higher than the average private sector wage," he added.

The report comes at a time when government officials and industry leaders are lamenting the dearth of qualified scientists and engineers to fill the nation's open technology positions. The tech industry has pushed to raise the number of H-1B worker visas and allow graduate students at U.S. schools to remain in the country in order to ease the shortage.

But importing more technical talent is a tough sell politically with the unemployment rate at 9.8 percent. TechAmerica Foundation chair Phillip Bond said cities will have to focus on how to attract and retain hi-tech workers and firms in the meantime or face the possibility of them moving abroad.

“High-tech jobs make critical contributions to local economies in terms of innovation and high wages," Bond said. “But how to attract and retain them is the key question all mayors, city council officials and local business leaders grapple with. All of these cities compete not only with each other for talent and capital — they compete with technology hubs around the globe."

Bond suggested the quality of local math and science education would be crucial to ensuring future workers are prepared for the field. The top metro areas for hi-tech employment were New York, Los Angeles, San Jose/Silicon Valley, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Dallas-Fort Worth.

Oklahoma City saw the largest increase in jobs at just more than 900, followed closely by Huntsville, Ala.