New York bleeds high-tech jobs; holds its own on venture funding

BYLINE: Richad A. D'Errico

New York suffered a "brain drain" from 2000 to 2005 when it lost 63,200 high-tech workers to other states, but it still ranks third, behind California and Texas, in tech employment, according to a new report.

At the same time, New York held its fourth-place ranking in venture capital funding on the strength of a 16 percent increase in investments last year. That followed a 45 percent increase in venture investments the year before, according to the latest study from the AeA, a trade association.

Justin Wright, executive director of the AeA New York Council, located in Albany, said the state has lost 17 percent of its tech work force in the past five years.

"We've had a rough run," he said. "That contraction is pretty consistent with other big high-tech states. "

According to the study, "Cyberstates 2007: A Complete State-by-State Overview of the High-Technology Industry," New York is something of a mixed bag.

The state ranks sixth in research and development dollars invested--$13 billion--but is 26th in R&D investments per capita, with an average of $680 spent per person versus the national average of $980 per person.

In terms of tech wages, New York ranked 10th, with an average high-tech job paying $77,000 a year, 45 percent more than private-sector jobs in the country as a whole.

The AeA report came out the same day the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that New York lost more manufacturing jobs in the past year than any other state but Ohio and Michigan.

New York's base of manufacturing jobs slipped from 567,700 in March 2006 to 554,100 in the same month this year--a decline of 13,600 jobs, or 2.3 percent.

But according to the AeA report, New York has something to boast about when it comes to high-tech manufacturing: The state ranks No. 1 in photonics manufacturing, No. 2 in defense electronics manufacturing, behind California; and No. 3 in electronic components manufacturing, behind California and Texas.

If computer-chip manufacturer Advanced Micro Devices Inc. builds a plant in Saratoga County employing 2,000, New York's rankings will rise in several areas, Wright said.

"The gap between New York and Texas is pretty thin in a lot of these categories," he said.