“Every year U.S. schools grant more STEM degrees than there are available jobs. When you factor in H-1B visa holders, existing STEM degree holders, and the like, it’s hard to make a case that there’s a STEM labor shortage.” Even in the IT industry, which employs the most tech workers and is expected to experience the most growth over the next decade, not everyone who wants a job can find one. Anecdotal evidence, the article points out, is piled high on the side of there being a glut instead of a shortage. “If there was really a STEM labor market crisis, you’d be seeing very different behaviors from companies,” Ron Hira, an associate professor of public policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology, in New York state told IEEE Spectrum. “You wouldn’t see companies cutting their retirement contributions, or hiring new workers and giving them worse benefits packages. Instead you would see signing bonuses, you’d see wage increases. You would see these companies really training their incumbent workers.” In a related opinion piece, “Is a Career in STEM Really for Me?” an 8th grader ponders her options, and finds science and engineering far down on the list.