State Ranks Third Nationwide in Technology Exports

Orlando, FL, November 19, 2003—Florida moved up from 5^th place in 2001 to 4^th place in 2002 by high-tech jobs. However, its technology employment base fell by 5 percent, or by 14,000 jobs, between 2001 and 2002. By 2002, Florida’s high-tech employment totaled 271,000, according to Cyberstates 2003: A State-by-State Overview of the High-Technology Industry, a new analytical report released today by AeA. The reason for the move up in rankings is that Massachusetts, which Florida displaced, lost more than twice as many jobs as Florida.

In 2002, Florida exported over $8 billion in high-tech goods, the third largest nationally. These electronics exports accounted for one-third of all exports from Florida. In part, the state’s strong exports reflect its diverse technology industry, including manufacturing. It is home to the 4^th largest communications equipment manufacturing sector nationally, with 14,000 workers.

High-tech workers in Florida are paid well. The average high-tech wage in the state was $54,000 in 2001, or 73 percent higher than the state’s average private sector wage.

The decline in venture capital investments has not helped the technology industry. Last year, venture capital investments in Florida totaled $357 million, less than half the $784 million invested in 2001.

"We are excited about AeA’s newest Cyberstates report and its finding of Florida moving up to 4^th place by high-tech employment," said Patti Rader, President, Avancent Consulting and Vice-Chair of AeA’s Florida Council. "However, the fact that Florida moved up only because it did not lose as many jobs as Massachusetts is sobering. We must do more to attract and retain technology companies and their employees in Florida, specifically by improving the state’s public education system, attracting more venture capital, funding R&D at the University level, and creating incentives for existing Florida technology companies to grow locally."

Nationally, Cyberstates 2003 shows that high-tech employment fell by 540,000 jobs, dropping to 6 million in 2002. However, using preliminary data, we estimate that the tech industry will lose 234,000 jobs in 2003.

For the first time, Cyberstates 2003 is based on the newly implemented North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). This more current and comprehensive system allows us to capture several sectors, which we could not with the previous system. These include fiber optic cable manufacturers, semiconductor machinery manufacturers, and web search portals. Consequently, the data presented in this report are not comparable in any way to previous editions of Cyberstates.

This seventh annual edition of Cyberstates provides a comprehensive review of the high-tech industry nationally and by state of high-tech employment, wages, payroll, establishments, and exports. Cyberstates also offers data on venture capital investments, and R&D expenditures.

AeA is the nation's largest high-tech trade association. Founded in 1943, AeA utilizes an extensive international network of offices to serve its members though advocacy, training, research and business services. www.aeanet.org

 What Does High Tech Mean for Florida?

• High-tech firms employ 44 of every 1,000 private sector workers in 2002, ranked 30^th nationwide

• High-tech workers earned an average wage of $53,666 (29^th ranked), or 73% more than the average private sector wage

• High-tech exports totaled $8.1 billion in 2002, ranked 3^rd nationwide

• R&D expenditures of $4.7 billion in 2000, ranked 15^th nationwide

Florida’s National Industry Segment Rankings:

• 4^th in communications equipment manufacturing employment with 14,300

Source: Cyberstates 2003
Data are for 2002 unless otherwise noted.
2001 data are the most current for wages, payroll, establishments, and industry segment jobs.