The number of IT jobs that moved offshore has reached 160,785, according to the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers. The organization claims to maintain the only web counter of job losses overseas from the United States. Almost 100,000 net jobs were lost to the US tech sector in this period.

The researchers say that because of stealth off-shoring, it's difficult to track the figures accurately, but reckon that the number underestimates the true figure. You can find the Offshore Tracker at TechsUnite.org, here (http://www.techsunite.org/offshore/index.cfm). The Alliance is affiliated to the Communications Workers of America union.

The US Department of Labor recently classified some service jobs, such as burger-flipping, as manufacturing jobs. ®

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