As Silicon Valley rides a recovery in the technology sector, local companies such as Google Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. have said they will beef up their work forces. But judging by California's employment data, such hiring has yet to happen. In fact, Silicon Valley counties such as Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco continue to report a drop in employment in tech sectors such as computer manufacturing, software and Internet-related fields. There was some modest job growth locally during the recession, but it was in areas unrelated to tech, such as health care. The employment decline in many tech categories is part of a decadelong trend. While jobs in other categories -- such as Internet workers and new areas such as iPhone app development and clean technology -- have grown or at least remained stable over the decade, that hasn't been enough to offset the overall disappearance of tech jobs.
