 |
|
| CURRENT SECTION :: Market Reports | UK's most visited IT Contractor Site - 250k unique visitors March 2008 |
|
 |
Average hourly rates, including those for analysts, developers and a spread of technologies from Windows to SAP shows another year high, reaching £29.89. This is a rise of just over 1% from the £29.47 per hour average during September. Back in January, the average was £23.35. Towards the end of October, the REC’s Report on Jobs suggested demand for contract IT staff had levelled out. Our own average, taken from the median rate of the ten most commonly requested contractor skills, and covering a very broad range of roles, suggests that this is not yet the case. The figures are drawn from a sample of more than 100,000 jobs. Last month, we looked at the impact banking roles have been having on overall contractor rates. Driven by the desire to sharpen e-trading capabilities and improve security, this continues. Roles requesting contracting experience in the financial arena rose 21% in the three months to the beginning of November. There were 12,114 such roles three months ago, compared to 14,682 today. Rates have also bumped up over the same period, from £27.07 to £28.64. However, the bankers are not the only ones with reason to celebrate. The general upward trend throughout 2005 suggests that a number of projects put on hold through 2004 have been cleared. Project managers have seen their rates shift from £34.81 to £37.05 between August and October. For other contractors likely to be involved at the beginning of projects, the news is equally encouraging. There are 3,000 more vacancies for developers than there were three months ago: 17,201 compared to 14,421. The movement for those involved in ecommerce and web development remains encouraging, if not dramatic. Java contractors have seen their value shift from £33.61 to £35.38. For .NET developers however, there has been a far smaller upward movement, rates going from £31.44 to £31.55 over three months. For C# contractors rates over the same period have dropped from £33.99 to £32.48, this despite a slight increase in the number of advertised jobs. There were 4,411 advertised at the end of October, compared to 3,922 on the last day of July The market for networking skills fluctuates more than most. August to September saw a fall from £27.07 to £26.01 for the ten most commonly requested networking skills. There is some good news here though; this rate has at least stabilised. The average now sits at £26.02. SAP continues to change. Average rates for contractors are now £42.80, a 3% rise on last month’s figure. One of the most significant movements in price is for ‘senior SAP consultants.’ The number of jobs requesting a title so specific is naturally limited: there were just 317 such roles advertised at the end of the month. But rates have moved more than for all but the very rarest of skills. Average rates shifted from £450 per day to £600 over October. SAP roles continue to dominate the list of most lucrative skills. Four of the top ten are SAP related, with HR consultants topping the list on £100 per hour. However, it is not all good news for contractors. The REC report mentioned above noted a surge in permanent vacancies at the expense of contractor roles. Rosaleen Blair, MD of Alexander Mann Solutions, agrees. “We have seen demand for permanent staff increase significantly over the past year,” she says, suggesting that this can be attributed to, “numerous contractor replacement programmes.” This is always likely to have its biggest impact on support and lower level roles first. One of the biggest tumbles in rate comes for Unix support contractors. Rates here have crashed from £32.66 to £28.29 – a 15% fall - in two months. So, if you’re an SAP HR guru grafting in the City, allow yourself an extra mulled wine while watching the weekend’s fireworks. If you’re an out of work Unix support technician, you may find that your winter hibernation has begun already. Matt Farqurharson Data source: www.itjobswatch.co.uk Nov 2, 2005 Email this article Printer friendly page Previous Page
|
|
   |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All content © Contractor UK Limited | [Register for News Letter] | [Privacy Statement] | [Terms of Use] | [Top of Page] |