IT contractor confidence soars in improving market

CWJobs survey shows that nearly half of IT job seekers are more confident in getting a contract now compared to six months ago

IT contractors are becoming increasingly bullish about their prospects in the current jobs market, despite the threat presented by the European Union and offshore outsourcing of IT jobs. Results of the latest contractor research from CWJobs, which surveyed nearly 3,000 IT job seekers in the UK, show that 43% of all IT job seekers are more confident of getting a new contract position than they were at the beginning of 2004.

The results of the CWJobs web-based survey also revealed that IT contractors are becoming more optimistic when it comes to salary increases as well: 54% of contractors expect their rates to increase in 2004 with 13% of these expecting an increase of as much as 20%. The most popular industries for job seekers were software, electronics/communications and finance.

When prompted about possible threats to UK IT jobs, over 70% of respondents thought that offshore outsourcing and the opening up of the EU would increase competition for UK-based contract positions. However, the CWJobs survey also revealed that the EU presented an opportunity as well as a threat, with 72% of contractors stating that they would consider jobs outside the UK. The most popular destination was within the EU, with 83% interested in positions in existing EU member countries and 39% specifically interested in emerging member countries.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for IT job seekers, the most effective method of getting a contract position was found to be via online recruitment methods. 53% of respondents favoured job boards and job alerts, compared to 23% who thought that registering with a recruitment agency was the most effective way of getting a job.

Commenting on the findings, Richard Nott, sales director at CWJobs said:

ìThe threat of IT off-shoring and the EU has created a lot of fear and uncertainty amongst IT job seekers, so it is great news for the UK IT market that contractor confidence is on the up. However, with the market tightening up and competition increasing it is vital that contractors can find out about vacancies quickly and stay ahead of the game. As an IT specialist job board, CWJobs should be the first choice for contractors looking for new positions.î