IT Contractor Pay Rises 13%

2013 was a good year for IT contractors in the UK, if the 2014 Robert Walters Salary Survey is anything to go by. According to the specialist recruitment consultancy, the earnings of these professionals rose by 13% as demand grew steadily over the course of the year.

As reported by ComputerWeekly, the biggest winners were IT contractors employed by financial service providers in London. In the case of chief technology officers and chief information officers, daily pay increased from £1,000-£1,300 to £1,100-£1,500 between 2013 and 2014.

2013 brought a long-awaited improvement in the IT labour market.

Commenting on the survey results, Robert Walters IT recruitment director Natasha Brooks said that 2013 brought a long-awaited improvement in the IT labour market. Confidence among IT professionals grew alongside vacancy numbers, the latter reflecting strong demand for contractors as companies resumed investment in large projects, Brooks added.

Java and .Net developers were particularly sought after in the Midlands and this skills shortage had an impact on contractor pay in the region: salaries rose by up to 12%. Contractors specialising in Java commanded daily rates of £375-£500 compared to £350-£450 a year earlier. As for .Net development contractors, their daily pay increased from £300-£500 to £350-£500. The North West continues to offer solid prospects for IT specialists: contractor pay in this region climbed by up to 6% due to insufficient supply of VMware experts and front-end developers.

Brooks pointed out that the best candidates look set to benefit from further pay rises. This is only to be expected given the growing number of vacancies and the persistent shortage of skilled applicants, she added.