Life looking good for IT contractors

IT contractors believe they'll make more money this year than last as demand for their skills grows, according to new research.

Just over three-quarters of IT contractors expect their earnings to increase in the next 12 months, compared with half who thought so in 2004.

The figures come from a survey of 607 IT contractors conducted by specialty accountancy firm giant group.

This compares with silicon.com's 2005 Skills Survey, which showed salaries for IT contractors and consultants has remained steady over the past year, with about half of respondents making between £55,000 and £110,000 per annum.

Contractors see their fortunes increasing because demand is at its highest since the dot-com boom and because certain skills are scarce, said giant.

The Skills Survey revealed programming languages, IT systems management and web services were the technical skills in shortest supply while project management and leadership were the most in-demand non-IT skills.

The public sector and financial services are the two areas hiring the most IT contractors, in line with last year's results to a similar survey by giant, with around one-fifth of respondents working in each sector.

Major government projects such as the NHS's National Programme for IT, e-government initiatives and the Ministry of Defence's £4bn outsourcing contract are seen as raising demand in the public sector.

Financial services companies, meanwhile, need contractors to help with data management in order to comply with new regulations such as Basel II, said Matthew Brown, managing director at giant group.