IT contractors see 13% pay increase

IT contractors saw year-on-year pay increases spike up to 13%, between 2013 and 2014, according to Robert Walters Salary Survey 2014.

Earnings for IT professionals contracted to firms in the London financial services sector saw the biggest salary increases. Contracted chief technology officers (CTOs) and chief information officers (CIOs) saw salaries rise from £1,000-£1,300 per day in 2013 to £1,100-1,500 in 2014.

Top permanent positions also saw an increase in the London financial services sector with heads of departments salaries rising from £100,000-£140,000 per annum to £110,000-£150,000 year on year.

Among the non-financial-services employers, demand for e-commerce and mobile technology experts pushed earnings in permanent roles up by an average of 7% and contractors by 5%.

Natasha Brooks, head of IT recruitment at Robert Walters, said: “It was a positive year in IT recruitment. The marketplace improved and for the first time in many years IT professionals had confidence in the job market.

“The number of vacancies increased steadily over the year and the demand for contractors increased as organisations willingly invested in high-profile projects.”

Regionally the Midlands revealed a shortage of Java and .Net developers, which caused a spike of up to 12% in contractor salaries across the region.

Daily contractor rates for Java specialists rose from £350-£450 to £375-£500 year on year, which contracted developers for .Net saw an increase from £300-£500 in 2013 to £350-£500 in 2014.

Prospects for IT professionals in the North West remained strong, with shortages of VMware experts and front-end developers causing average pay-rises of up to 6%.

“With the increase in job opportunities and continued skills shortages, salaries are expected to rise for the best candidates. Firms unable to offer market-rate salaries or other benefits are likely to lose out to competitors,” added Brooks.