IT contractors are expecting job prospects to improve over the next year as the financial services sector starts hiring again, according to research.

Some 22.1 per cent of the 779 professionals polled by contractor services provider Giant Group expect most of their employment opportunities to come from the financial sector.

The numbers represent a 50 per cent rise in confidence on six months ago, when just 14.7 per cent of IT contractors expected to see any job openings within financial services.

“In the aftermath of Lehman Brothers’ collapse, IT directors and team leaders at investment banks were forced to let contractors go. The situation is different now as those same team leaders are being instructed to start hiring again,” said managing director at Giant, Matthew Brown.

Professionals working on a contract basis also expect their earnings to rise next year, says the study, with 61.4 per cent of those surveyed anticipating a pay rise in 2010.

But money is not the only consideration for contractors, according to the research. Only 45 per cent of professionals said salary was their most important criteria when choosing a contract.

“These figures suggest that as IT contractors are less nervous about the prospect of being out of work they are starting to place greater emphasis on career issues, such as the opportunity to develop their skills, when selecting contracts,” said Brown.