IT jobs market among the most resilient

The number of infrastructure-based roles has also increased

The IT jobs market received a further boost today after it was revealed that technology ranked fourth in a list of the UK’s 10 most resilient job sectors, according to recruiter Hays.

Growing buoyancy in the technology recruitment market is being driven by strong demand for desktop and server qualified engineers among SMEs, where placements are up almost 30 per cent on the same period in 2009, according to an analysis by the recruiter.

At the same time, the number of infrastructure-based roles has also increased, owing to the fact that virtualisation and remote access technologies are becoming more widely available, financially convenient and easy to implement and install. The release of Microsoft Windows 7 has also helped increase the demand for IT staff to support home users or smaller organisations, Hays says.

Gennaro Capasso, general manager of Hays Information Technology, said the green shoots of recovery were definitely emerging. “We’re experiencing better conditions than we have for two years. Employers have much more choice of talent and can be much more precise about what they’re looking for.”

But Capasso warned that salaries were down on average between five and 15 per cent on this time last year and that it would be some time before pay packets picked up to pre-recession levels. “People have to forget about moving for excessive pay rises. Today it’s about moving for the opportunity to do something different. I think that represents a fundamental shift in approach that won’t change in the short term.”

The Hays study highlights City roles as the second most resilient in today’s UK job market, which also includes demand for experienced IT professionals in both permanent and interim roles, as investment, corporate and retail banks look to rebuild their businesses.

The study, based on a round-up of recruitment activity at Hays over the past two months, adds clout to suggestions by recruiter CV Screen that the IT jobs market is on the road to recovery – even though, perhaps surprisingly, the number of applications per role is down.

Meanwhile, the interim IT job market is also showing signs of bouncing back, with demand up 11 per cent in the six months to the end of June, according to figures from interim provider Russam GMS, although pay rates for interim IT managers fell by 5.7 per cent from £649 to £612 over the same period.

The survey also highlighted significant regional variations in the fortunes of interims, with those in the south of England maintaining their average daily rate of £619 a day, while their counterparts in central England saw their pay drop from drop from £623 to £591; interims in the North and West saw slight increases in their pay rates.