IT RECRUITMENT

A new survey shows 63% of IT professionals expect a pay rise if they move jobs and 53% of them believe their current employers would do their damndest to hold on to them during the recession, according to the Sunday Business Post.

The survey by online recruitment company Computerjobs.ie shows some signs of improvement in the jobs market for IT professionals but re-emphasises the importance of multinationals to a surge in jobs.

“We are getting announcements from multinationals in the IT space regarding job creation in Ireland,” Niall Kelly, founder of Computerjobs.ie said. “We now have Facebook, Paypal, Ebay and Linkedin operating and hiring here. It is looking positive for anyone working in IT and our survey results reflect that.”

The survey of almost 700 IT professionals also found that 34% of those in work were looking for a change, even in the present climate where jobs are at a premium in most sectors. However, 32% were currently unemployed and looking for work.

Kelly said the IT sector was insulated from the worst of the recession.

“While it was quiet last year, the last four months or so have seen things come back in a big way,” he said.

In an adjunct piece, the newspaper provides a guide to the market rates for IT professionals, based on a recent salary survey by Verkom.

At senior levels, chief technology officers can expect to average €121,000, software development managers €90,000 and IT project managers €80,000.

Java developers can expect to earn between €25,000 to €50,000 a year depending on experience and the highest paid permanent entry level jobs are held by Oracle/SQL developers, data warehousing and mainframe specialists, who can expect €30,000 with up to two years’ experience.

There have been no significant changes in daily rates paid to contractors but demand has picked up for Java, .NET and C++ in particular due to a shortage in supply.