ContractorUK is reporting that public sector IT staff are now earning up to 40% less since chancellor George Osborne's policy on pay freezes in 2010.


Subsequently, many bodies have simply elected to cut pay for contracted IT staff:
Trusts, councils and quangos justify the 40% cut by freezing pay for full-time IT staff, in line with Mr Osborne’s call, and then put IT contractors on the equivalent rate for a fixed term. 

“It was unheard of that a contractor would accept something at that level a few years ago,” reflected Christine Christodolou, head of public sector IT for ReThink Recruitment.

“But unfortunately for them, now many [IT contractors] are having to consider this [lower rate] fixed-term contract as an option, as opposed to being out of work completely.”

“Contractors will always ‘follow the money’ and they should do - given that they are effectively a commercial entity,” said Primesourcing’s chairman Jeff Brooks.

“We are not yet seeing contractors vie away from the public sector, bear in mind that a contract PM who has worked in the public sector for some time cannot easily convince the private sector to take them on. This is easier for a developer, of course, but switching backwards and forwards is not straight forward.”

“Our contractors have remained on strong rates throughout the year and are involved in long term programmes of work,” said David Ward, a director at private sector IT recruiters SQ Computer Personnel.

“This has removed the temptation by the vast majority of our IT contractors to change roles, regardless to which sector the roles on offer might be in.”


Read the full report here.