Recruiters see huge rise in demand for IT staff

Businesses continue to see the value of investing in IT staff

Demand for IT and computing employees rose significantly over the past year to reach the highest levels of permanent IT employment over the decade, according to a report published today.

The findings, from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG, entitled Report on Jobs, showed that the percentage of IT staff employed on a permanent basis had risen to 65.7 in 2009, up from 32.8 in 2008. Temporary and contract employment rates also rose, from 35.1 in 2008 to 58.5 in 2009.

The figures are calculated from the percentages of respondents reporting an improvement, no change or decline. The indices vary between 0 and 100, and a reading of exactly 50.0 signals no change on the previous month.

Jeff Brooks, chairman of the REC technology sector group, argued that the figures are very heartening and show that companies continue to see the benefits of investing in IT infrastructure, even during the downturn.

"We had seen a rise in the third quarter of last year in the number of advertisements for IT staff, both permanent and contract, so were not surprised to see the trend continue. But it's pleasing to see it reach such high levels," he said.

Brooks expects to see further investment in IT in 2010 in the private sector, but noted that election uncertainty could see public sector contract work fall off, and employment rates could decline towards the back end of the year.

"Many firms have been recruiting IT staff heavily in the last three months or so to reach the levels they require to run their departments. However, once they reach this level, there may well be a drop in the employment figures from the current rates," he said.

Brooks admitted that he was surprised to see such high permanent employment figures, having expected them to lag slightly behind contract and temporary levels, but added it was a welcome surprise for the industry.