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New contract offers dive in financial services sector

Published on Nov 10, 2008 | | Contract Rate Checker

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Research carried out by a pre-employment screening company shows that the demand for IT contractors in the financial services industry fell by nearly half during October.

The data from Powerchex Limited, which screens staff for financial institutions, suggests that contractor employment offers dived by 49% last month, compared to September 2008.

Analysts predict that IT contractors and other temporary workers, often described as "first into and first out of any recession", will bounce back after an initial hard period. 2009 is likely to bring an upswing in demand for temporary workers as organisations put off hiring permanent staff, according to Powerchex.

Investment Banks continued to cut back on their new hires with a 30% drop in employment offers from September to November. This comes after news that investment banks made a 52% cutback in jobs offers in September compared to 6 months before. We have also reported successive reports of rate cuts at most of the major investment banks in recent months.

Particular sectors and individual companies who have been able to remain stable through the turmoil prepared to put themselves at the head of the pack to take advantage of any economic recovery. Hedge fund and insurance companies made attempts to strengthen their position by continuing to snap up the best the employment market has to offer with offers increasing by 30% and 14% respectively.

"These are very difficult times for the employment market, and everyone entering the workplace will have to realise that the landscape has changed dramatically." says Alexandra Kelly, MD of Powerchex. "Where one interview was sufficient in the past, applicants will now find that several interviews are necessary before a job offer is made. Credentials are scrutinised much more closely, so applicants are advised to be clear, concise and truthful about the information they provide on their CVs."