State of the Market

[oliverson]

I have to say that this really is the most grim period I can remember. I had 3 months on the bench at the height of the crisis but at least there were contracts to apply for and plenty of them, along with plenty of interviews. But now it's dreadful. The only time I can remember it anything like this is the dotcom crash.

[rapid]

I've been off since the end of March but only started looking Tuesday last week after the bank holiday..

This only applies to London - I'm finding there are roles being posted daily however the rates are a fair bit lower than normal..

It may be Brexit related, or just a slow period in the contract market in general.. I remember it was this exact month I took my last contract and it was buzzing 6-7 calls a day and it took 4 days before getting 2 offers..

I've had a couple of bites though and I'm hopeful I will find something by the end of the month, its not completely dead.

Best of luck all, hopefully seem some BOOM'ing soon..

[uk contractor]

I have to say that this really is the most grim period I can remember. I had 3 months on the bench at the height of the crisis but at least there were contracts to apply for and plenty of them, along with plenty of interviews. But now it's dreadful. The only time I can remember it anything like this is the dotcom crash.

In London its been like this for ages. Decent roles are few & far between. Sept 2001 was the last time I remember it being this bad. IB's are not hiring unless its a headcount replacement or essential project. Many businesses are waiting for the EU Referendum but not sure that outcome will kickstart the job market overnight. Scary time's ahead in the short term!

[Cirrus]

Brexit or Just The End of an Era

Many businesses are waiting for the EU Referendum but not sure that outcome will kickstart the job market overnight.

I currently work for an international insurance company (mixed retail, big commercial and re-). They have specifically said it makes not a jot of difference to them which way the vote goes.

[LondonManc]

I currently work for an international insurance company (mixed retail, big commercial and re-). They have specifically said it makes not a jot of difference to them which way the vote goes.

Probably not. It's more those that have projects and investments tied up in an outcome (or management simply using it as an excuse to save money for three months).

[northernladuk]

I currently work for an international insurance company (mixed retail, big commercial and re-). They have specifically said it makes not a jot of difference to them which way the vote goes.

Who exactly said that? That's a pretty bold statement to make and I'm not sure who in such a big organisation has the authority to say that. Sounds more like someone about to commit professional suicide than a company statement to me.

[Cirrus]

Who exactly said that? .

The Chief Executive.

He sent a note to all staff.

Basically he said the board members had different views on whether we should remain or leave but as regards the effect on the Business, it was agreed that leaving would have little effect. I think he said the day after we leave people would still have to insure their houses, cars, art collections, golf courses, hijack-prone employees, airliners etc. We would still have to do EU regulation stuff like Solvency II. Legal changes would just require setting up some slightly different company structures in EU countries but that didn't pose much of a problem. The company trades in UK, EU, USA etc so currency turbulence would be swings and roundabouts. His strongest message was forget the business angles: go out and vote for what you believe in.

Quite refreshing really...

[northernladuk]

Indeed!!

[DarkLard]

Bad for me at the moment. Been looking for 3 months (web dev full stack etc) up North but only fake job ads or fishing agents calling etc..

[Cirrus]

For about twenty years the entire Western World has been overspending on its credit cards. That came to an end in 2008 and a lot of people eg Great Britain Ltd have a lot of debt to pay down. Worse than that they can't overspend off their cards any more so there is less cash to splash around. On top of that, emerging market growth has slowed.

Then add in all the offshoring and immigration which simply bring new players into a tight market to pinch a proportion of the limited cash circulating.

Then add in the slow but persistent rise of automation.

These macroeconomic factors would suggest quite a few people are going to find it tougher than it's been for a long time.