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Reply to: State of the Market
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Previously on "State of the Market"
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Just getting my feet under the table at my new public sector gig and it turns out plans to hand development to a large consultancy with a reputation for low pay and shoddy work have been brought forward and all subcontractors are at risk.
Looks like this could be my shortest ever gig and I have just gone through all the effort of starting a new company.Last edited by TheDude; Today, 13:43.
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Originally posted by dsc View PostEven assuming that things are going sideways, you'd think that some projects would emerge at some stage. Otherwise how the hell are companies making money? there's only so many people you can sack to fake profits.
https://fortune.com/2024/06/07/zombi...ar-debt-loans/
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Originally posted by willendure View Post
I don't watch those, or buy into that narrative. I am saying there is going to be a deflationary event, not economic collapse. If there was a control board for the world economy, it would be flashing up all red warning signs at the moment - sure it might not happen, but the warning lights ARE all on. I actually hope you are right and we get blue skies and I am proved wrong. There is probably a melt-up in financial markets coming that I will miss out on as a result of my cautionary stance, but I am ok with that.
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Originally posted by Fraidycat View PostLol, you need lay off the 'economic collapse imminent videos' on youtube.
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Originally posted by Fraidycat View Post
Lol, you need lay off the 'economic collapse imminent videos' on youtube.
The market is improving markedly already, the jobserve headline number jumped from 15K to 36K, after just one minor rate cut by the BOE last month.
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Originally posted by willendure View Post
Lol. Next DotCom/GFC is just about to get started...
The market is improving markedly already, the jobserve headline number jumped from 15K to 36K, after just one minor rate cut by the BOE last month.Last edited by Fraidycat; Yesterday, 08:51.
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Originally posted by Fraidycat View PostWe are nearly at the end of this i think. The dot com crash took down the UK contractor market for about 30months. (Mid 2001 to end of 2003)
We are 26 months into this one, and interest rates cuts are on the way down and in 4 months the next US president will take office. Coinciding with the 30 month mark.
Blue skies ahead.
I would at least continue applying for roles where you are a perfect match based on the spec and your skills.
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Originally posted by SussexSeagull View PostI think contractors current challenges are only a symptom of a wider problem. I know it is unscientific but looking on LinkedIn I am not sure the permanent market is much better and IT recruitment is a blood bath at the moment.
And as others have mentioned, no one gives a tulipe about the specific travails of the contractor job market, not the general public and not the government (any government). In the grand scheme of things, we're a small part of the job market, that's it.
As far as the pure IT sector is concerned, an interest-rate cut or an uptick in the UK economy will not necessarily translate into good times for jobs/contracts in the sector. There's a massive amount of excess supply built up over the past few years, they're not going anywhere yet.
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Originally posted by SchumiStars View PostWell, think I have decided not to bother looking for the time being. It's just bringing down the enthusiasm I once had for software development.
Things are not improving and after 12mths of applying and getting nothing. Probably time to look at other things.
We are nearly at the end of this i think. The dot com crash took down the UK contractor market for about 30months. (Mid 2001 to end of 2003)
We are 26 months into this one, and interest rates cuts are on the way down and in 4 months the next US president will take office. Coinciding with the 30 month mark.
Blue skies ahead.
I would at least continue applying for roles where you are a perfect match based on the spec and your skills.Last edited by Fraidycat; 16 September 2024, 17:47.
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Well, think I have decided not to bother looking for the time being. It's just bringing down the enthusiasm I once had for software development.
Things are not improving and after 12mths of applying and getting nothing. Probably time to look at other things.
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Originally posted by SussexSeagull View Post
I think contractors current challenges are only a symptom of a wider problem. I know it is unscientific but looking on LinkedIn I am not sure the permanent market is much better and IT recruitment is a blood bath at the moment.
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If anyone here is in FS, Citi is hiring extensively. I get about 2 emails a week from agents for them. Even when it's not mentioned you can tell from the terminology who it is.
They are always hiring, make of that what you will
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Originally posted by dsc View PostThis is why it always makes me laugh when people here say that the gov needs to fix this or that for us to make more money / get jobs etc. As if we are the priority
What I wanted to say is, there is a problem in the UK and it extends to most western countries. That is that the boomers are retiring, shrinking the productivity of the economy, and going from high earners to tight fisted pensioners overnight; that significantly changes how they view their capital. You can see how this played out in Japan already and from that derive a picture of how this will be and is affecting the UK. In many ways it didn't really matter which party we elected at the last election because they all face this issue. Since demographics is "baked in" and cannot be changed, there are no easy solutions. A major difference with Japan is that they don't have immigration like we do. Hence they have found remaining politically unified easier as a population with a more singular ethnicity. The difficulty the UK has is that immigration is a possible solution to demographics through filling in desirable age ranges by recruiting from abroad, but that also increases political division.
So tough choices indeed, and contractors are not a priority. But also we've been hit in the past by tax changes, how much is left to squeeze out of us, or are their more ambitious targets that mean we get overlooked?
Rumours of 45% on all dividends sound a little paranoid.Last edited by willendure; 16 September 2024, 13:04.
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Originally posted by dsc View Post
This is why it always makes me laugh when people here say that the gov needs to fix this or that for us to make more money / get jobs etc. As if we are the priority
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