Study: IT worker confidence drops

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October 08, 2004 (Computerworld) -- IT workers in the U.S. aren't too happy about the state of the job market, according to a study released by New York-based staffing firm Hudson, a division of Hudson Highland Group Inc.
After a steady climb over the past four months, the Hudson Employment Index for IT workers fell 3.8 points, to 112.1 from 115.9 in August. The overall national Index fell 2.0 points, to 106.9 from 108.9 in August, according to the study. Data for the studies is collected from monthly telephone surveys with approximately 9,000 U.S. workers and tracks aggregate employment trends around career opportunities, hiring intentions, job satisfaction and retention.
The reason for the decline in the IT worker index is that in September, more IT workers said that their personal finance situation worsened and that they are unhappy in their current jobs, according to the study. In September, 39.6% of the 401 IT workers surveyed reported worsening finances compared with 33.3% in August.
Hudson's study comes on the heels of two other studies that also indicate that times are tough for IT workers. In September, a study conducted by the Center of Urban Economic Development at the University of Illinois in Chicago found that the IT job market remains tight, with workers outnumbering jobs in many parts of the U.S.
And an IT employment report released last month by the Information Technology Association of America, a vendor group in Arlington, Va., concurred that while there was a slight (2%) increase in IT employment early this year, IT job growth is expected to slow for the rest of 2004 (see story).

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