I've been a software engineer for around 15 years. I've got good experience working both perm and as contractor, both in the public and private sector.
I think because I have quite broad appeal in my experience I tend to find it reasonably easy to get interviews, and I've always felt I have an above average hit rate of getting the jobs I apply for when I get interviews.
Early last year I lost my job and it was scary how quiet the market was. I managed to find a job in the end (I think I got quite lucky to be honest) but it was a contract role so recently I've been looking around again as I will be out of work fairly soon.
I've sent my CV out for ~30 positions over the last couple of months and I've heard absolutely nothing back. Well, one recruiter said I had been shortlisted weeks ago, but then I heard nothing back.
I'm actually stunned at how bad the market is right now. I've had two previous colleagues contact me this week alone asking if I know of any work going because they've been out of a job for a while.
But not only is the market bad right now, I'm also noticing that rates for many engineering roles have tanked. A recruiter reached out about a React developer role recently which had an advertised day rate of £200 ($250), for comparison in 2021 your average React developer day rate might be around £500-600. So even where people are finding roles in many cases they're taking significant cuts in pay. Lead developer and very niche roles seem to be holding in a little better, but from what I've seen they've still come down quite a bit in recent months.
Additionally because so many talented people are out of work right now even if you find a job at a significant pay cut you're going to struggle to get it because in some cases these roles are getting 50-100 applicants – many of whom have many years of experience.
What worries me is that some people I'm talking to still seem to think that it's not that bad out there, saying things like, "I've always found something", or "there's always someone hiring", but I'm telling you this time is different. I know multiple people struggling to pay rent and feed their families right now. Tech did reasonable well during the GFC, but right now it's dire out there for tech jobs. Anyone reading this needs to be prepared to lose their job and be out of work for at least a year, and even if you find a job you need to be prepared to take a significant pay cut. If you can't afford to be out of work for a year you need to save and prepare – especially if you have a family dependant on your income.
I'm based in the UK, so perhaps it's better elsewhere in the world, but I have never seen the market this bad before – not even close. I wouldn't bet on a rebound any time soon either. Work from home, higher interest rates, large numbers of new tech talent graduating, and increasing automation in software development workflows may keep the market cool for a long time.
I think because I have quite broad appeal in my experience I tend to find it reasonably easy to get interviews, and I've always felt I have an above average hit rate of getting the jobs I apply for when I get interviews.
Early last year I lost my job and it was scary how quiet the market was. I managed to find a job in the end (I think I got quite lucky to be honest) but it was a contract role so recently I've been looking around again as I will be out of work fairly soon.
I've sent my CV out for ~30 positions over the last couple of months and I've heard absolutely nothing back. Well, one recruiter said I had been shortlisted weeks ago, but then I heard nothing back.
I'm actually stunned at how bad the market is right now. I've had two previous colleagues contact me this week alone asking if I know of any work going because they've been out of a job for a while.
But not only is the market bad right now, I'm also noticing that rates for many engineering roles have tanked. A recruiter reached out about a React developer role recently which had an advertised day rate of £200 ($250), for comparison in 2021 your average React developer day rate might be around £500-600. So even where people are finding roles in many cases they're taking significant cuts in pay. Lead developer and very niche roles seem to be holding in a little better, but from what I've seen they've still come down quite a bit in recent months.
Additionally because so many talented people are out of work right now even if you find a job at a significant pay cut you're going to struggle to get it because in some cases these roles are getting 50-100 applicants – many of whom have many years of experience.
What worries me is that some people I'm talking to still seem to think that it's not that bad out there, saying things like, "I've always found something", or "there's always someone hiring", but I'm telling you this time is different. I know multiple people struggling to pay rent and feed their families right now. Tech did reasonable well during the GFC, but right now it's dire out there for tech jobs. Anyone reading this needs to be prepared to lose their job and be out of work for at least a year, and even if you find a job you need to be prepared to take a significant pay cut. If you can't afford to be out of work for a year you need to save and prepare – especially if you have a family dependant on your income.
I'm based in the UK, so perhaps it's better elsewhere in the world, but I have never seen the market this bad before – not even close. I wouldn't bet on a rebound any time soon either. Work from home, higher interest rates, large numbers of new tech talent graduating, and increasing automation in software development workflows may keep the market cool for a long time.