Checkout this interesting article on WSJ (published 4/1/2014) by clicking here.

Below are some of the lines that I found interesting

• The average U.S. orthodontist earns $196,270. The average CEO makes $178,400.
• One out of every 17 jobs in America is held by a retail salesperson or a cashier
• Of the 10 largest occupations, only registered nurses earn more than the national average for all occupations
• Operators of nuclear-power reactors earn an average of $78,410 annually

While interesting, I am not sure how "relevant" this article is. The data seems to include people working all over US, in companies of all sizes. I think, a more relevant article would show data by regions (e.g. NYC, Long Island, Upstate NY, Western NY etc.), and have breakdown by employer industry and employer size.

Another observation - "One out of every 17 jobs in America is held by a retail salesperson or a cashier". Considering "online shopping" is replacing "mall shopping", this should imply that retail sales jobs at brick and mortar stores are shrinking.... Doesn't this mean fewer after-school jobs for my kids and their kids? I guess that my kids will be forced to work in an office environment, processing online retail orders, instead of interacting face to face with a real customer in a store. So does it mean that future generations are going to grown up with inter-personal skills that are not at par with my generation.... My guess is yes as I already see kids "prefer" to text/tweet than talk... So long to the most popular line that 75%+ resumes include today "Excellent communication and inter-personal skills", to be replaced by "Excellent tweeting and texting skills"   ;-)

What do you think?

Happy New Year. We are optimistic that 2014 will be a good year, for both job seekers and employers.

While the market conditions are improving, in our opinion, the pendulum of "client market" Vs. "candidate market" to stay evenly balanced. While Dot Com days were "candidate market" and recent recession between 2008-2011 was a "client market", last few years have been better for job seekers, positioning the IT job market to a more balanced state.

Based on data we have seen, flow of job openings and conversations with our numerous clients, it appears that 2014 will see a slight increase in hiring for IT jobs in the Northeast US.

So what does that mean for you?

Consultants / Job Seekers

• Number of available jobs should grow. January is typically a 'planning' time where clients are creating project plans and budgets. This begins to translate to actual job openings beginning in February.
• Rates / salaries for 'commodity' skills sets are expected to remain flat, compared to 2013. Certain 'non commodity' skill sets may see slight increase.

Employers:

• Selection of available candidates will go down.
• Time that candidates will stay available on market will reduce.
• Cost of hiring / salaries / consulting rates will be flat to modestly higher

NYS OGS posted on their website On-Boarding Data / Results of first fifty HBITS (Hourly Based IT Services Contract) task orders.

This data indicates that IIT was one of the TOP performers. To view this data, click here

As per Sep 2 2012 report by Fiscal Policy Institute, below is a summary of current employment conditions in NYS and NYC area

■ Around the state: Over the past year job growth has slowed in NYC while it has picked up in several upstate metro areas. 
>>> IIT's observation: Certain professions, like Information Technology, continue to remain strong both in NYC and upstate areas. Employers in healthcare sectors continue to add to their teams, thanks to major initiatives like EHR / EMR.

■ Unemployment in New York State has been around eight percent or higher for the past three and a half years, the longest stretch since the mid-1970s. 
>>> IIT's observation: Certain professions, like Information Technology, have seen an uptick in hiring, salaries and rates, beginning in 2011, and continuing slowly into 2012. But major IT employers in NYC area like investment banks have seen a downward trend in compensation awarded to employees and contractors. Candidates with 'hands-on' technical skills seem to fare better than mid and senior management staff.

■ The average duration of unemployment is currently nine months. 
>>> IIT's observation: Hands-on professionals in Information Technology with average or above average skills should expect this period to be significantly less. 

■ Compared to the nation: New York’s payroll job growth has been slightly better than or even with 
national job growth. This modest job growth has been concentrated among low-wage industries.
>>> IIT's observation: We agree. With various tax incentives being offered to large companies to boost manufacturing and siminlar activities in upstate NY, employment growth is stronger in blue-collar / upstate NY markets.

■ New York’s job growth in the recovery has been the 13th highest among all the states, yet no state had a higher reported increase in unemployment over the past two years.