Index: Tech Pay Falls in Fourth Quarter '02

February 5, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Fourth-quarter wages for tech workers dropped 3.1% in 2002 as compared with the same period of 2001, according to the Yoh Index of Technology Wages.

The national index decreased 2.44 points to 101.62. Pay for information technology (9.7%) and telecommunications (8%) workers dropped most, while wages for engineers were flat. Pay rates for aviation employees were highest, growing by 7.8% over 2001, while scientific workers’ wages rose by 6.7%.

Month-to-month, the Yoh Index of Technology Wages dropped six times in 2002, compared to nine decreases in 2001, according to the latest survey.

A buyer’s market continues with softness across the information technology sector, particularly in Web development and systems and network analysts. Demand still remains strong for applications, help desk support, process analysts and testing personnel. Demand for highly skilled scientific specialists in the fields of bioinformatics, validation and process engineering is strong throughout the United States.

The same holds true regionally. Although the overall employment picture remains uneven in Southern California, wages in some sectors remain strong.

The Yoh Index of Technology Wages is based on a quarterly sample of the temporary technology labor pool being utilized by 1,052 businesses in the aviation, engineering, IT, manufacturing, scientific, telecommunications and utility communities. This quarterly sample involves 5,156 technology workers.

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