eFinancialCareers

Is nervousness about jobs prompting contractors to try to go permanent? You’d think so….

The truth of the matter is that contractors may enjoy more control over their destinies.

“Permanent workers in areas such as structured credit are just sitting there waiting for the axe to fall,” says Wayne Smithies at recruitment firm Joslin Rowe. “But contractors can move on at short notice to busier teams. We’ve seen temps pre-empt problems, leave and even increase their hourly rate.”

At the same time, Smithies says contractual roles are increasing while permanent hires are put on hold: “Since the credit crunch, temporary jobs have increased by 10%. When banks can’t get permanent vacancies authorised, they have to hire temps as the work still needs to be done.”

The shift in favour of contract staff doesn’t make a huge amount of sense for banks, given contractors tend to be more expensive. Steve Forro at recruiter Indigo City says banks would like to wean themselves off short-term staff as a result: “But they need to do this with attractive permanent offers, or people will take up lucrative temp jobs elsewhere.”

If you’re a contractor who aspires to go permanent Forro advises making yourself indispensable: “Try to become an integral part of the business – it’s all about creating the impression that people would not just be sorry but at a definite loss if you left.”

And don’t be overly concerned about being branded a job-hopper. “Contracting tends to be a professional career choice these days, and contracts themselves last for longer durations, so CVs don’t look as choppy,” says Smithies. “It’s much easier to go permanent than people perceive.”