UK firms clamour for web designers and SEO experts

INDEPENDENT CONTRACT workers have never had it so good according to the skills marketplace People Per Hour, which has seen rapidly rising earnings among its digital army.

The web site, or online business marketplace as it calls itself, has seen the most lucrative quarter in the marketplace on record for its workers as demand has increased for people with digital skills.

Earnings increased by 200 per cent, it added, as firms clamoured to hire web design, programming and other talent. The web design and web site construction market grew by 178 per cent year over year, applications development grew by 98 per cent, ecommerce grew by 216 per cent and search engine optimisation grew by 139 per cent.

The talent pool is widening, it added, and the number of consultants winning work increased by 320 per cent against the same period last year.

Nationally people in Bristol and the South West did the best and their earnings increased by 880 per cent. London and the South East workers' earnings grew by only 87 per cent.

"The IT sector is one of the key engines of growth for the economy and is integral to the UK's prosperity," said Peopleperhour.com founder and CEO Xenios Thrasyvoulou.

"The figures today show that not only are digital industry contractors winning more work than before, but companies are also willing to pay more for their services, which is a real sign that profits and confidence are back," he concluded. µ