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Tech salaries drop 2.6% in 2004

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CIOL Bureau
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BANGALORE: The average salaries for technology professionals decline in 2004, according to an annual salary survey, conducted by Dice Inc., a leading job board for technology, engineering and security-cleared professionals. The survey of more than 23,000 technology professionals details key industry trends and points to changes in the technology landscape as demand for specialized technology skills continues to escalate in the government and defense sectors.



The survey revealed a decline in overall salaries to levels not seen before 2001. Overall, technology salaries in the United States decreased 2.6 percent from an average of $69,600 in 2003 to $67,800 in 2004, partly due to declines in the computer software industry (down 5.7 percent) and a steep decline in the Internet services sector (down 9.8 percent).



However there has been an increase in salaries in non-traditional technology cities, such as Washington D.C., Atlanta and the Southern California area.



For the third year in a row, government and defense salaries proved to be the bright spot in the survey, with a 2.9 percent gain, from $64,600 to $66,500. With an average salary of $77,700, the financial services industry remained the top paying industry for technology professionals tracked by the salary survey, despite declining 2.4 percent since last year (ref table).



Sliding salaries for contractors and consultants also contributed to the overall decline: contract workers in 2004 reported earning an average of $82,000, 9.1 percent less than 2003 salaries and almost 20 percent less than they reported in 2001.



"Salaries are still feeling the impact of the tech slowdown of 2002 and 2003," said Scot Melland, president and CEO of Dice Inc. "Now that demand is picking up, we anticipate seeing salaries rise as the labor markets tighten. In fact, we have already started to see this happening in markets such as Southern California, Washington D.C., Atlanta and in the government and defense related industries."

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       Tech Salaries, 2001 - 2004

2001 2002 2003 2004

U.S. Average $70,800 $69,700 $69,600 $67,800

Bank / Financial / Insurance $80,700 $80,200 $79,600 $77,700

Telecommunications $74,100 $73,000 $73,000 $71,600

Computer Software $73,100 $73,700 $75,000 $70,700

Medical / Pharmaceutical $65,500 $68,900 $69,900 $68,400

Government / Defense $57,900 $62,000 $64,600 $66,500

Manufacturing $64,100 $64,100 $66,400 $65,000

Internet Services $70,500 $64,200 $66,400 $59,900

Computer Hardware $55,700 $55,600 $57,900 $57,200

Retail / Mail Order / E-Commerce $61,600 $59,300 $61,500 $55,600

Users can log on to http://marketing.dice.com/rateresults to search for specific salary information based on location, job function, skills and education.

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