Outlook Grim for IT Salaries

The sluggish economy has hit nearly every industry, and wages are down, including in information technology. eWeek highlights a recent study by Robert Half Technology that outlines 70 IT job fields and compares 2009 to the coming year. National starting salaries for IT jobs are forecast to decrease by an average of 1.3 percent in 2010, Robert Half found. The list may prove useful to federal IT workers interested in keeping up with the most in-demand, highly-paid skills, or comparing their federal salary with those in the private sector.

For example, salaries for Web developers, data warehouse analysts, developers/programmer analysts and systems administrators are predicted to decline by an average of 2.8 percent, while average salaries for PC technicians could decline by 5.6 percent. Database administrator and database developer salaries will likely fall by an average of 4.1 percent, and salaries for desktop support analysts are predicted to drop by an average of 5 percent.

Positions with the best prospects include network administrators, which can expect to see starting salaries ranging from $54,500 to $80,250 in 2010, and information systems security managers, which can expect salaries ranging from $96,500 to $130,750, Robert Half found. Systems engineers also will be in-demand in 2010 and can expect to see base salaries ranging from $64,250 to $93,250, the study found.

How do your skills and salary measure up?