I literally laughed out loud at this. I'm a Yank who doesn't even know what the exchange rate is, and that is laughably, sadistically low, even for an entry level position in Podunk, Nowhere. And they're offering this for a "senior developer" in the urban metro area of London? The author is right, IT recruitment is totally broken.
The salaries are low by US standards, but not "laughably" so IMHO.
In USD, those salaries currently translate to $53k - $60k. I know developers in the Bay Area who make the same (not taking equity into account), and I'm sure those salaries are reasonable in "podunk nowhere, USA".
I guess it's also worth noting that the dollar is currently somewhat strong relative to the pound (in 2009 it was closer to 1:2 GBP:USD, for instance).
Really? I thought bay area salaries were more around 80k+ to take into account cost of living.
Generally yes, but ~$60k salaries are not totally unheard of - particularly in poorly funded startups hiring on equity and/or for junior roles. They are probably outliers.
(It's about 1.5 USD per GBP, so that's $52k - $60k... which is silly for a "senior developer" but I think actually reasonable for a low-cost-of-living entry level position.)
Obviously it's not amazing pay, seeing as the average wage here is around £26k, it's not awfully bad.
£35k is about £25k after tax, so you'd be spending about a third of your post-tax income on accommodation. Completely reasonable.
when I worked in Holbourn last year of the 3 young members of the team living in central London 2 of them lived in family owned property on the other had well off family (a first from oxbridge)
These figures are for the UK as a whole 2012/13 from wikipedia.
I can't help but laugh when a friend in SF, making easily $30k/year more than me, can't even afford a place with his own washer and dryer. Meanwhile I could buy a 4+ bedroom house with 20% down after one year of working; or, if I choose to rent in the city, I can get one of the nicest apartments the city has to offer in an upscale area. The only nicer places would be high-rise penthouses with doormen, valet parking, and panoramic views of the city.
Granted, the real problem here is that London is not cheap. It's fucking expensive. So you're not going to be living like I am on that sort of salary in London.
http://www.itjobswatch.co.uk/default.aspx?page=1&sortby=0&or...
Most CS programs have exit salaries above $60k.
God it's like everybody on HN was born and raised in SF and has never made less than $150k a year.
$60k seems low for me anywhere for this reason: Even with the Bay Area's high cost of living, a college hire with a $90k offer without a family who wants to live with roommates will be able to save more than someone in a low cost of living place making $60k. The $20k additional take home will more than cover the added cost of of a room (perhaps $12k more/year).
As far as one bedrooms go, at $60k you can find one bedrooms for $1600/month or less in SF (less hot places or below market rates in hot places). In cheap Austin, $600 is about the minimum. That's a $12k a year spread, but not enough to not take a $60k SF offer over $40k in Austin.
*I haven't worked elsewhere in the US for comparison.