Recently I saw a report stating that unemployment had risen to 8.5% here in the USA. Those are some depressing numbers. It may get a lot worse before it ever gets better. This is definitely a recession. If we get to 20 or 25 percent, we shall have crossed into depression.What is the effect of the software development industry? One thing is for sure. Job listings for developer positions have been shrinking. Luckily my company is hiring. However it looks like we are being extra picky at the moment before we hire somebody.
Personally I would not want to be looking for a job at the moment. That is all the more reason to stick with my current project. It is also the basis for trying to ensure that even if there were some layoff, that I would be one of the last few to stay on board. This happened once before on my project when the prime contractor worked on slowly eliminating a subcontractor.
I keep my ear to the street to see what other developers are saying about the high unemployment numbers. Some say that companies will require less workers to do more work. There is talk about possible pay cuts in the industry. What are your options if you are laid off? You might try to go into another field. But that field is probably hurting as well. You could launch your own job search site. That reminds me of one important warning. Beware fake job sites.
