Do You Make $60/hr for Programming?

azzkicker asks: "I was reading some AP articles on offshoring. It talks about the struggles of out-of-work programmers and the shifting of jobs overseas [in the US]. Part way through one article it says: 'The average programmer commands $60 an hour in the United States, six times the rate in India.' I don't disagree with the Indian rate (USD $80/day, $400/week, $20,800/year gross), but what is with the US rate (USD $480/day, $2400/week, $124,000/year gross)? I know that programmers are billed out at high rates, but most of my programmer friends in Midwest, USA (years of experience and CS degrees) don't even see $50K/year. What is the actual rate most programmers see? Do you see $60/hr? Is the US rate misleading corporations into outsourcing?" Does offshoring really save corporations that much money?

Comments

rule of thumb

[voisine]

general rule of thumb up to $100k a year or so, double the salary and that's what the employee costs the company. Payroll tax, benefits, unemployment insurance, workmans comp, increased hr resources, etc... $60/hr sounds about right.

Just my 2 cents.

[Neck_of_the_Woods]

I know the best programmer I have ever had the chance to work with made 112k a year. Keep in mind these are "New York City" rates, where he was paying 2200 a month in rent. 1600 a year for car insurance, and 10.50 for a mixed drink at your downtown bar. Lets not get into the fact that he was working 75+ hours a week on average either.

Down here in Florida senior programmers are lucky to see 1/2 that at best.

Big numbers make for big headlines. No one ever puts 2 and 2 together.

My friend, could program a circle around 10 of the best offshore programmers you could throw at him. The problem is, they(management) only sees dollar signs, not quality, not the fact you are here on the spot, and not the kind of job your doing....so what if 6 programmers offshore can't do his job, they like the way the numbers work and are not bright enough to understand that they are actually hurting the company.

Again, what do I know. I am just your average government worker now, but I can zap you from space!

---typed for speed, did not check spelling or grammer. In fact I did not even read over it.

Re:Just my 2 cents.

[jmt9581]

While there are managers who definitely don't know how to objectively judge quality of software vs. quantity of software, there are counter-examples to your superprogramming friend. I'm sure that while many people on Slashdot know talented supergeeks with amazing technical skills, everyone knows at least one or two dweebs with no skill at all who just got into IT because it sounded like a good career decision in the late 90's.

In my opinion, the CS/IT world is going through a much-needed purging of some talentless dweebs from the workforce. Competition with overseas workers is simply part of that. I'm not saying that outsourcing programming jobs to India is always a good thing, just that it's not always a bad thing.

Billing rate

[duffbeer703]

Larger companies and government agencies pay IBM or Accenture or whomever $120+/hr for even basic IT staffers.

The programmers may be making $20-45/hr, depending on the city, but the customer still pays $$$.

The Indians bill low and pay their people low.

Re:$60k in NYC is not much money!

[GigsVT]

Corporate trainer eh?

Does she throw them treats when they properly use buzzwords, and sniff the ass of their superiors?