Despite Germany's slowing economy, freelance rates are on the rise

GULP Information Services has asked the intimidating question of whether the expected slowdown in the German economy will affect the project market for IT and engineering freelancers. The survey also highlighted the wages situation - which is still very positive for freelancers. 

What might be just as noteworthy: a total of 1,290 professional freelancers participated in the study. That's an 18% increase from the previous edition.

Average hourly rates increase, but not as desired

The hourly rates of freelancers have increased on average by three percent, as well as the growth dynamics of the hourly rate, which has accelerated as well in a five-year comparison. The average gross hourly rate earned in 2019 rose to €92.96 euros, but fell short of the wishes of the freelance IT professionals and engineers; the 2017 freelance study hoped for an increase of 7.4%, which would mean an average hourly rate of €96.53. Nevertheless, the realized surcharges increased the growth momentum compared to the last survey: from 2014 to 2019, the average gross hourly rate increased by 3.2%, while from 2013 to 2017 it was only an increase of 2.8 percent. 

Weakening economy boosts worries over work

With the end of the economic boom, the freelancer's problem lies in securing follow-up contracts, as is evident from the survey. The number of people concerned with maintaining a steady flow of work has risen from 6.4 to 17.8% compared to 2017, and around 54% of them already have no upcoming or future projects at the current moment, and view the situation as generally negative. About the same number of people fear that companies will pass on fewer jobs to freelancers in the future because they need to save on or restructure their work.

But every fence has two sides. Even though the economy is declining, the need for digitization projects remains high. 

"Businesses are forced to move forward with digital transformation in order to stay connected to the marketplace. Projects can often be difficult and time-consuming to realize with your own IT team. Support from freelancers not only brings competence, but also promises faster and more secure implementation of these projects."

Ertan Demirel, General Manage, GULP Information Services

In the spirit of New Work, internal teams will be complemented with external experts in the future as well. For companies, this results in only temporary costs and a quick return on investment, since sensibly implemented concepts guarantee higher productivity.

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