Australian businesses are being held back by the country’s tech skills shortage, with many businesses now looking to skilled migration and contract workers to lift pressure on their workforce needs, according to one recruitment firm.

Hourly rates for contractors have fallen steadily to new lows over the past nine months, although employers are still cautious when hiring, with contract employment continuing to dominate the ICT jobs market over permanent placements despite a small “subtle” shift to permanents.

A shortage of IT talent is impacting the ICT industry this year, with a warning that the implementation of projects could be delayed by the lack of talent.