You're right on the money Craig.

I've actually had to turn down work in San Francisco because the best they could do ( a dot com no less ) was $60/hr "all inclusive".

I tried to explain to the middle-man that I couldn't justify the cost, and would actually end up losing money on the deal--and this was with a very well know dot-com company that everyone knows. I decided to still go ahead with a phone interview, just to get a better feel for the project. The guy at the dot-com giving me the phone interview was actually trying to pump me for help, which was even more annoying. But I think the industry is coming back, and management-at-large are starting to "get it", by accepting the fact that IT really is important once again, and 30-40 dollars/hr is an insult when management seems to consistently get 6 figures for doing little more than brown-nosing to senior management, and under-staffing the project.

But it's not just management, it's also the plethora of bad recruiters and the notoriously bad HR departments that litter our country. It is also important to note that recruiters and HR do not represent you, the technician, they represent the client, or management, so they will preserve that interest at all costs, including recruiters preserving their "margin". When you get a recruiter that won't give you what you're worth, WALK AWAY. Since IT people at large don't have a union, it is imperative that we all maintain our self worth and stick to holding the line on our value in the work place, and covering your costs.

It's unfortunate that so many recruiters and HR are not even knowledgable about IT even in the broadest sense, many could sell cars as well as IT.