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Phoenix666 writes:

More evidence that IBM is cutting costs in multiple ways: the company's Australian tentacle is making it very, very hard to hire contractors.

The Register has viewed emails sent among organisations seeking to place contractors with IBM Australia. The thread explains that IBM has not replied to offers of new contractors because of a freeze that means it can only hire temporary workers under limited circumstances, and even then after signoff by senior bean-counters.

We understand the freeze even applies to gigs at which IBM teams are relying on contractors to help the company meet looming deadlines.

IBM would not confirm or deny the freeze, but The Register has been led to understand that Big Blue is always "optimising" its workforce to ensure they're fully occupied and that no resources are wasted. We understand that optimisation process means the IT giant is ensuring its full-timers are kept busy.

The story continues:

Updated to add

Multiple sources now tell The Reg that the contractor freeze is global, with many finishing assignments last week and being told their services will not be required for the foreseeable future. We understand that the contractor freeze is a cost-saving measure and that projects that need extra hands will draw on internal resources to hit deadlines.

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