plus the fact that when the Contractors leave, they are out and have no obligations. meaning that all support, mainenance etc. goes to regulary staff.
abd in the last period of the contract, the level of commitment falls, postponing all the shit until after they have left.

It seems with the current shortage in programmers we’re experiencing at the moment companies are having to simply go with what they can afford, which often isn’t what’s best for the team.

1. “Unless you can honestly say that every single “senior” is exactly as good as each other, then there will always be pay differences.”

This is true, however the problem with contractors is that they are often paid 2-4 times as much as their equivalent position would as an employee. I doubt you’d find two “seniors” that have this kind of disparity in their pay. Whereas with two equivalent programmers working for the company may have differences in pay based on skills/experience/time with company, a contractor automatically gets more simply because they are a contractor. It’s hard to think objectively about this pay difference when psychologically it just seems like you’re both sitting there doing the same work for completely different money.

2. “If your options are to move the deadline with existing staff or bring in contractors, why is bringing contractors the wrong choice?”

Definitely, if these are your only two options, go for the contractor, that’s why there will always be a place for them in the current climate. The problem I have is when managers blindly believe that ‘everything’s just fine’ and there’s no need to bring in new employees or swap them from other projects. They often go on believing this until it’s so late in the project that their only option is to bring in a contractor.

3. “You might be caught in the situation that you’d love to hire new people fulltime, but there is nobody available right now who can actually help.”

Again, if it’s the only option then definitely hire a contractor, however if you have the choice, it’s better to go with a full-time employee.

4/5. “This is that “Passion” and “Loyalty” argument I hear so much about. If you’re passionate about the project, why is it that someone from outside who is helping to get your profit sharing and your company’s game published a problem?”

I think for games the problem of lacking passion is how that fits in with making an awesome game, compared to a mediocre one. Fun is such a hard ingredient to add to games and I think you’re at a major disadvantage if you’re workers aren’t passionate about what they are creating.

Thanks again for your comments, I agree that contractors can’t be removed, and if they are the only choice it’s better than nothing, but I believe managers need to think before just throwing them at a problem.

1. As a full-time employee, you are paid based on a long-term basis. You are paid when there’s very little work to do, and paid when you’re in milestone crunch. A contractor is paid for a short duration. Neither of you is paid more than the company values your services for (although yes, either of you may be paid less). Unless you can honestly say that every single “senior” is exactly as good as each other, then there will always be pay differences. This is how the un-unionised capitalist system works.

2. Sure, but also shows a willingness to step up and admit mistakes/underestimates to get things done. If your options are to move the deadline with existing staff or bring in contractors, why is bringing contractors the wrong choice?

3. Typically a contractor is hired for two reasons. (a) The company needs work done and (b) The contractor can get the work done in the time needed. Most people need to give around a month’s notice to take a ‘real’ full-time job, and that is much much longer than the typical contractor startup time. You might be caught in the situation that you’d love to hire new people fulltime, but there is nobody available right now who can actually help. You also fall back on the “paid more for exactly the same work” argument from #1.

4/5. This is that “Passion” and “Loyalty” argument I hear so much about. If you’re passionate about the project, why is it that someone from outside who is helping to get your profit sharing and your company’s game published a problem? If they’re not helping, then you need to let management know right now that the contractor isn’t doing what they’re being paid for. If they are, then thay’re helping *your* intangible goals no matter what *their* motivation is. That means that while they’re helping, who cares why they are? While they’re not, hit the ejector seat button and drop them right this second.

Sure, working with a contractor is difficult. There’s the regular dilbertesque/office space scenario where because the contractor is “from outside” and paid “so much more”, that their opinions matter that much more to managment. This is a mistake that everyone should work to avoid. Otherwise, you are, as you say, hiring mercenaries to get the game shipped. That’s really what we’re all in this for, right?