[dabent]

I encountered recruiters who were a bit short with me in that era, but I encountered more who had a who had a different sort of desperation than they do now. Third-party recruiters rely on a steady stream of jobs coming available so they can collect placement fees. In 2002, they faced a real pinch in what jobs were open and in what companies would pay to both developers and recruiters. Many recruiters went without work as they didn't have any jobs to place people in.

I talked with one recruiter about a job that paid about 1/3rd what I made just 2 years before. I said "has it really gotten that bad?" He opened up about the situation as he really didn't expect me to go after the job as it paid far less than what I was making, even back then. IIRC, it was the only job he had open at the time and rates had hit bottom, so he couldn't even find anyone willing to take it. Fortunately, things turned around for both of us.