My current client has lowered contractor rates by 10%. I could either take it or leave.

I’ve gotten this kind of offer before, but always turned down the rate cut– I always have a suitcase packed when on contract. That’s the nature of the gig. You stay as long as they need you. At any given day, you can come to work and be told, “Thanks for your services. We think we can get on okay now without you.” That’s fine– that’s the way it should be. So, I don’t like mid-contract renegotiations as a rule. But the economy is different now.

Everyone is suffering everywhere.

I spoke to a contractor friend of mine who has been a contractor developer for well over 15 years and asked what he does. Rate cuts are a fact of life. Sometimes, you just have to take it. Sometimes, it’s the right thing to do.

So I took it. But my suitcase it still packed. This recession is just getting started.