The Yoh index of technology wages began rising in the fourth quarter after falling throughout the third quarter. The index, which benchmarks wages in the technology sector, rose 4.3 percent in December alone -- going to a reading of 112.96 from a reading of 108.29 in November.

December's increase was particularly encouraging, according to Yoh, because the month is typically a time of slackened demand for highly skilled workers.

"Real wage increases for skilled temporary employees serve as harbingers for the direction of the economy, especially early in the cycle when businesses are still unwilling to hire full-time employees for highly paid, skilled positions," said Lori Schultz, president of Yoh.

The Yoh index of technology wages is based on a sample of the temporary technology labor pool of more than 1,000 business in the aviation, engineering, information technology, manufacturing, scientific, telecommunications and utility communities.

Yoh is a Philadelphia-based technology staffing firm.