IT professionals in India are demanding as much as a 50%-70% pay hike while switching jobs, compared to 15%-30% before Covid-19, reports The Economic Times, citing research from recruitment firms TeamLease, ABC Consultants, Quess, Taggd and Randstad India. There is demand for IT professionals having experience in areas such as SaaS (software as a service), education technology, health-tech, gaming, artificial intelligence, machine learning, automation, digital transformation, blockchain and cybersecurity. These professionals are demanding significant pay hikes while switching jobs, industry experts said. Employees in the IT sector are said to be waiting it out for over 50% hikes. Rituparna Chakraborty, cofounder of TeamLease, pins the current hikes for candidates in the IT services domain even higher, over 70%, while switching jobs. “Hiring in the IT sector is at its peak and candidates are getting exorbitant offers and better roles across the industry,” she said.