Yeah, so body shops aren't going to pay that great. The placement companies typically use Indian labor in call centers, and negotiating can be pretty painful.

Yeah, so body shops aren't going to pay that great. The placement companies typically use Indian labor in call centers, and negotiating can be pretty painful. Two companies will routinely call me about the same position, but have wildly varying pay. Usually the company using the Indian call centers pay around 20% less, and they're very unwilling to negotiate pay. Large corporations will typically use trusted vendors to find people. Unfortunately that is where a good chunk of the money/jobs are. But you're not likely to get $200/hr there. Currently $120/hr is much more likely through a body shop than $200/hr, but keep in mind the body shop is going to get $180/hr. The body shop carries insurance, and has to recruit new people for a contract, and they have to pay their recruiters, etc. And even expectations can vary wildly. I would think that at $200/hr, you should save me from having to pay 3 people $66/hr (about $133k/yr). Then you're a bargain, comparatively.