It turns out Simply Red's Mick Hucknall was right: money is, indeed, too tight to mention. Graduates wanting a career in technology are advised not to ask about salary during their job interview, according to www.itjobsforgraduates.com.

The recruitment specialist has issued a bunch of guidelines for potential IT graduates - and instead of concentrating on cash, new entrants should focus on knowing about the company, the industry in which it operates and the position available. Which sound pretty straightforward, but is apparently not - says Teresa Sperti, marketing manager at www.itjobsforgraduates.com:

“The recruitment process can be daunting at the best of times, and this is especially so for graduates who don't yet have any experience and therefore don't know what to expect."

Well, in an attempt to provide as much assistance to new entrants as possible, I've looked through some of the research I've received recently. And graduates should note that:

• Salaries for jobs advertised in London are £11,000 higher than anywhere else in the UK. People outside London can expect an average advertised salary of £30,450, according to jobs search engine AllTheTopBananas.com. Workers applying for jobs in the capital will see an average advertised salary of £41,079.
• UK business leaders believe half of the lost working days due to sickness are not genuine, while some staff still look on a paid sick leave allowance as an extension of their annual holiday entitlement, according to HR and payroll software provider MidlandHR and technology specialist FirstCare.
• Redundancy is not the easy solution for a recession, says workplace information and consultancy Croner. Employers looking to cut costs by making staff redundant are now finding that instead of the financial gain they envisaged, they are in fact facing greater financial pressures from claims raised against them by disgruntled employees at tribunals. Croner says it has seen a fifty per cent rise in claims during the past three months.

In short, then, graduates should not ask about salary and instead concentrate on the obvious stuff: what the company does, and what their potential job will entail. When it comes to wages, act like a Dick Whittington and head for London - salaries in the smoke are much higher than the rest of the UK.

When it comes to actually working, don't take faux illness days - your boss will be on to you quickly and you could be fired. But if the worst happens, look for some sort of legal settlement. Everyone else is, apparently.

Further reading

• Tonight, Matthew, I'm going to 'push the envelope'
• 'Gentleman's hours' are key to flexible working
• Would you recommend a career in IT to your child?
• Forget dreams of working abroad, or in Cobol
• Be proud of being a technology nerd

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Want to contact the writer? Email Mark Samuels