IT contractors and other workers are as keen to develop new skills as they are to take home large pay packets, according to a new survey.

Research from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) suggests that as many as 97 per cent of workers want to develop transferable skills while working.

CMI spokesperson Mike Petrook believes that while of course money is important, skill development is valued because people want to know that they are continually employable, and not getting left behind.

"They want to be able to do the job that they do at the moment, but take those skills with them to another job in a few years time," he said.

However, separate research conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers established earlier this month that around a quarter of workers are looking to change jobs in the near future, as they feel they are not being paid enough for the role they are filling.