Rise within Oil & Gas Recruitment

People who have between 5- and 10- years’ experience in the oil and gas industry are going to be the most in demand from recruiters over the next six months, and 70% say recruitment will increase.

That’s according to a global survey carried out by Rigzone. It’s one of two industry-wide surveys that have been published which show business confidence has reached its highest level for five years.

In the Rigzone survey, 77 recruiters took part. The main headlines are:

• 70% say they expect to recruit more in the next six months
• Safety Engineers are the most in demand, followed by Electrical technicians, supply chain and procurement and construction
• 36% said the market was variable
• 42% said they want to hire people who have 5 – 10 years of experience

This final headline will mean that veteran workers and those who are new to the profession will find they’re overlooked. 29% said they are looking at candidates who have between ten and 20 years of experience. 27% are looking for entry-level and just 3% want people who have been in the industry for more than 20 years.

There is one exception: in Africa 64% of recruiters said they’re looking for entry-level workers.

It follows hot on the heels of the 29^th Oil and Gas Survey which showed that just over a fifth of firms have increased their total UK-based workforce by more than 10% in the last year, and over a third say they expect this to continue into the new year.

The Oil and Gas survey headlines are:

• 34% of firms expect headcount for contract staff to rise over next three years
• Salaries are on the rise – 38% of firms
• 5% said they had to cut salaries – compared to 15% in 2017
• 65% expect the level of core staff to increase
• 63% of contractors are more confident about their UKCS activities compared to the previous survey

Another key finding is the skills shortage, with 44% saying they were aware of short supply in at least one discipline. The majority highlighted engineers, with technical staff and people with IT experience also in demand.

Moray Barber, partner at KPMG, said: “The price of oil is driving a more positive sentiment across the industry, but the survey does highlight the importance of retaining our best people and ensuring that the next generation of talent has the right type of skills for the coming energy transition. We need to be asking where the next generation of talent is going to come from, what skills do they really need, and what are we doing in industry and academia to ensure we have enough people to help sustain that headcount growth?

Russell Borthwick, chief executive of Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, said: “We believe the industry is alive to the challenges as we are seeing our clients develop growth strategies and scenario planning to deal with the risks these present, as well as driving forward their technology and innovation agenda to become disruptors in their own right.

“It is vital however, if we are to achieve the ambition of creating a world class all-energy hub here beyond the operational phase of the UKCS, that supply chain companies continue to think about internationalising rather than simply re-filling order books with emerging contracts on their own doorstep.”