Record energy prices and skills shortages are driving soaring salaries across the oil and gas sector. Oil and gas salaries have surged above pre-pandemic levels with more than half of the workforce expecting a further pay rise next year. Almost a third of oil and gas workers have been headhunted over six times in the last year amidst accelerating competition for talent.
Thanks to these factors, oil and gas is now the most popular sector for energy workers looking to change roles, according to Airswift’s seventh annual Global Energy Talent Index (GETI) report.
GETI was launched in 2017 to provide insights on the state of the industry workforce to help energy companies recruit, retain, and grow their skills base. GETI has since drawn on insights from tens of thousands of professionals and hiring managers to develop a comprehensive window into the state of the industry.
Commenting on the report, Janette Marx, CEO at Airswift, said: “In the wake of the recent sanctions on Russia, soaring fossil fuel profits have made oil and gas the most attractive energy sector and turned this into an employees’ market.”
He added. “In countries such as the US, new laws mandating pay transparency have forced companies to openly compete on salaries and benefits. An increasingly high-paid, in-demand oil and gas workforce is now empowered to choose employers based on their environmental and social performance as well as pay. This is an opportunity for employers to compete for talent on other differentiators beyond salaries, from decarbonisation to diversity.”
Salaries
With the present oil and gas boom expected to continue through 2030, 66% of professionals are expecting salaries to rise next year compared to 54% last year. 41% expect a large pay increase of over 5%. The outlook is even sunnier among hiring managers, with 70% expecting rising salaries and 44% predicting rises above 5%.
Only 5% expect salaries to move in the opposite direction.
Sector-wide salaries are being inflated by fierce competition for oil and gas talent, with almost one-in-three oil and gas workers having been headhunted over six times in the past year. Big pay packets are also driving high job satisfaction, with remuneration cited as the biggest driver of said satisfaction and 69% of oil and gas workers declaring themselves satisfied in their current positions.
Yet rising salaries and job opportunities are also empowering oil and gas workers to seek jobs based on values as well as salaries, with ESG concerns now among their top three reasons for choosing employers. Renewables is the first choice of outside energy sector for oil and gas workers to join, perhaps due to its pivotal role in the environment. With just 11 per cent of the oil and gas workforce in our survey composed of women, and female employees also more likely to say their views are ignored at work, improving diversity could also be key to retaining and attracting an ESG-conscious workforce.
Mobility
“The famously globetrotting oil and gas workforce is increasingly staying put as inflation pushes up travel costs and family life takes precedence over financial reward,” the report finds.
The proportion of workers opting to relocate has fallen for the third consecutive year (down to 81% from 89% last year and 91% in 2020). Those resistant to relocation rank proximity to family far above financial remuneration as the main reason, possibly due to a post-pandemic rise in demand for work/life balance.
Female workers could face more hurdles to relocation with female workers less likely than men to get housing/relocation assistance. This indicates that offering more help for women and families to make international transfers could help diversify the workforce.
The report also finds that Europe remains the leading destination for 27% of those wanting a foreign transfer, with the region reviving fossil fuel investments to fill the void from Russian gas imports. The Middle East has supplanted North America as the second-choice destination, as workers are drawn by the lure of low taxes and booming Middle Eastern infrastructure development. North America rounds out the top three alongside Asia.
Marx notes: “European destinations are still booming. We are also seeing growing interest in Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Both locations are investing in infrastructure in a bid to build green tech cities and become future technology, business and tourism hubs of the region.”
Attracting and retaining talent
The oil and gas sector risks leaking talent in all directions, the report notes.
For instance, its multi-skilled, mobile workforce is increasingly highly prized by other industries from renewables to technology. 80% of the oil and gas workers have been tapped up for another job in the past year and 40% of those say over a quarter of approaches came from an outside industry or expertise. Additionally, about 10% of the oil and gas workforce has been approached 16 or more times to apply for a position outside of their current company.
This in-demand workforce is also increasingly empowered to seek moves based on personal interests and values as well as career opportunities.
According to the report’s findings, nearly 85% are considering switching to another role and while career progression remains the prime driver, interest in the wider industry and ESG are the second and third most influential factors (14% and 11% respectively). This is reflected in the fact that employees are seeking sectors at the vanguard of sustainability and innovation. If oil and gas workers were to change roles within energy, renewables is the most popular energy sector (49%) followed by technology (27%).
