Posted on 04/10/2015 4:50:05 AM PDT by thackney
Falling oil prices and a slowdown in the energy sector have meant stagnant oil and gas wages, with workers in the Houston area taking the biggest hit, according to a new study.
The oil and gas industry saw the lowest annual wage growth of any industry, just 0.8 percent based on first quarter figures analyzed by PayScale Inc., which tracks wage data.
That number is in stark contrast from the historic wage growth of the industry. Since 2006, oil and gas workers have enjoyed a 19 percent increase in wages, the most of any industry.
Houston’s wages also showed signs of trouble according to the study. The city’s wages fell 0.2 percent from the fourth quarter of 2014 to the first quarter of 2015. Year-over-year, Houston’s wages rose 1.2 percent, well short of the 1.8 percent national average.
Meanwhile, in a new paper published this month, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas said Texas is one of just eight states nationwide likely to suffer from a decrease in employment as a result of falling oil prices.
Texas could see a 1.2 percent decrease in employment as a result of crude prices that have fallen 50 percent since their summer peaks, according to the Fed.
Alaska, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, North Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming could also see employment fall, the Fed said.
Pretty normal for the back side of a boom. Often wages and salaries are cut, something which normally starts at the field level. Similarly, when competition ramps up for a declining amount of work, service company rates start getting reduced in order to be more competitive. That is muted somewhat by the expense of living in an area, and that always seems to decline slower than the paychecks do.
Yep, I'm not complaining about the lack of a raise or the cut in overtime.
Cut in overtime? This week hasn’t had one day less than 14 hours. Wednesday was 18 hours. No reduction in wages.
That said, some other companies here are not running full tilt. We do because we focus on workmanship first.
Our client has seen a significant reduction in cash flow with the fall in prices. So they have cut OT for all contractors. All the expansion projects are still going forward, but some schedule slow downs.
growth may be slower, but their overall compensation package was very high at the outset.
Yep, Since 2006, oil and gas workers have enjoyed a 19 percent increase in wages, the most of any industry.
I find it hard to believe their wages are growing more slowly than many of the unskilled sectors (where illiterate immigrants are taking jobs); how much can wages in those sectors grow?
24 year old, High School Grad, no College, House on Private Lake in North Dakota, Boats, ATVs, Snow Machines, 3200 sqft, private dock and boat ramp
This was 4 years ago, but he started out as help on oil wells fracking and he last called in to our local radio station to tell kids, don’t go to college, work hard.
You can make 140k per year too.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.