Gen X Oil Workers in Danger of 'Burning Out'

Fuel Fix ^ | September 06, 2013 | Jon Mainwaring|

[thackney]

Generation X oil and gas industry workers are in danger of burning out due to a combination of increasingly few mid-career professionals working in oil and gas, family commitments and an ever-increasing workload connected to an expanding energy sector, according to a senior member of the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Taking part in the Offshore Europe 2013 conference’s final keynote session, Steve Walker – Head of Strategic Inventions for the HSE’s Energy Division – said: "We [know] there’s not enough of Generation X and yet they are extremely valuable, so I think there's a real danger of the burn out of Generation X."

Walker said that while Generation X employees aged between their early 40s and early 50s are seeking better work/life balance and roles mentoring younger workers, the current increase in activity in the oil and gas sector suggests they are likely to be working harder than ever, directly involved in carrying out projects.

"I think there’s a real tension there and it's very easy to speak theoretically about how we want look at and nurture Generation X [workers] but I do wonder whether, just because of the pace of the industry, there is a real danger we are overusing them," he added.

Also taking part in the keynote session – titled "Oil and Gas Skills – Your Future Today" – were Sara Caplan, a partner at business consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Ferdinand von Prondzynski, principal of Robert Gordon University.

Caplan noted:

"People in the middle [of their careers] tend to suffer from not an awful lot of investment because they are steady people, they know their job and are really good at it. What we find is that people don't tend to move on for more money unless something has made them think about money. And the thing that tends to make them think about money is dissatisfaction in a job and that might be because no-one is investing in their development and they don’t feel valued anymore."

Prof von Prondzynski added that educational and training organizations like the recently-formed Oil & Gas Academy of Scotland (OGAS) have a role to play in helping Generation X.

"OGAS, along with the institutions that make up OGAS will be much better at addressing that generation of employees," he said.

"Previously, universities and colleges were used to dealing with school leavers, taking them through an educational program and then saying goodbye to them. Now, we are used to engaging with people who are later on in their careers… to develop them at that point and also help the companies concerned."

[rwfromkansas]

I am a teacher in oil central West Texas. Frankly, I am jealous of all the money these guys with high school diplomas have, but it’s backbreaking work.

I just don’t know if I could do it, but it’s tempting.

[Black Agnes]

It’s strenuous mainly for the amount of stress they’re under. That, and they have to climb up to the rig floor whenever they’re needed. The stress of being a directional driller caused my father to have a heart attack (career ending btw) when he was 51. He’d been in the oilfield for 35 years at that point.

[rwfromkansas]

I mean geez, if I just lived on my teacher salary and just a tiny bit more, I could have lots of spending money and STILL pay off the house mortgage in probably three years, which is insane.

But, that’s all if the industry doesn’t crash, and an acquaintance of my wife quit his family oil business because he is afraid it’s going to crash soon even though people claim it will last for another 5-10 years. I’m almost afraid to stay here for much longer lest my housing value crash and I’m stuck here.

[rwfromkansas]

Wow. Yeah, I know they work constantly.