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GLOBAL SALARY
GUIDE 2010
Global salaries and recruiting trends.
Contents
THANK YOU
We would like to express our gratitude to all those organisations who participated in the
collection of data for this year’s survey. More than 7,000 people responded which was certainly
overwhelming. This has ensured that we can produce an informative document to help support
your business decisions.
Disclaimer: The Oil & Gas Global Salary Guide 2010 is representative of a value added service to our clients and candidates. Whilst every care is taken in the collection and
compilation of data, the survey is interpretive and indicative, not conclusive. Therefore information should be used as a guideline only and should not be reproduced in
total or by section without written permission from Hays.
7,000+
PEOPLE RESPONDED TO THE SURVEY
1,900+
RESPONDENTS ARE EMPLOYERS IN THE INDUSTRY
800+
RESPONDENTS WORK WITH A GLOBAL SUPER MAJOR
30+
COUNTRIES WORLDWIDE RESPRESENTED
20+
DISCIPLINE AREAS COVERED
Oil & Gas Salary Guide 2010 | 03
Managing Director Reports
Matt Underhill & Duncan Freer
Understanding and insight into the current and forecasted cost of labour throughout the world has
surely never been in such demand. As such this survey aims to assist our stakeholders to make informed
decisions on their staffing needs for the coming year.
When comparing many of the factors influencing what employers pay their staff, the results are
interesting and in the most part expected but in some cases completely unexpected. With such a large
response we are however confident that the figures are a fair reflection on the industry we work in. In
this regard we are indebted to our partners; Oil and Gas Job Search, without whom we would not have
been able to map the industry as we have done. A big thank you to all the team there.
Clearly there is renewed optimism in the industry with many describing their confidence in the current
employment market as positive. And long may it continue, for it is those who work within this industry
that make it such a rewarding, exciting and fulfilling experience.
We hope you enjoy reading the survey and trust it provides you with the information you are seeking.”
Managing Director, Oil and Gas Job “When Hays requested oil and gas job search’s assistance with the salary survey, it was with a great deal
Search Duncan Freer of excitement that we accepted the challenge. We knew that we had access to a wide enough selection
of oil and gas professionals to make the survey a success, and this has indeed proved to be the case.
The last 12 months has seen a significant amount of uncertainty in the industry. Not surprisingly the
feedback from our customers, particularly job seekers was that the site was a life line to many in such a
difficult year. Being in touch with the industry globally was seen as essential and these same users
contributed massively to the survey by submitting their responses in the thousands.
The level of interest generated by the survey has been phenomenal and the data generated provides a
true snapshot of the state of the industry at the start of a new decade. Despite the doom and gloom of
most of 2009, towards the latter half of the year we experienced a renewed optimism amongst clients
which translated into more jobs on the website. The results of the survey very much back this up and
every indication is that this trend is set to continue.
Finally I’d like to thank those who contributed to the survey. This has certainly helped Hays and
oilandgasjobsearch.com deliver such an informative document. We wish you all the best for a very
successful 2010.”
A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
“Confidence is returning – 43.6 per cent describe their confidence
in the current employment market as positive.”
The past 18 months saw one of the biggest down turns the industry has this year is firmly on natural gas with some major developments on the
known but the beginning of a steady recovery is now taking place. drawing board.
The results of our global oil and gas salary survey reveal a somewhat Hotspots
cautious outlook with more than one third of respondents indicating There is high demand for Exploitation, Production and Reservoir Engineers
they believe the recovery will take more than 12 months. Despite this, as operators are undertaking economic evaluations of existing assets.
confidence is returning – 43.6 per cent describe their confidence in the
current employment market as positive. There is a growing need for knowledge of shale gas plays, as well as a
number of heavy oil and oilsands projects coming on line. This is
While some salaries have decreased in comparison with the rates of creating demand for Facility Engineers, Power Engineers, Steam Chiefs,
07/08, they have now levelled out and most working in this industry Maintenance Coordinators, Control System specialists, Process Engineers
remain extremely well paid in comparison to those in other industries. and Electricians to pipe fitters.
The overall average salary is a little over $75,000* (based on annual
salaries of all permanent staff). Australians working at home are at the
top of the ladder, averaging more than $138,000 a year while salaries for
South America
locally based staff in Kazakhstan are propping up the table. The current market is placing a great deal of strain on retention of senior
executives with pressure on two fronts. Firstly from competing industries
For those working abroad, expat packages are not what they were a few such as mining and civil/heavy construction as they consider oil and gas
years ago. This said, contract rates are averaging more than $700 per professionals to be accomplished, well trained and used to dealing with
day. Norway and the USA are paying some of the highest rates, with sizable budgets. Secondly is the trend to ‘succession plan’ expatriate
contractors earning more than $900 per day. executives out of leadership positions in multinational companies and
replace with suitable local talent. Both trends ensure that competition
In terms of the best paid discipline areas, subsea/pipeline leads the way for locally bred talent in South America remains significant.
with higher than average salaries across all levels of experience.
Production Management and Geoscience are also highly paid areas. Hotspots
Geologists, Geophysicists, Equipment/Drilling Specialists, are being targeted
While average salaries by company type were fairly evenly spread, with continual salary increases. Employers are also investing in training and
ranging between $78,000 and $87,000, the one exception is equipment providing housing assistance and other benefits as an incentive.
manufacturers & suppliers, averaging less than $65,000.
Candidates fluent in English will be in high demand given the massive
Middle East & Africa presence of international/foreign firms and the global market.
Both regions remain the focus of the majority of employers, and continue
to attract oil and gas professionals from around the world. Given almost Asia
50 per cent of respondents stated the regions will be a key focus for Hiring intentions are very positive and employers have indicated an
them over the next 12 months, this is not likely to change any time soon. increase in vacancies across the board. We expect this to continue for at
least the first half of the year. Since a large percentage of these roles are
Hotspots to work on specific projects, the majority will be contract assignments.
Within the upstream sector, Reservoir Engineers, Geologists, Drilling,
Safety, Process Engineers & Project Engineers are all in demand as new There’s also been an increase in the number of executive level positions
projects and new exploration activities get the green light. such as Managing Directors and Regional Managers as international
businesses expand their coverage in the region.
In the downstream arena there will be a number of shutdowns in the first
quarter of 2010, along with significant expansion activity planned. Both will Hotspots
generate increased demand within Integrity, Maintenance and Planning. Engineers with subsea construction and installation experience are in
high demand due to the number of new fields that are coming online
We expect an increase in the number of barrels per day (bpd) for the this year. In order to secure these skills, employers are starting to
GCC region. As a result new plants are being commissioned with go live increase salaries. They are also more willing to consider international
dates set for the near future. This will see increased demand for candidates from regional territories.
candidates within production/operations within the downstream sector.
Project services candidates, specifically estimators, proposal engineers
Europe and cost engineers are also in demand.
The Oil and Gas market has started to shake off the negativity from last
year and demand is picking up quickly. The return of market confidence, Australasia
clear signs of the recession ending and the sustained improvement in Employers are expressing an intention to recruit more selectively and
the oil price has allowed many to push on with their planned projects. with a longer-term view than they have during the past two years. Not
surprising given there is more than $200 billion of work due to come on
Hotspots line in Australia’s gas infrastructure over the next 12 months. This is set
Geoscience and Exploration Engineers, Health and Safety specialists as to re-energise the job market back to pre recession levels if not more so.
well as Mechanical, Structural, Electrical and Chemical Engineers remain We therefore anticipate a much stronger trend towards permanent
in demand in many locations. Larger projects are already struggling to recruitment this year.
hire the numbers they require so there will be more opportunities for
Engineers moving into the regions. New vacancies are expected to be created in New Zealand in the coming
months in response to both growth and the replacement of departing
There remains a solid demand in Aberdeen and London for senior staff to new opportunities. We expect a strong increase in candidate
level exploration Geophysicists and Reservoir Engineers with 10 to 15 movement both in the local market and to/from Australia.
years experience.
Hotspots
North America Subsea Engineers, Development and Exploration Geologists,
With the price of oil hovering around the $75 bbl mark in the past six Petroleum/Reservoir Engineers and Geophysicists are all in high demand
months, Canadian focused companies have begun to announce their in this region. There is also significant demand for candidates with prior
Heavy Oil & SAGD projects are back on the table. However the spotlight LNG experience, in particular Drilling Engineers, Construction Managers
and Civil Engineers.
*All figures are quoted in US dollars.
Oil & Gas Salary Guide 2010 | 05
SECTION ONE
SALARY OVERVIEW
Salaries
Clearly the trade off between security and guarantee of work versus an Background
increase in rate for contracting is very much at work in the oil and gas Contractor salaries are those working on daily or weekly payroll. The
industry. This is further accentuated where candidates work overseas on annual salary equivalent assumes they work for 240 days a year, or 48
contract with the average return increasing to an impressive $168,500 weeks respectively. Where not enough responses were received, entries
per annum. In all but two cases, countries are employing contractors are returned as N/A.
from overseas at a premium (it can be assumed the skills required do
not exist or are not available in the local workforce).
Whilst Australia’s imported rate for labour is marginally below that for
local staff, the UK shows a clear differentiation between the two. This
may reflect a trend in the UK to import cheaper labour to combat
margin decline in a difficult market. As the market improves however, it
will be interesting to see whether the UK remains in a group of its own,
or if they are joined by other nations seeking similar savings.
Salaries
These figures also allowed us to track how experience is valued, and in Background
some disciplines it is greatly; notably, subsea, production management, These figures are based on permanent staff salaries returned by
marine/naval, estimating/cost engineering and logistics. These areas all respondents as their package in US dollar equivalent figures excluding
showed accelerated salaries as the experience grew. one-off bonuses, pension, share options and other non-cash benefits,
and for those working on a monthly or yearly payroll. Those on a weekly
Project controls, reservoir engineering and HSE showed less than or daily payroll have been extracted from this comparison.
average growth in salaries as experience levels increased.
Salaries
Years of experience
0 to 4 5 to 9 10 to 19 20 +
Notes: All figures are base salaries, quoted in US dollars. EPCM - Engineering, procurement and construction management;
HSE - Health, safety and environment; QA/QC - Quality assurance/quality control.
Salary trends
The last 12 months The next 12 months
The recession of 2009 was clearly reflected in the fact that 12 per cent A more positive trend is appearing in the forecasted salaries returned by
of respondents indicated their salaries were reduced over the last 12 employers for 2010 with two thirds expecting to increase salaries, and
months. Those most affected worked with consultancies and contractors, very few expecting any decrease. Those working within oil field services
were in the 0 to 4 years experience bracket and had been in their could be the big winners with many employers in this area indicating
current role for less than one year. they expect salaries to increase by more than 10 per cent.
Whilst the majority of employers preferred to keep salaries static (44%), Retention of key staff through careful salary management is likely to
there were some signs of market improvement with an equal number of become a prominent issue for employers this year.
employees receiving an increase (16% + 28%).
Background
Of those that received an increase of more than 5 per cent over half were Only employers were asked to provide their intentions with regard to
permanently employed and have been in their current role for 3 to 5 years. salaries in the next 12 months, whereas the figures for the previous 12
months were taken from the employees experience.
Salary trends
28%
Reduced
Remained static
44%
16%
Risen less than 5%
Risen more than 5%
28%
Decrease
Increase up to 5%
Increase more than
5% but less than 10%
Increase more
26% than 10%
Typical benefits
By company type On average, one quarter of respondents received no benefits over their
All company types returned consistent results in terms of those receiving base and statutory pay. Those working for a consultancy firm were the
health care and bonuses. When comparing with the industry average (All) worst off in this regard with nearly 40 per cent receiving no benefits.
those working with a Global Super Major receive the most benefits, where This said just less than one fifth of respondents working for a global
results were higher for all benefit types except commissions. super major, an operator or EPCM stated they receive no benefits above
statutory requirements.
It is not surprising that only 25 per cent of those working with an
equipment manufacturer and supplier receive home leave With the market improving, competition for the best talent will only
allowance/flights and that this is much lower than the industry average increase. Many companies will likely use any number of these benefits to
of 40 per cent. attract and retain the staff in addition to the base salary. The results of
our next survey will therefore be eagerly awaited providing a valuable
Share schemes are still relatively underutilised in comparison to other comparison to these figures.
industries as is the use of monthly commissions.
Benefits
Do you receive any benefits?
All Consultancy
60% 60%
50% 50%
40% 40%
30% 30%
20% 20%
10% 10%
0% 0%
No benefits
Tax assistance
Bonuses
Home leave
allowance/flights
Hardship allowance
Share scheme
Other/s
No benefits
Tax assistance
Bonuses
Home leave
allowance/flights
Hardship allowance
Share scheme
Other/s
Pension
Commission
Health plan
Pension
Commission
Health plan
Housing
Schooling
Housing
Schooling
Car/transport
Car/transport
Contractor EPCM
60% 60%
50% 50%
40% 40%
30% 30%
20% 20%
10% 10%
0% 0%
No benefits
Tax assistance
Bonuses
Home leave
allowance/flights
Hardship allowance
Share scheme
Other/s
No benefits
Tax assistance
Bonuses
Home leave
allowance/flights
Hardship allowance
Share scheme
Other/s
Pension
Commission
Health plan
Pension
Commission
Health plan
Housing
Schooling
Housing
Schooling
Car/transport
Car/transport
Pension Pension
Bonuses Bonuses
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Operators
No benefits No benefits
Tax assistance Tax assistance
Global Super Major
Pension Pension
Bonuses Bonuses
Commission Commission
Health plan Health plan
Car/transport Car/transport
Housing Housing
Home leave Home leave
allowance/flights allowance/flights
Hardship allowance Hardship allowance
Share scheme Share scheme
Schooling Schooling
Other/s Other/s
Years of experience
14.8%
40.6%
21.5%
0-4
5-9
10 - 19
20 +
23.1%
9.9%
15.7%
14.9%
15.2%
53.5%
52.4%
22.8%
15.6%
Subsea/pipelines Geoscience
8.9% 8.3%
13.6%
15.1%
54.5%
55.2%
21.5% 22.9%
19.9% 23.7%
27.6% 30.3%
26.7%
26.1%
25.8%
19.9%
Construction/installation Mechanical
With a readily accessible job market fuelled by international job boards The results suggest that there is very little part time work done in
and global agencies, candidates are left in no uncertainty of their value the industry.
and the number of opportunities available to them. This allows
employees to pursue careers that have many and varied experiences, There is an even mix between agency and direct contracting, with the
often at the expense of tenure with one particular employer. exception of global super majors. Here the percentage of those
contracted through an agency is double that of those contracted direct.
12.1%
6 - 10 years
28.3%
More than 10 years
Employment mix
Global
by company type Super Major
Operators
EPCM
Equipment
manufacturer
& supplier
Permanent /
Consultancy part time
Contracted
Contractors direct
Contracted
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% through agency
Movement of workforce
Imported workforce Working overseas
Results of the survey indicate North America uses predominantly a The second chart below shows how those from Australasia and Europe
locally bred workforce, with very few imports compared to other continue to seek experience internationally, with significant numbers
regions. The Middle East and Africa are at the other end of the spectrum approaching 50 per cent working overseas. Conversely, those from
importing the majority of their workforce from overseas. Africa (81%) and the Middle East (72%) mostly remain at home.
Background Background
‘Imported workforce’ shows the makeup of the workforce by region, ‘Working overseas’ shows the regions where respondents originate
comparing those working in their country of origin against those who from, comparing those who are working locally against those that are
originated from elsewhere. working overseas.
Movement of workforce
80%
60%
40%
20%
Imported labour
Local labour
0%
Europe
Australasia
Asia
Africa
Russia
North America
South America
Middle East
80%
60%
40%
20%
Working overseas
Working in
0% home country
Europe
Australasia
Asia
Africa
Russia
North America
South America
Middle East
Staffing levels
In the next 12 months Expat packages
Just over half of employers have indicated they expect staffing levels to There is a reasonable proportion of the workforce currently employed on
increase this year which is positive news for those currently looking for an expat package. As you’d expect there is a high concentration in the
employment. From analysing the data further we see this is particularly Middle East. Results indicate that many expats are working within
the case in the Middle East and Africa. construction/installation, QA/QC and HSE.
There is still a level of uncertainty in the market and employers will take More than one third of employers indicated the percentage of those
a cautious approach to hiring this year. One third of employers have employed on an expat package will increase in the next 12 months
indicated they will not make any changes to their staffing levels while and salaries are likely to increase slightly in this sector as market
some, albeit a minority are still managing the effect of the global conditions improve.
recession and are set to decrease headcount in the next 12 months.
Staffing levels
13.5%
Decrease
33.3% Remain static
Increase up to 5%
Increase more than
5% but less than 10%
27.4% Increase greater
than 10%
Nil
Nil to 5%
Above 5% but less
17.6% than or equal to 10%
28.8%
Greater than 10%
36.9%
50.8%
Increase
Decrease
Staffing levels
23.2%
Nil
Nil to 5%
Above 5% but less
than or equal to 20%
Greater than 20%
28.6%
33.2%
46.2%
Increase
Decrease
Drilling
Construction
/installation
Never
Production Sometimes
/operations
Always
Project
controls
N/A
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Job seeking
Word of mouth continues to be the predominant method of finding
work in the industry and unsurprisingly so. With the project led nature of
the oil and gas employment market, it is often former colleagues that
can best promote individuals skills and availability. Equally the data also
shows that agencies and head hunting play a more prominent role for
moves overseas, whilst at home traditional newspapers and internal
company mechanisms are in greater use.
Job seeking
20%
15%
10%
5%
Working country
of origin
Working abroad
0%
Newspaper
Company website
Head hunted
Agency
Internal move
Other
Word of mouth
60%
40%
20%
0%
Word of
mouth
Agency
contact
Intranet
and other
internal
mechanisms
Other
Internet
Economic outlook
Market recovery Our own experience at the end of 2009 and the start of 2010 is that the
Whilst only seven per cent of those surveyed saw the recovery taking market is picking up and confidence is higher than we’ve seen it since
hold in the near term (within three months) there was undoubtedly a 2008. There is however still a good deal of slack to take up in available
more positive mood through the latter half of the year. The majority of candidates, and 7 to 12 months may well be the time frame in which job
respondents believe the market will recover in less than 12 months which seekers, once again gain the ascendancy.
would suggest the second half of 2010.
Geographic focus
Employment market Somewhat surprisingly the Middle East appears a stand out in terms of
This optimism is yet to be fully realised within the employment market employers focus for 2010. This said the region remains a significant part
with half of respondents either neutral or negative toward the current of the world market, still employing over half of the world’s oil and gas
situation. Business confidence will always lead an individual’s assessment expatriates. As such it will always be near or close to the forefront of
of the employment market, so this should come as no great surprise. plans for many in the industry.
Economic outlook
35%
22.3%
43.6%
Negative
Neutral
34.1%
Positive
Extremely positive
30%
20%
10%
0%
Eastern and
Continental Europe
UK and
Northern Europe
Other
Central Asia
East Asia
Australasia
North America
South America
Africa
Middle East
270,000+
TEMPORARY AND CONTRACT STAFF ENGAGED EACH WEEK
50,000+
PEOPLE PLACED IN PERMANENT JOBS EACH YEAR
6,000+
RECRUITING EXPERTS WORLDWIDE
345+
OFFICES ACROSS 28 COUNTRIES
33+
YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
Oil & Gas Salary Guide 2010 | 23
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