Report: What Aging Oil & Gas Offshore Workforce?

Research carried out by Oil & Gas UK has exploded the commonly held belief that the UK oil and gas industry is suffering from a rapidly aging, largely male offshore workforce as a result of fewer young people, especially women, taking up jobs within the sector.

Using data supplied by the Vantage POB (personnel on board) system, an Internet-based system used by the industry to keep track of people offshore, the research reveals that the average offshore worker is 41 years old, which is the expected average age for any workforce aged between 20 and 60 years.

In addition, the number of women in the industry is increasing, with over 1,800 traveling offshore in 2006. The majority are employed in the catering sector, but there are significant numbers also entering technical roles.

“Today’s high activity in the UK continental shelf (UKCS) has resulted in oft-repeated concerns about the demographics of the current workforce, and the sustainability of the skills base,” said Jessica Burton, a business analyst at Oil & Gas UK and author of the report. “The research gives a much more optimistic picture for industry demographics than common perception holds. For example, the age profile for female workers was weighted towards the younger age brackets, with an average age of 34.1 years, indicating an increase in the recruitment of young female graduates and other professionals into the industry.”

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