Offshore workers 'getting younger'
1 Nov 2011
The number of young people working on the UK’s offshore oil and gas installations is rising, according to statistics released recently by industry trade association Oil & Gas UK.
There has been a rising trend over the past five years in the overall number of people aged under 30 travelling to offshore installations in UK waters, the 2011 Workforce Demographics Report shows. Their presence, it said, “is helping to rejuvenate the offshore population which many still wrongly believe is ageing.”
According to the report, the average age for an offshore worker is 41 years, which is normal for a workforce aged between 20 and 60, and is also consistent with Oil & Gas UK’s findings in previous years.
However, the study also highlights a net loss of people in the age range of 30-60 years. Workers in this age range tend to relocate to other oil and gas regions around the world, or return to onshore roles.
Their departure, noted the report, leaves vacancies which must be filled by suitably skilled and experienced candidates, with demand often outstripping supply and raising concerns about a possible future shortage of supervisors.
“Oil & Gas UK believes it is important to understand the demographic profile of the offshore workforce to allow the industry to plan ahead and ensure it will have access to the skilled personnel it needs to support its activities in the years to come,” said Malcolm Webb, chief executive of Oil & Gas UK.
“However, the loss of experienced workers is of concern and fast-track development programmes are now in place to address ongoing skills shortages in certain occupations,” he added.
Webb also linked the increase in young people working on the UK’s offshore oil and gas installations to the progress of industry’s technician training schemes and graduate programmes.
