Oil workers have faced a two-edged sword in the past 18 months: 1) layoffs; and 2) fading opportunities, according to the Oilpro news service.
Oilpro estimates more than 350,000 industry workers have
been let go. Meanwhile, the number of new job listings has been declining rapidly for several reasons including: 1) the growth hiatus; 2) hiring freezes; 3) less turnover/less competitive poaching; 4) attrition as a substitute for layoffs (in other words, companies stopped replacing retirees/resignations).