U.S.-based oil and gas professionals are experiencing growth in wages with a 12-month salary increase of $7,000, which brings average wages to $124,000, according to The Oil and Gas Global Salary Guide 2012, produced annually by Hays Oil & Gas and jobsite Oil and Gas Job Search.
Imported labor is also seeing higher wages at $119,400, up from $110,700 in 2011 while global average wages in the oil industry are at $80,458, up from $75,813 in 2011. North American contractor rates, which are used as an indicator of future trends in wage growth, stayed competitive in comparison to other regions. Management-level positions can expect an average daily rate of $810, and directors and vice president-level contractors are seeing an average of $1,100 per day.
"U.S. wage growth across sectors and after inflation has been taken into account has been minimal – hovering around 1 percent for a great part of 2011," says Matt Underhill, managing director of Hays Oil & Gas. "Our research for the U.S. oil and gas industry defiantly bucks the general trend."
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The survey also finds that more than 30 percent of respondents believe their salaries will go up by more than 10 percent in the next 12 months. Employer confidence is at 26.7 percent, a jump from 9.7 percent, with respondents stating they are extremely positive about the current market. Another three-quarters of respondents expect staffing levels to grow in the next 12 months.
"The U.S. oil industry looks robust and in better health than it has for some time," Underhill says. "I believe that the strong upward trends we have seen in our data over the last few years are set to continue."
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