Oil Pay cuts.

[Victor Meldrew]

Did the people who are contractors put money aside for the times they may spend out of work or was there the assumption that the work would always be there?

I think some did, some did not.

That makes the assumption that all contractors have been in the game for years..

Despite oil being a dying industry there are a lot of younger guys out there working who have only been there a few years. Not enough time to build up a war chest.

[Rosssco]

I made the jump to offshore renewables a few years ago, before that part of the company I worked for was shut down, and now I believe its pretty much in a similar situation (job wise - not much recruitment) as O&G, ironically, because of the low oil price..

Severe heel dragging and political Ping-Pong by both Scottish and UK governments means that a potential industry that was supposed to take up some of the slack created in the downturn (like now) is not really there..

[C7Steve]

I heard a story from someone close who is in HR about a member of staff who was approached about taking a £100 wage cut. His response was that he was not willing to take a drop of £100 from his wages each month. The company said that it was not looking to deduct £100 each month from his wage, but from his day rate. His response was, "I cannot survive on £800 a day"

Another one from a different employer was that one couple who both worked at the same company were not willing to take a %cut from their wages as they needed to clear £8000 a month just to survive.

All my friends and family know at least a few people who have lost their jobs or have been forced to take a pay cut. I think that the fallout has yet to be passed on fully to other professions affected by the job losses and cuts. Restaurants, bars, taxis, florists, hairdressers will all see their turnover reduced etc. The housing market has slowed down hugely with offers now being taken under market value, when previously this was a rareity. Leased cars are also being handed back because of the current situation and I heard that the Audi garage was getting two to three sets of keys handed back on a daily bases not long ago.

The recession a few years ago was not really noticed by the majority of people staying in and around Aberdeen (from my experience) as the city seemed to have its own mini-climate within the country. You can still see this everyday while driving through the town and looking at the different cars. Very rarely will you see an old rust-bucket being driven, more likely you will see a few of the following marques; Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, McLaren, brand new BMWs and Audis are two-a-penny and dozens of new Range Rovers, Evoques and Discovery models. We had a few guys working with us last year who were not from around Aberdeen and they could not believe the quality of motors being driven here.


It is very disturbing to hear about so much people losing their jobs and struggling to find another job, but the general consensus from the people that I talk too is that they don't feel sorry at all for the MINORITY of people who were earning a huge income and spending it like there was no tomorrow as though they had won the lottery.



Steve.

[Ryan]

it's the effect on my morale which is at an all time low and even if things did pick up I have no idea if I have the confidence to get back into work after all of the knock backs and no responses.

My job applications after graduating totaled 64 applications, the majority taking around 3 hours to fill in as they all had different questions. This resulted in:
8 interviews
5 assessment centers, usually a full day.
2 job offers

I feel your pain of knock backs and no reply, and can only wish you luck. One of my offers came through Raeburn Recruitment agency and would recommend them. If you hear of an opportunity through them, they only put forward around 3 candidates for the job, so you have better odds.

[istoo]

Another one from a different employer was that one couple who both worked at the same company were not willing to take a %cut from their wages as they needed to clear £8000 a month just to survive.
Steve.

I know a few of those who are still plodding on at nuts rates of spend with no/limited income, needing £6k/month just to pay the bills. before food/fuel etc. Too many forget how lucky they are.

[mxvx]

Flash gits with fancy sports cars

[das882]

I took 9 months out last year after quitting a job working overseas, I guess that I am one of the lucky ones having been in steady offshore work for over 30 years. I was approached last December by a Noreweigan company and I'm now back working ad hoc. which suits me fine. I know of so many people that have been layed off, or have had their pay cut and gone from 2-3 to a 3-3 rotation. What strikes me is according to the government unemployment is down..... but I wonder how many people like myself last year are not registered as being unemployed, I know of a few who are not.......I'm sure that the picture is much bleaker that what the figures show.!

[robin]

The unemployed number is down but the number working part time on minimum wage zero hours contracts is up, so that can hide all sorts of carnage.

It's a generalisation to assume that all people that work in the industry have frittered away the money they've earned along the way.

I am sure there are those that have enjoyed a good life but not gone totally overboard. I am sure there are those with maxed our credit cards despite having £££ per month of disposable income. And all points in between.

Cheers,
Robin

[c8rkh]

[quote="C7Steve"]I heard a story from someone close who is in HR about a member of staff who was approached about taking a £100 wage cut. His response was that he was not willing to take a drop of £100 from his wages each month. The company said that it was not looking to deduct £100 each month from his wage, but from his day rate. His response was, "I cannot survive on £800 a day"

And the above is maybe part of the problem - firstly, he's obviously a contractor so he is NOT a member of staff but a sub contractor - so don't refer to them as a member of staff. The whole point is that contractors are used as a transient workforce that can be flexed up and down depending upon demand. One of the problems is though that some are there for so long they forget they are contractors, as does everyone else around them. And I don't ever recall a contractor complaining when times were good and they were raking in 2, 3 or 4 times more cash than the equivalent permies after tax, deductions etc. Does anyone?

I firmly believe that a companies first obligation is to it's staff so will always let sub-contractors, agency, etc staff go first if I can to protect my permanent workforce. I understand the issue for contractors, but have no sympathy what so ever as they are there to maximise their income first, every thing else is usually a secondary consideration. The O&G sector and its use of contractors is no different to my world of IT.
These guys who cannot survive on less that £800 a day, or £8000 cash a month a month are the reasons why Aberdeen house prices are so high and youngsters can't get on the ladder. It's just a rebalance, and happens to all cities whose economy is based largely on a single commodity / output.

[111Robin]

"I understand the issue for contractors, but have no sympathy what so ever as they are there to maximise their income first, every thing else is usually a secondary consideration."

So what then is the main consideration of a member of permanent staff ?. Wherever I have worked there have always been disgruntled staff continually moaning and moving around for a higher salary so what's the difference ?. I was also sick of the continual sniping at contractors. The door is open to anyone to work as a contractor so what's stopping them ?. I can tell you from experience that most of the complainers would be terrified at the thought of working on a one week notice period as they would actually need to keep proving their worth rather than acting as a protected species and hiding behind their rights. Sorry for the rant but this just typifies the resentment towards contractors that is prevalent in this industry and currently I'm just a bit hacked off with it as you can probably tell.

[Gourlay83]

"I understand the issue for contractors, but have no sympathy what so ever as they are there to maximise their income first, every thing else is usually a secondary consideration."

So what then is the main consideration of a member of permanent staff ?. Wherever I have worked there have always been disgruntled staff continually moaning and moving around for a higher salary so what's the difference ?. I was also sick of the continual sniping at contractors. The door is open to anyone to work as a contractor so what's stopping them ?. I can tell you from experience that most of the complainers would be terrified at the thought of working on a one week notice period as they would actually need to keep proving their worth rather than acting as a protected species and hiding behind their rights. Sorry for the rant but this just typifies the resentment towards contractors that is prevalent in this industry and currently I'm just a bit hacked off with it as you can probably tell.

I under estimated the physiological impact of constantly being told 'your application was un successful'. A few I can handle, but after nearly a year - makes you feel utter useless. (IMO)

Shocked to hear they let you go tbh, you were one of the three that knew what you were doing !.

[tut]

How are you doing Al, still have your job?

tut

[111Robin]

Shocked to hear they let you go tbh, you were one of the three that knew what you were doing !.

not true Alan, there were four !!!!. I have no issues at all having been let go, that's the understanding as a contractor and wasn't unexpected. I hope you find something closer to home soon.

[Gourlay83]

How are you doing Al, still have your job?

tut

I'm well Tut, I wasn't let go but retreated to a staff position before the envitable. Sadly the only available was in Leicester, so I commute weekly.

Not complaining, as I know people who are in a far worse position (losing homes... Reducing sports cars from 5 to 3 etc), just make the most of it at weekends.

keeping myself to myself, and enjoying time with family.

Hope all is well with you?

Alan

[robin]

I under estimated the physiological impact of constantly being told 'your application was un successful'. A few I can handle, but after nearly a year - makes you feel utter useless. (IMO)

Shocked to hear they let you go tbh, you were one of the three that knew what you were doing !.

I know it doesn't help, but remember that one reason you'll get a rejection is the sheer number of applicants for most positions. They will prune the stack ruthlessly based on a single metric, often, simply to reduce the number to process properly. Some places are willing to engage in a feedback session - so if you get the Dear John letter, give the person who signed it a call and ask them for feedback on your application. This will have two impacts (a) you'll possibly learn something that will be useful for the next application (b) you'll receive positive reinforcement that you are not useless.

Arbitrary rejection is a hard thing for the rejected to come to terms with - something we should all keep in mind if we're in the (un)lucky position of hiring and firing.

Cheers,
Robin