5 Benefits of Using Contract Staff in the Oil and Gas Industry

Contract staff can be a great solution to many of the hiring problems facing the oil and gas industry, a field that requires a highly specialized skill set and knowledge. Here are five benefits of using contract staff in the oil and gas industry.

1. Recovering Industry

Contract staff are always a great option for recovering industries who are still in the process of rebuilding employment infrastructure and stabilizing their workload. The oil and gas industry, which fell on hard times in the last few years, is slowly beginning to recover, and is therefore exactly the sort of industry in which contract staff are especially needed.

Contract workers are skilled and competent, and able to carry out complicated and much-needed tasks, but they come with fewer of the obligations of full-time employees. In an industry that is still trying to stabilize, this is a great option that doesn’t necessarily require lengthy commitment.

2. Cost Saving

Employing contract staff can actually save you money. One of the big reasons contract staff are less expensive is because they can be hired as short-term workers. If your company doesn’t have the resources to hire a full-time employee but needs someone to fill in a position or help with a specific project, contract staff are able to step up and help out for the limited amount of time they’re needed.

3. Unpredictable Work

In a field that’s in the process of rebounding, the work won’t always be predictable. This is especially true of the oil and gas industry, which has never been a predictable industry even in the best of times. It’s the nature of the oil and gas industry to fluctuate, and to go where the money dictates. Working in diverse locations in small increments of time, or going through periods of boom followed by periods of relative stagnation, is exactly the kind of work that calls for contract workers, who can step in at short notice, and can be hired to fill in for short periods of time. Recruiters can also find you specialized, skilled workers in a diverse range of locations, whereas permanent workers would have to travel regularly to complete a job.

4. Employment Qualifications

A staffing agency will make sure that any of the workers they are representing undergo rigorous employment qualification and fitness tests to determine that they will be the best fit for your company. Staffing agencies thoroughly vet any of the contract workers that they’re passing your way, meaning you can rest assured that you’re getting the best workers possible. And you save the expense of having to make sure they’re properly qualified yourself. When you need a job done quickly and correctly, you can have peace of mind in knowing the skilled worker has been properly vetted by their staffing agency.

5. Already Trained

If you’re working with contract staff, it also means they’ve already been trained for the oil and gas industry, and will be able to jump right in and start working. When you need workers on short notice, one of the most painful parts of hiring is the knowledge that there will be a lengthy training process before the new hire will be ready to fully take on the necessary workload.

Contract workers have received the necessary training, and are highly skilled and specialized workers who won’t need extensive guidance. Many staffing agencies even undertake the onboarding process for you, making the choice to hire contract workers one of the easiest ones you can make.