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By Chris Brown

Industry ready, employees not there

Struggling to find workers, energy companies are facing a ‘labour crunch’

Aug 5, 2021 | 3:28 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Market prices for oil and natural gas are rising and energy companies are eager to increase activity.

That has oilfield services companies on a hiring binge for the first in about six years, but the resumes and applications are slow coming in.

The president and CEO of the Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC), which represents a wide array of oilfield services companies, says the industry is facing a “labour crunch.”

Gurpreet Lail says there are a variety of factors.

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“One, some of them have found work outside the industry and don’t want to come back. Some are concerned about layoffs taking place again,” she says. “It’s been so volatile for the last six years at minimum that people are just they’re not sure if that’s what to come back to.”

The extension of the federal wage subsidy is also hindering the search for workers, she adds.

Needing trained and ticketed individuals presents an even bigger challenge, Lail says, noting companies can’t just pick an employee from a regular hiring firm or job bank.

“They’re specialized, they have specialized skill sets. Some get training for two to three years before they actually get on the job.”

Lail says some companies are offering incentives such as paying for training and tickets, signing bonuses and money for education.

But without enough people working projects may be delayed, or worse she says.

“With rigs, you can’t start drilling if you don’t have crews to put up a rig and you can’t put up a rig with a three-man crew. You need a full crew. And I think that’s where projects are going to get stalled, projects may get cancelled,” _{Lail says}.

“But it’s going to start stalling some projects and we need the projects not to be stalled. We need to get more activity happening and build back this economy.”

On July 29, PSAC forecast 4,250 wells drilled across Canada this year, up from the April figure of 3,600 wells.

It forecasts 2,330 wells to be drilled in Alberta and 1,290 wells for Saskatchewan, increases of 890 and 213 wells, respectively from 2020.

Activity levels in the first half of 2021 are expected to account for only 45 per cent of the year’s total versus 64 per cent last year.

The improved forecasts are based on rising commodity prices. Crude oil is up to US$64 per barrel (WTI) for 2021, natural gas is CDN$3.35 /MMBtu (AECO) and the Canadian dollar slightly stronger averaging US$0.81.