North Sea oil workers are juggling second jobs between stints on the rigs. But their motivation is enjoyment rather than money, according to new research.
Multiple-job holding or 'moonlighting' has increased across the UK labour market over the past decade. Evidence has shown that there is now a substantial, and growing, proportion of workers who hold a second job.
Now, a new study produced by University of Aberdeen researchers has probed working arrangements in the North Sea oil and gas industry.
The research team, from the University's Business School, designed and distributed a questionnaire to 700 individuals working on 150 North Sea offshore platforms.
The response rate was above 40% with 330 completed questionnaires returned and all the main offshore jobs, such as drilling, production, maintenance and administration, represented in the sample.
"The data collected provides valuable information on the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents and their households, offshore working practices, and the incidence of moonlighting," said Dr Alexandros Zangelidis, a co-author of the study.
"Despite the fact that offshore workers spend an average of 15 days onshore per month, around 8% of the respondents reported having a second job when onshore. Interestingly, the primary reason given for moonlighting is not financial or related to the hours constraint they face when offshore*, but the fact that they enjoy their second job."
Nearly two-thirds of those consulted said their second job, which ranged from working as barman, restaurant mangaer, musician and property developer, was not related to their offshore job.
"Individuals during a typical onshore break of two weeks appear to spend on average around 31 hours working in their second job and to earn, after tax, around £600," added Dr Zangelidis.
He said that his team's analysis also showed a strong commitment from the Oil and Gas industry to the development of the workers' skills and the improvement of health and safety conditions through training.
"Slightly more than 90% of the respondents reported receiving training in the past year and more than 50% of the workers expected also to have job-related training in the coming 12 months. This is important, given the skills' shortage and the recruiting difficulties that companies in the industry are facing," said Dr Zangelidis.
"Moreover, the majority (84%) said their jobs were matched to their qualifications, suggesting that employers have not compromised their hiring standards."
Job satisfaction was another area looked at by the survey.
Added Dr Zangelidis: "Individuals on average appear to be relatively content with their employment. We found, however, that male workers are more likely than their female colleagues to report lower levels of job satisfaction, which is consistent with other studies."
The majority of respondents to the survery had vocational qualifications, an apprenticeship or a diploma (60%). A further 24% have up to secondary level education and only the remaining 16% of individuals have university or higher qualifications.
The profile of the average respondent in the survey was that of a male aged 44 years, married with one child, whose spouse works around 30 hours per week. The average respondent gains a net salary of £3,000 per month from his offshore work and reports working 13 hours per day a typical offshore period of 15 consecutive days.
To read more visit http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~pec195/NorthSea.htm