Coming off the heels of a strong start for the oil and gas industry in 2018, industry employment continues its positive upswing with the USA adding jobs in March, according to data released on 6 April by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov).

Mining saw employment increases to the tune of about 9,000 jobs (most of those gains came in the 6,000 jobs added in support activities for mining).

Employment in oil and gas extraction, which fluctuated for most of 2017, increased by 2,000; and while there have been some layoff announcements, they are far fewer than anticipated.

Additionally, confidence in the industry has gone up among both CEOs and workers. Employers are finding new ways to use technology and are adopting methods to digitise and automate their operations.

In a recent PWC survey of oil and gas CEOs, 60% said they believed that new strategic alliances or joint ventures would account for the growth of their companies in the next 12 months, while Saudi Aramco announced in late March that it would be partnering with 14 American companies — including oilfield service companies Schlumberger, BHGE and Halliburton.