The oil and gas industry is big. They make lots of money and pay out lots of money, even to entry level workers in drilling rig jobs. This is why drilling rig employment is in such high demand. Unfortunately, this also attracts conmen to scam job seekers out of their precious cash. There has been more than one story of job seekers being offered fake jobs with drilling companies and then losing not only their money but their identities (Social Security ID, passport, license, etc.) as well.
This is a big problem. How do you know when a job is real? Ordinarily, we would say to avoid an offer that is too good to be true. Unfortunately, we cannot use the same kind of common sense in other industries to judge matters. Drilling companies routinely pay double or more the salaries in other industries, even when the job is substantially the same. A welder on an offshore oil rig easily makes $60,000 a year while working only six months out of every year (working alternate fortnights). On land in the manufacturing sector, he only earns half as much but has to work 365 days a year (with maybe two to three weeks of annual leave).
In other words, if you reject a drilling rig job just because the salary is higher than what you are used to, coming from a different industry or sector. You need to know the going rates for oil drilling rig jobs. You also cannot just use a rule of thumb saying that the pay is double the normal rate on land. For example, a scaffolder in a construction yard works for $5 to $7 an hour, but a scaffolder doing drilling rigs work will earn somewhere around $55,000 to $60,000 a year. The same is true when comparing the salary of a cook on an offshore oil platform against the salary of a cook on land (which can vary a lot depending on his skill and where he works).
Basically, to judge whether or not a salary offered to you is too good to be true, you need to know the normal salary for that particular job and then modify it based on how the economy is doing and your actual level of experience. At the lowest level, the stewards and roustabouts on an oil platform make about $45,000 to $50,000 a year. Painters and scaffolders can make about $5,000 more because their jobs are more dangerous, having to work in high places. Trades like welders, mechanics and electricians should be able to make $60,000 a year. Radio operators, registered nurses (for the medic position) and cooks also make more or less the same amount of money.
The above salaries are based on data from around the 2000-s, right before oil jumped up to $140 per barrel. You should also take note that oil salaries are tied more closely to the price of crude oil than to the actual state of the economy. During the Roaring 80′s, when the economy was in go-go mode, oil prices hovered around $10 per barrel and there were mass lay-offs in the industry. But during the recession in 2009, when everyone else was firing, the oil industry was still hiring (at least for those who did their drilling rig job search the right way) because the price of oil remained good at $60 per barrel.
The salaries for drilling rig jobs are very, very good. However, do not let greed blind you. Know your numbers so that you do not get conned, but do not be so timid as to lose genuine job offers in this lucrative industry.
