Schlumberger Limited. (SLB), BP plc (ADR) (BP): Looking for a Job? Try Applying Here

What’s important to realize is that the industry’s needs aren’t going away anytime soon. Offshore growth is one area job seekers should concentrate on because of its recent resurgence after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico disaster. Companies are investing billions in the Gulf in an effort to grow oil and gas production. BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP), for example, is spending $4 billion annually in the Gulf through the end of this decade.

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:APC) recently discovered a significant oil deposit in the Gulf, and that project and others to follow mean the company will require many more workers. It’s not just the oil and gas producers that will require workers; oilfield service companies such as Schlumberger Limited. (NYSE:SLB), which employs 120,000 around the globe, will also need additional workers in the years to come to keep oil production flowing.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are a variety of oil-related occupations that will see demand growth for the rest of the decade. For example, demand for petroleum engineers is expected to grow by 17% this decade. Another area to focus on is indirect jobs affected by an industry’s growth. These jobs are expected to grow even faster, with iron work growing 49%, pipefitting 26%, and steel 22%. Further, many of the industry’s workers are getting older and will be retiring, which will create additional job openings.

The jobs situation here in America is no longer as bleak as it once was, and nowhere is this more evident than in the oil and gas industry. The biggest hurdle is the lack of an experienced and educated workforce. While that means applicants will need to put in a lot of extra effort to land one of those jobs, the good news is that those jobs don’t appear to be going anywhere for a long, long time.

The article Looking for a Job? Try Applying Here originally appeared on Fool.com is written by Matt DiLallo.

Fool contributor Matt DiLallo owns shares of and has short June 2013 $4 puts on Heckmann. The Motley Fool owns shares of and has options on Heckmann.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.