Are low oil prices helping or hurting you?

[dennishoddy]

The volatility of the oil and gas industry is exactly why I choose not to work in it. When I graduated in 2009, the O&G industry was the only strong(ish) industry still going. But I refused to work in an industry that is as up and down as it is. So it took a while to find work then. But today, I am still employed, and have no worry about my job. And, I'm making 2/3 more now than then.

Also, doing a quick math calc, using these two site's information:
http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/data/historical/people/
http://www.statista.com/statistics/204740/retail-price-of-gasoline-in-the-united-states-since-1990/

The portion of income going to gas (based on 20mpg and 15kmi / yr) was 62% higher in 2010 than it was in 1995.

The cost per gallon of gas is up 150% + over 1995 costs. Average inflation should only be 55.8% for that time period. So gas has gone up 3x more than income, which has followed the expected inflation value almost exactly.

I'm sorry to hear about anyone's woes, but wishing worse on the rest of the population because you happen to be on the receiving end when it does go up is self centered and short sighted in my opinion.

Which is exactly why I left 21 years in oil field manufacturing and went to electric utilities.

 

[Dave70968]

Well, I was employed with Nomac Drilling bringing in around $28 an hour up until January. The layoff came and now i'm working for a lawn and garden outfit making $9 an hour.

So...knowing that the industry is volatile, did you save aggressively during the boom time so you'd have something on which to fall back during the bust, or did you set your standard of living to your income when life was good and then find yourself in trouble when the entirely-predictable downfall came, and get bitter about others' benefiting from the swing?

At least I found a job, many of my coworkers haven't been so lucky. I had to move out of my house and move in with family. You tell me how it's working out for me. But at least the soccer moms can fill up their SUV's for a few dollars cheaper.

Oh, look, there's the answer.

 

[30BulletHoles]

So...knowing that the industry is volatile, did you save aggressively during the boom time so you'd have something on which to fall back during the bust, or did you set your standard of living to your income when life was good and then find yourself in trouble when the entirely-predictable downfall came, and get bitter about others' benefiting from the swing?



Oh, look, there's the answer.

Well, there's the inevitable "hope you learned your lesson oilfield trash" comment. Lots of businesses and people that work for them that aren't oilfield businesses are closing or hurting as well because they rely on oilfield money. Hope they saved a couple years worth of revenue or wages. Maybe they'll learn their lesson too.

 

[owu1bag5]

So...knowing that the industry is volatile, did you save aggressively during the boom time so you'd have something on which to fall back during the bust, or did you set your standard of living to your income when life was good and then find yourself in trouble when the entirely-predictable downfall came, and get bitter about others' benefiting from the swing?


Oh, look, there's the answer.

Yeah I saved money during my run. Haven't really worked in 6 months. Still doing ok for now. It sucks not having the money to go buy what I want when I want. Which hurts the economy as a whole. You figure on the low end that every job lost is around 60k/year and most are closer to 100k/year and think about how much money is not being dumped into local economies. Comments like yours are ridiculous. A lot of good people are hurting. A lot of small town businesses may never recover. Not just oil businesses. Restaurants, hotels, etc. it's a bad situation for our economy as a whole. I hope I can hold on til it comes back.

To answer the question, low oil prices are most definitely hurting me.

 

[Wheel Gun]

Directly: Hurting me. I count on oil production revenue and frac sand sales for part of my income. It's not there now.

Indirectly: Hurting me. Sure, low gas pump prices are nice, but then I realize why they're low. The economy is stagnant and there is little demand for fuel. That hurts each of us in ways that we cannot calculate.

 

[reade]

I live in Osage County and not only are low oil prices an issue but the resent Federal Government BIA regulations have effectively stopped all drilling and work overs here. Today a judge decides what's next. I'm headed to court now and am hoping for good news for a change.

 

[Viper16]

Business sure has slowed down for me, and I am not tied directly to the oil industry. While I do sell and interact indirectly with those companies, I have noticed a decline in sales and projects.

 

[1krr]

I left the o/g industry and to a large extent its products years ago. Because I use relatively little oil and gas, price changes either way affect me very little.

 

[BReeves]

Like others I am retired more or less and the oil prices really do not effect me. On the other hand wife does work for a supplier of inspectors for the oil and gas industry. So far it hasn't effected her job but if it keeps up it might effect our household income which would effect me. She is still a year or two from retirement, after that, keep it low and I will be happy.

 

[nofearfactor]

I run 91 and better when I can find it in 2 sports cars and in my DD hotrod SUV w/5.7l, but I never really look at gas prices much when Im out here because gas is always hell'a cheaper here than back home in California. When Im going to CA and back it affects my road budget quite a bit tho. When Im home here I mostly just cruise around BA and Coweta but do go in to Tulsa and back when I need to so the price of gas hasnt affected my daily activities. When I drive back and forth to gigs that I can drive to instead of fly it does affect my road budget but I deal with it by asking for more money from my manager. I fly alot to jobs, my accumulated miles help some, but flights are getting ridiculous expensive.

The wifes lil commuter 4cyl Honda CR-V that she drives daily in to Tulsa and back during the week she runs 87 in and she is constantly bitching about the price of gas no matter if we're in a down or up cycle because shes always trying to balance her budget/expense report. Ironically, the job she has put over 30 years in and is now a corporate officer, a company that builds massive equipment for large refineries world wide, she has been swamped busy as they have been busier than ever. She just spent the last several weeks and a few Saturday afternoons in the office working on a $33 million dollar job. Its done now and shes going on a 10 day vacation starting this weekend with her sister. I try to explain to her that when she bitches about gas prices that her bonus's on these big jobs will more than make up for what she is spending extra in gas money to drive her little 50 mile round trip to the office.