O&G players remain confident on the industry outlook as online hiring activity was on a positive trajectory throughout 2018 and, impressively, for 21 straight months. Despite the sector’s volatility, as the year ended analysts were optimistic about the stabilisation of crude oil prices in 2019, forecasting an increase in both upstream and downstream activities. — Bernama photo
KUCHING: Online recruitment activity in the oil and gas (O&G) sector remained positive throughout 2018, up eight per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in December, according to the Monster Employment Index (MEI).
It also marks 21 consecutive months of y-o-y growth for the industry since April 2017.
The MEI is a gauge of online job posting activity compiled monthly by Monster.com. It records the industries and occupations that show the highest and lowest growth in recruitment activity locally. The IT, Telecom/ISP and BPO/ITES witnessed the steepest y-o-y growth among industry sectors for the sixth consecutive month, recording another double-digit growth, up 18 per cent in December.
The logistic, courier/freight/transportation, shipping/marine as well as production/manufacturing, automotive and ancillary industry both saw an uptrend in e-recruitment activity for the first time since August 2018, up seven per cent and one per cent y-o-y, respectively.
Among occupation categories, Hospitality and Travel professionals registered the most notable growth in the series, up a steep 44 per cent y-o-y in December. In the short-term as well, the job-role indicated positive growth, up 37 per cent month-on-month and six per cent on a six-month basis.
Overall however, Malaysia registered a three per cent y-o-y decline in online recruitment activity in December.
Online hiring in the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) industry was on a downtrend throughout 2018, registering a decline of 12 per cent y-o-y in December. Demand for Finance & Accounts job roles also recorded a drop of 13 per cent y-o-y.
After leading in hiring demand for two months, Customer Service professionals witnessed the steepest decline amongst job roles in December, down 29 per cent y-o-y.
“O&G players remain confident on the industry outlook as online hiring activity was on a positive trajectory throughout 2018 and, impressively, for 21 straight months. Despite the sector’s volatility, as the year ended analysts were optimistic about the stabilisation of crude oil prices in 2019, forecasting an increase in both upstream and downstream activities,” chief executive officer (CEO) of Monster.com for APAC and Middle East Abhijeet Mukherjee said.
“With changes in global energy markets, innovation and technology will continue to play a critical role as companies seek to meet growing energy needs sustainably. It’s not surprising that we see new roles being created in the oil and gas industry.
“As focus on automation and smart technologies means companies will need to keep innovating to remain agile and competitive – creating demand for talent with the technical skills and creative outlook to learn emerging technologies and develop new ones.
“Companies will increasingly explore new ways to attract and retain millennial talent, rebranding themselves and introducing a more collaborative and digital culture.”
The MEI Malaysia is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity, based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career websites and online job listings across Malaysia.
The index does not reflect the trend of any one advertiser or source, but is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry.