Fifty-six percent of oil and gas workers reported that their line managers seem stressed in OC Tanner’s 2023 Global Culture Report.
The study revealed that 61% of managers in the oil and gas industry reported that their responsibilities have increased since Covid and found that 31% find it more difficult to stay positive at work. According to the report, the new responsibilities and expectations placed on managers in recent years have caused many to succumb to stress and burnout.
The report highlighted that the top management tasks taking up the most time since Covid are training and mentoring, with 54 per cent of oil and gas managers reporting an increase. This is followed by performance and evaluation tasks, with 49 percent reporting an increase, and management meetings, with 46 percent reporting an increase, the report shows.
Despite the additional tasks, a fifth of oil and gas managers admit that they find it more difficult to get support from senior management, according to the report.
“This increase in the workload of managers is negatively affecting their well-being and engagement, as well as the overall culture of the company,” said Robert Ordever, European director of OC Tanner, in a company statement.
“They are expected to do a lot more, but with the same, if not less, resources, and eventually something has to give and it’s too often their mental health,” he added.
“Managers are overstretched these days, with mentoring and meetings taking up more time than ever before. Leaders need to recognize this and find ways to ease their burden,” continued Ordever.
MD OC Tanner noted that managers need support and recognition as much as any employee.
“This has to be given regularly and authentically, with the assessment built into everyday culture so that it flows in all directions,” he said.
“Managers will then feel part of a supportive work community in which their contributions are continually seen and valued,” he added.
The report acknowledged that an organization may not be able to ease the workload of all managers, but stressed that managers can have a strong support network where they can ask for advice, ask for help and share best practice .
Rigzone has asked the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) for comment on OC Tanner’s findings. At the time of writing, the IOGP has not yet responded to Rigzone’s request.
The OC Tanner report collected and analyzed the perspectives of more than 36,000 employees, leaders, HR professionals and business executives in 20 countries around the world, including 186 in the oil and gas industry.
As of March 29, at 9:19 a.m. CEST, there have been 761.4 million confirmed cases of Covid-19, with 6.8 million deaths, according to the latest information from the World Health Organization (WHO) . As of April 2, a total of 13.3 billion doses of vaccines have been administered worldwide, according to the latest WHO data.
Europe has seen the most confirmed Covid cases with 274.5 million, followed by the Western Pacific with 201.7 million, the Americas with 191.4 million, Southeast Asia with 60.7 million, the Eastern Mediterranean, with 23.2 million, and Africa, with 9.5 million. million, according to the latest WHO figures.
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