Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Track how oil and gas jobs responded to Covid and economic turbulence in your area

There have been seismic shocks since 2019. The Covid pandemic, war in Ukraine, a volatile economy and tax regime, all on top of tougher exploration and a strong environmental backlash.

Oil and gas has sustained the north-east economy for decades. Image: Shutterstock.
Oil and gas has sustained the north-east economy for decades. Image: Shutterstock.

The oil and gas industry is in choppy waters as political leaders struggle to convince workers they have the answer.

And there are warnings about the impact of sudden shocks in this snapshot of figures showing the ups and downs for employment over recent turbulent years.

One red flag is the sudden dip in linked employment, such as taxis, cafes and high street shops, during the Covid pandemic.

Here’s our look at the scale of the jobs and economic value across the regions closely linked to the industry’s success.

Where are oil and gas jobs in Scotland?

More than 84,000 people in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire work in jobs supported by oil and gas. Image: Shutterstock.

The sector supports 93,620 jobs across Scotland, directly and across the supply chain, according to figures from Offshore Energies UK.

Then there are all the so-called “induced” roles – the pubs, cafes and taxis which rely on oil and gas business.

The latest figures show the vast majority of these jobs – more than 84,000 – were based in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire in 2022.

This lays bare the stark impact of turning off the taps in the north-east, unless new green jobs are created at scale to replace them.

Most jobs are concentrated in the Granite City, but the industry also supports 1,600 jobs in Edinburgh, 1,000 in Glasgow and hundreds in areas such as Angus and the Highlands.

What impact did Covid have?

Data from 2019 to 2022 provides a snapshot of how the Covid pandemic hit jobs in the region linked to the industry.

But it was the linked jobs in hospitality and travel that took the brunt.

The drop highlights the thousands of jobs – outside of direct oil and gas roles – which rely on the prosperity of the sector.

And it raises questions whether the city is sufficiently prepared for any future shocks.

The rise in jobs supported by oil and gas in Aberdeen in 2022 is understood to be due to a bounce back in those roles, rather than an increase in direct oil and gas jobs.

The figures come with some uncertainty and is based on some assumptions along with government data.

What is the economic value of the industry?

The oil and gas industry generated almost £19 billion in gross value added (GVA) in 2022.

GVA is the measure of the value of goods and services produced in an area, industry or sector of an economy.

The economic impact is most noticed in the north-east of Scotland where the industry generated £14.4 billion in Aberdeen in 2022 and more than £3 billion in neighbouring Aberdeenshire.

A total of £35 million was generated in Angus, along with £32m in Fife and £24m in Perth and Kinross.

Further analysis of the data shows the money generated by the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen has risen compared to the pandemic years.

However, it is down compared to 2019 when £16.6bn was generated for the Aberdeen economy and it has also decreased across Aberdeenshire.

What next for oil and gas in Scotland?

The future of oil and gas – and the workforce behind it – is a big deal in the general election campaign.

During a visit to the north-east last year, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak agreed to create annual oil and gas licensing rounds to boost production.

The move was slammed by First Minister Humza Yousaf who said it shows the government is “not really serious about tackling the climate crisis”.

Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer, who polls predict will be the next UK prime minister, is calling for an end to new oil and gas licences.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer wants an end to oil and gas exploration. Image: PA.

He pledged to unleash a “generation of secure jobs for Aberdeen”.

But his party faces fierce criticism for ditching its policy of spending £28 bn a year on its green investment plan. 

Without significant investment, there will be concerns over how jobs in the region will be protected.

It has been claimed multiple barriers are in the way of the government’s much promised “fair” shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy jobs.

This includes a lack of renewable jobs at scale with these figures showing the extent of the challenge ahead.

Conversation