Various community colleges located across Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania are preparing students to become prospective employees in the Marcellus Shale gas industry which is booming at the moment, through a placement, recruitment and training program offered by Marcellus ShaleNET. The program is being run thanks to the US Department of Labor who invested $4.96 million into the project.
The natural gas is buried deep within shale rock that can only be reached by the modern technologies that many gas companies now have using horizontal drilling techniques. This requires 400 people to operate the drilling of a single well, with over 150 occupations covered. This means that now is the ideal time to look for natural gas jobs. Currently most of the workers employed on the gas rigs are from outside the region as they have more experienced, which is why the training program has been established to encourage residents to gain the high standards of training required, so that they can get more of the available gas jobs.
Across the 69 counties, the two community colleges of Westmoreland Country Community College and the Pennsylvania College of Technology will become the two bases for the coordination of the training program for those interested in working in the gas industry. A comprehensive system has been created to match potential employees with employers and the aim is to forge a united workforce and other partnerships in the Marcellus Shale project.
Member of the bipartisan Congressional Natural Gas Caucus, U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy said, “The greater Pittsburgh region holds a key for releasing America from foreign oil dependence with the Marcellus Shale natural gas play. In addition to being one of the cleaner energy sources that’s important to a balanced, environmentally sound energy portfolio, this natural gas resource is equally important as a job creator in our region.”
The CEO and President of EQT Corp, David Porges added, “We believe that the industry will be hiring thousands of individuals in the foreseeable future to support responsible natural gas extraction. At EQT, we unquestionably want to fill those jobs with individuals who call Appalachia home.” He believes that the Marcellus ShaleNET program is instrumental in developing the large local workforce to compete for these jobs.
The initial aim of the program is to place low income locals in the six high-demand occupations, namely rotary drill, derrick, and service unit operators; brazing and welding operators; roustabouts; and truck drivers.
If you want to find out more about what the oil and gas jobs can offer you, including salary information, working conditions, working hours and more, all you have to do is visit Oil Job Finder and become a member. You will have access to detailed insider information, and you will also learn about the latest job openings in the oil and gas industry. You can look through the database of oil and gas companies to work for and keep an eye on the Job Board for regular updates of jobs that you can apply for. As a member you will be able to get help with developing an excellent resume and get advice on filling in application forms for oil and gas jobs.
Related employment posts:
