Leading women in the oil and gas industry are calling for more businesses to give their female employees a stronger voice in the workplace in a bid to help retain and attract staff.
The issue was brought to the fore during OPITO’s National Oil & Gas Skills Week, a celebration of the careers, technologies and opportunities the sector encompasses, with various workshops, sessions and interactive challenges across Aberdeen and the UK.
More than 80 women attended the Gallery & Wii (Women in industry) seminar at the Aberdeen Art Gallery which highlighted the importance of companies giving women a platform to air any work-related concerns with their female colleagues at resource group meetings.
Morven Spalding, OPITO’s skills development director, hosted the event and was joined by Superintendent Kate Stephen, of Police Scotland, Jeanette Forbes, chief executive and founder of Aberdeen information technology firm PCL Group, Malissa Boudreaux, Baker Hughes sales and marketing director for Europe, Africa and the Caspian, and Dr Alix Thom, skills and employment issues manager at industry body Oil & Gas UK.
Mrs Spalding said: “More needs to be done within companies to engage with their female workers to take a closer look at what might be holding them back from moving up in their chosen career path.
“We have seen considerable amounts of evidence that show women are often still encountering structural barriers to their progression at work in the science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) professions, including oil and gas.
“The oil industry is incredibly broad in terms of the spectrum of career options it offers. However, the technical job roles, like technicians and engineers, still suffer from the stigma of being seen as traditionally male roles.
“We want women to see how the work they do as individuals can help change the perceptions of oil and gas for the next generation when they come together.”