Roustabouts, Oil and Gas
Assemble or repair oil field equipment using hand and power tools. Perform other tasks as needed.
Also called: Field Service Roustabout · Floor Hand · Oil and Gas Roustabout · Oil Field Roustabout · Production Roustabout · Rig Hand
Median pay (national)
$47,510
$35,650–$64,010 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
45,330
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
+2.5%
~4,300 openings/yr
Typical entry
No formal educational credential
What the numbers say
Refit analysis ·Pay for roustabouts, oil and gas shows a relatively narrow range: the top 10% earn $64,010 versus $35,650 at the bottom 10% — 1.8x. The median of $47,510 leaves roughly 35% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change +2.5% from 2024 to 2034 — about as fast as the 3% all-occupation average. Even so, BLS projects about 4,300 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 25 states with released data, Alaska pays the most for this role (median $63,230, +33% vs the national median), while Kentucky sits lowest at $36,950 — a 71% spread for the same job title.
Refit analysis ·O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Active Listening as the highest-importance skills here — so a resume aimed at this role should lead with evidence of those, not a generic skills list.
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Top skills employers ask for
Ranked by O*NET importance for this occupation.
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Active Learning
- Learning Strategies
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Mathematics
- Science
What they actually do
Core O*NET tasks for this role.
- Unscrew or tighten pipes, casing, tubing, and pump rods, using hand and power wrenches and tongs.
- Dismantle and repair oil field machinery, boilers, and steam engine parts, using hand tools and power tools.
- Guide cranes to move loads about decks.
- Walk flow lines to locate leaks, using electronic detectors and by making visual inspections, and repair the leaks.
- Lay gas and oil pipelines.
- Bolt together pump and engine parts.
- Move pipes to and from trucks, using truck winches and motorized lifts, or by hand.
- Clean trucks used in the fields.
- Dig holes, set forms, and mix and pour concrete into forms to make foundations for wood or steel derricks.
- Supply equipment to rig floors as requested and provide assistance to roughnecks.
Tools & technology
- Microsoft Windows
- SAP software
- Database management systems
- Enertia
- Inventory management systems
- Maintenance record software
- Maintenance software
- Microsoft Windows XP
- Purchasing software
- Telephony software
- Token Ring
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft PowerPoint
Knowledge areas
- Mechanical
- Customer and Personal Service
- Production and Processing
- Transportation
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Physics
- Education and Training