Meeting industry needs: Programs training workers for fracking-related jobs

By COURTNEY ALBON - T-G Staff Writer

One of the more popular arguments for the oil and gas industry’s deep-well oil and gas drilling is the promise of local jobs. While speculation continues about the number of jobs in question, some local educational leaders are working to determine whether their programs are suited to train workers for what could be a burgeoning local industry — some responding with new curriculum and others holding off until the prospects are clearer.

Claims in an industry-funded study released in late 2010 that the development of shale natural gas and oil could create or support 200,000 jobs in Ohio recently have been disputed by researchers at Ohio State University, whose work suggests the actual net gain of jobs during the next four years is closer to 20,000.

Ashland County still is in the exploratory phase, though there has been movement in recent months toward establishing drilling sites in the area. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources in November issued permits to Devon Energy Production Co. for the construction of a horizontal hydraulic fracturing well on property in Clear Creek Township — the first in the county. Hundreds of landowners in the northern and southern parts of Ashland County have been approached by energy companies interested in leasing their land.

The still-looming questions about job creation and uncertainty about the local economic impact of fracking has area institutions taking different approaches toward the development of fracking-specific training programs.

Keith Stoner, director of marketing and creative services at North Central State College, said the school does offer programs with some relevance to the maintenance and support of fracking wells. However, NCSC officials do not have immediate plans to offer more technical and specific training.

“Unless the fracking movement comes this way a little stronger, we’re not seeing the need locally for that training,” Stoner said.

Plans for new programs are in the works at the Career Center. Melisa Carr, assistant adult education director, said administrators are working to develop some training, which she says will be “very diverse.” Carr did not mention program specifics because the coursework has not yet been approved, but she said the programs will be geared toward the more long-term job opportunities, including well maintenance and extraction.

“Instead of having people from out-of-state filling these jobs, we want those people to be local,” Carr said. “We want to provide the training we can to support that.”

The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 18 already is offering apprenticeship and training programs to support the fracking industry. The union operates four training centers — the closest one in Richfield — which work to train members to operate machinery for various types of construction work, many of which are relevant to the oil and gas industry. To complement the general programming, the group is working to develop safety courses with direct relevance to the energy industry.

Donald R. Black, administrative manager for the apprenticeship and training fund, said Local 18 will make more room in its training programs for what he expects to be an influx of applicants during the next few years. Applications for the Ohio Operating Engineers Apprenticeship and Training Program will be taken 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today and tomorrow, as well as next Thursday, Friday and Saturday Feb. 2-4.

“The industry is growing and we want our local members to be a part of that growth,” Black said.

The potential for local employment is greater at the later stages of the fracking process, said Perry Lawrence, a production superintendent for Devon Energy Production Co. — a company IUOE members have been criticizing lately for hiring nonunion workers from Port Clinton to construct the fracking well in Clear Creek Township.

Lawrence currently is working in Corpus Christi, Texas, on a project involving the Eagle Ford Shale. He said a definite distinction exists between jobs available during site preparation, drilling and site maintenance.

In the early phases, the company commissions construction crews to build roads, move rock at the drilling site and assemble pipe. Drilling is typically done by operators with experience and is less likely to be completed by local workers. The site preparation and drilling usually take about one month, Perry said, after which workers are needed to monitor and treat the wells and maintain the equipment.

About 90 percent of these post-drilling positions, Lawrence said, typically are manned by people who live within an hour of the site.

“All the jobs eventually will be local,” Lawrence said.

Lawrence said he likes to have workers with a base knowledge of the process, but said a lot of the industry-specific training happens on the job.

“We’re looking for welders and anyone that knows how to run mechanical equipment like cranes, bulldozers and backhoes,” Lawrence said. “Guys that start out swinging a hammer, we’re seeing them move up as supervisors.”

Courtney Albon can be reached at 419-281-0581, ext. 243, or calbon@times-gazette.com.

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