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Will employment study impact Alaska's oil tax debate?A Juneau research and consulting firm has been given the job of analyzing North Slope oil field hiring practices in an effort to figure out whether it's true that the coveted jobs are not going to Alaskans and why. On Friday, the Senate Finance Committee awarded the contract to McDowell Group, which proposed a cost of about $180,000. The final report is expected in December and is a backdrop to the political debate expected to rage again during the next legislative session over whether the state's oil tax structure should be revamped. Gov. Sean Parnell and House Republican leaders support cutting taxes on the industry in an effort to stimulate investment and more jobs. But opponents, including a bipartisan senate leadership group and Democrats, are reluctant to give companies what was estimated to be a $2 billion a year tax break without promises of new investment and new jobs. Late in the legislative session earlier this year, lawmakers were stunned to learn from the state Department of Labor that nearly half of new hires on the North Slope are Outside residents. The Senate Finance Committee decided to pay for a study of what's going on and Sen. Dennis Egan, chairman of the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, plans to hold hearings next month on the issue. "This is not anti-oil industry," Egan said Tuesday. "What we're trying to find out is why more Alaskans are not being employed." Egan and other lawmakers said the major oil companies have a good local hire record, but some of the sub contractors do not. One company, Egan said, employs a couple hundred people and not one is an Alaska residents. "I don’t buy that," he said. "They're making a hell of a lot of money off Alaska but they're hopping the jet back and forth." Egan was involved in choosing the McDowell Group for the study and says he has a lot of faith in their ability. The company employs former state labor analysts and has done numerous studies for the state and private groups that are used in legislative deliberations. The McDowell Group proposal describes a comprehensive project to document employment trends in the Alaska oil industry including recruiting practices of the primary producers and support service companies. Among other things, the study is expected to drill down on resident hiring, those who come from Outside but become Alaskans, those Alaskans who move Outside but continue to work on the Slope, age of oil field workers and how that's changed over time, and patterns of unemployment insurance claims and if those checks are being mailed Outside. The study also will look at whether companies are leaving Alaska -- as supporters of the tax break have contended -- and if that is affecting resident hiring trends. The study also hopes to identify opportunities to improve resident hire, including whether more training is needed for specialized jobs. Although the consultants will be combing through reams of publicly available data such as state and federal labor records, they also hope to be able to use confidential information the state keeps. They also say they need to obtain information from the oil industry that the companies would need to provide voluntarily, an effort that the proposal describes as a "challenge." Egan said he doesn't expect the major oil companies to block the kind of information the study seeks because much of it is already required to be reported to the state. BP Alaska spokesman Steve Rinehart said his company would need to look more carefully at the study proposal before commenting. The hearings Egan is holding in Fairbanks and Anchorage next month will also be aimed at getting oil industry officials and workers to shed light on the existing situation and how it can be improved. Otherwise, it makes no sense for the state to give away state money when it is getting no new jobs in return, he said. "Why are we giving them more tax breaks when we are already giving them billion in tax breaks when they’re not employing Alaskans," he said. "It doesn’t make sense." Sen. Bill Wielechowski chairs the Senate State Affairs Committee and held a hearing this year on the effect of the state oil tax structure on investment and jobs as well as profits and revenues. "People in Alaska obviously care about jobs on the North Slope and as policy makers we want to see whether those jobs are going to Alaskans," he said, "and if not, what sorts of levers can we pull to get those jobs to go to Alaskans." Contact Patti Epler at patti(at)alaskadispatch.com Note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Sen. Bill Wielechowski chairs the Senate State Affairs Committee, not Judiciary. Sen. Hollis French is the chair of that committee. "This is not anti-oil industry," Egan said Tuesday. "What we're trying to find out is why more Alaskans are not being employed." Senator Egan[said] Sen. Egan, the oil Companies do not hire Alaskans and do not train Alaskans because the oil companies do not want Alaskans on the Slope. Why? Because Alaskans are far more likely to care about what happens on the Slope and have a desire to care about the best interests of Alaska. It is the same reason the Oil companies buy ads in the Anchorage and CH2 and rest of the press, and give to KSKA & KAKM and others if they will give favorable account of oil companies activities as best they can. Silence is golden and it pays well too. It is the same reason the oil companies broadcast their donations to the public then add cost plus 15% to the donation and take it off of the taxes the oil companies pay the State of Alaska. So in fact the oil companies not only gave nothing but also took a profit on what they allegedly gave. It is called Directed Giving. It is Alaska money but the oil companies direct where Alaska’s funding goes and where it goes is used to subvert Alaska’s best interests. Going back to when ARCO was still in business. ARCO use to charge $3,500 for the use of ARCO ‘s Atrium then write a check to the charity who rented ARCO’s Atrium . The charity had to the be the correct kind of a charity or ARCO would not rent ARCO’s Atrium. ARCO then took $3,500 plus costs and 15% off of ARCO’s State of Alaska’s taxes. But that is not all they took it off ARCO’s federal taxes too. My understanding is that Conoco is doing the same thing only not as aggressive about renting out their Atrium as ARCO was. Remember, Oil companies may lie, cheat and steal, but they are not stupid and will avail themselves of every opportunity to avail themselves of Alaska’s money like they low ball the amount of taxes due the State of Alaska then bargain for less than is actually due. Parnell, does not provide the necessary auditors to properly audit the oil companies payments and so State runs into the 6 year limitation in whic to collect the amount actually do the State of Alaska. Parnell facilitates the oil companies cheating the State of Alaska anyway the oil companies suggest and Parnell can get away with doing. There is collect pattern of subversion of the State of Alaska's interests but it is more than the FBI wants to wrap its mind around. Well maybe? Sure would take a lot of republicans down. McDowell Group: They are from Juneau who did you expect Egan to appoint? I'm sure with billions more in tax breaks Sean Parnell can put a few more Alaskans to work. Fiscal conservative hack! To work on the North Slope you first have to pass a pre-employment drug test. There are not alot of qualified applicants from Alaska that dont want to give up their pot, sure they could use the Urinator device with synthetic urin, but they have to carry it with them at all times when at work for those random screenings. Too much work for a pot head! Also DUI's are a factor as well. The educational system in Alaska only tries to funnel students into the engineering aspects of slope work and basically ignors the trades. Alaska needs more vocational trade schools. Check out the Perry institute in Yakima Washington at www.perrytech.edu Hire Alaskans ? Really? Here we go again. The oil companies obtain the tax breaks and Alaska gets the shaft, again. Every so often the oil company shills haul out this “Hire Alaskans” as if they really mean it. It sucks in the press, who are overly willingly gullible, oil companies buy advertising when they have nothing to sell (Anchorage News & Ch 2) or make donations (KSKA & KAKM), and they call it good will. Just because someone obtains a permanent Fund Dividend check or Alaska cola does not mean they are Alaska residents. Not even owning home in Alaska makes an actual Alaska Resident . Alaska hire is just as phony as Gov. Parnell's TransCanada Alcan Gasline or Speaker Chenaults in State gasline. Hire Alaskans ? Really? The oil companies obtain the tax breaks and Alaska gets the shaft, again. Every so often the oil company shills haul out this “Hire Alaskans” as if they really mean it. It sucks in the press, who are overly willingly gullible, oil companies buy advertising when they have nothing to sell (Anchorage News & Ch 2) or make donations (KSKA & KAKM), and they call it good will. Oh, for pity's sake, people---the oil companies just make MORE money by limiting the supply of oil, so what do you expect? Less oil equals higher prices. That means less production. That means fewer jobs. This travesty will go on until the government enforces production quotas for these rats. I'll look forward to reading the report, assuming it will be released to the public. I'm certain that for some remote jobs Outsiders are recruited because qualified candidates frequently can't be found in Alaska. My own job falls into that limited category. Highly skilled, experienced workers in Alaska generally already have jobs that they've held for a number of years. We are already comfortably settled into our lives and lifestyles and have little interest in making major changes unless doing so has clear advantages. Once would have to offer me a better work schedule and a pay scale that is at least equal to what I currently earn to pry me out of my remote site job. Experience is important for many oil patch jobs. It's easy to find basic trained but inexperienced workers up here, but not so easy to find people who have "been there and done that" enough to truly hone their skills to a high degree. I suspect that many North Slope companies just find it is easier and probably cheaper to hire a large number of experienced, qualified people Outside than it is here. Of course a little bit of advertising could remedy that situation. Unemployment numbers are comprised of those that are in the job market for the past 30 days. It does not include those that have not been in the job market in the last 30 days: people who have given up looking; those that have gone off unemployment because it has run out. One solution to unemployment is "High Speed University" check it out |
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