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Roustabouts, Oil and Gas vs Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas

Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index

A factual, source-backed comparison of Roustabouts, Oil and Gas and Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”

Roustabouts, Oil and Gas Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas
Median pay · BLS OEWS
$47,510
$62,740
Employment · BLS OEWS
45,330
11,040
AI exposure (percentile) · task overlap, not automation
1st pct
11th pct

At a glance

Dimension Roustabouts, Oil and Gas Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas
Median pay $47,510 $62,740
Employment 45,330 11,040
Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection About average (+2.5%) About average (+0.5%)
Annual openings · BLS projection 4,300 1,000
Typical education · O*NET Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
AI exposure · published exposure studies Low · 1st pct Low · 11th pct
Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk 30th pct · 19% of tasks 30th pct · 19% of tasks
Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index — —
Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman No No

Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.

Skills

Shared: Manual Dexterity, Multilimb Coordination, Mechanical, Problem Sensitivity, Near Vision, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Control Precision, Static Strength, Trunk Strength, Extent Flexibility, Far Vision, Critical Thinking, Oral Comprehension, Stamina, Monitoring, Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Quality Control Analysis, Oral Expression, Deductive Reasoning, Flexibility of Closure, Visualization, Selective Attention, Finger Dexterity, Reaction Time, Gross Body Equilibrium, Depth Perception, Hearing Sensitivity, Auditory Attention, Active Listening, Repairing.

Specific to Roustabouts, Oil and Gas

  • Information Ordering
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Judgment and Decision Making
  • Rate Control
  • Speech Recognition
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Equipment Maintenance
  • Time Management

Specific to Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas

  • Speaking
  • Speech Clarity
  • Mathematics
  • Complex Problem Solving
  • Troubleshooting
  • Inductive Reasoning
  • Perceptual Speed
  • Response Orientation

Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).

Tools & technology

Shared: Spreadsheet software , Electronic mail software , Word processing software .

Specific to Roustabouts, Oil and Gas

Specific to Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas

    Full profiles

    This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Roustabouts, Oil and Gas or Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.

    More comparisons

    Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.

    Sources for this page

    Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

    Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

    Cite this page
    Plain

    Singulariki. "Roustabouts, Oil and Gas vs Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/roustabouts-oil-and-gas-vs-derrick-operators-oil-and-gas

    APA

    Singulariki. (2026). Roustabouts, Oil and Gas vs Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/roustabouts-oil-and-gas-vs-derrick-operators-oil-and-gas

    BibTeX 
    @misc{singulariki-roustabouts-oil-and-gas-vs-derrick-operators-oil-and-gas,
  title  = {Roustabouts, Oil and Gas vs Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/compare/roustabouts-oil-and-gas-vs-derrick-operators-oil-and-gas}
}

    Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.