Articles
Oil Rig Jobs: What is a Roustabout
A roustabout is the lowest level job on an oil rig. On some rigs there may not be any roustabouts, there may just be “roughnecks”, the next lowest level position.
A roustabout is generally an unskilled position (though the person may indeed have some skills) but can be a good entry level position in the world of offshore oil rig work. A roustabout is a general dogsbody aboard the rig, and will often be working in conjunction with roughnecks assisting them in the day to day running of a rig.
A roustabout who sticks around for a while can learn valuable skills and if they are seen as hard workers can gain recognition and can rapidly rise up the ranks of the oil rig hierarchy into better and better positions. Many of the senior positions aboard an oil rig are filled by people who started as roustabouts and worked their way up over time.
Starting work as a roustabout can be the beginning of a lucrative career in the oil industry and is a great way to gain valuable work experience working on a rig.
