Lloydminster 鈥� Jmax Well Service is one of the few service rig companies working in Saskatchewan that hasn鈥檛 had much turnover, being the exception that proves the rule.
Adam Johnstone is president of Classic Oilfield Service Ltd., parent company of Jmax Well Service Ltd. They鈥檝e had service rigs since 1984. Currently Jmax is operating two service rigs.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been lucky that way. We鈥檙e small enough that we only operate the two service rigs. We keep one spare guy and let him work in the shop when he鈥檚 not on the rig. It seems to work well, when someone needs a day off. We never cut wages when it slowed down, even when CAODC did. We left them where they were at. That seemed to help the morale as well,鈥� Johnstone said. 鈥淚鈥檓 sure that we鈥檙e a little above CAODC rates.鈥�
The Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors (CAODC) puts out recommended pay scales each year.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a problem to find experienced guys that want to work on them. We鈥檝e managed to keep our guys. The odd time we are short, we look to another company right across the street here. They鈥檙e trying to run three rigs, and it鈥檚 hit and miss, so generally we can get one of their hands to come over if we need them for a day or two,鈥� he said.
Daniela Tobler, who does sales with Classic, said, 鈥淚 think it helps that we鈥檙e locally-owned and owner-operated, because that way the employees feel closer to the organization, rather than just a number.鈥�
鈥淲e don鈥檛 have much of a turnover rate, at all, even with Classic. It stays pretty steady. We have lots of guys that have been with us 15, 20 years. We have turned over a few people, but not to any extent,鈥� Johnstone said.
Tobler said, 鈥淭he rigs being fortunate enough to have regular, steady work helps. A lot of companies are doing a couple weeks here, and a couple weeks there for a company, and then their employees don鈥檛 know when they鈥檙e going back to work, or if this is going to be their last job.
鈥淓ven minimum wage is higher than what it used to be. You can go get a steady paycheck somewhere else, and not have to be working in -30 C, long hard hours. So it鈥檚 hard to entice these guys to work on the rigs now. It used to be that their compensation for that would being able to make good money. But if you only get to make good money for two weeks out of every couple months, is it really worth it?鈥� she said, referring to the broader service rig industry and the sometimes sporadic nature of the work.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e leaving the house at 5 a.m., get home at 7, 8 at night at times, working in extreme weather. You don鈥檛 know if you鈥檙e going to have a day off or when you鈥檙e going to have a day off. If you鈥檝e got a family, that鈥檚 pretty tough to deal with, too,鈥� Tobler said.
Johnstone said one of their rigs works 11 days on, three days off. But the other rig鈥檚 schedule isn鈥檛 as steady. Rain can be an issue, for instance. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e been averaging 200 hourss a month, which helps, I guess. Even through the worst of the slowdown, we had one rig that was hit and miss for a year. We kept the toolpush, driller and the derrickhand with the option to work in the shop to get some hours if they wanted. They seemed to appreciate that.鈥�
That was around 2016-2017. They did rig maintenance or worked on the Classic side of the business.
鈥淲e found years ago, trying to run four or five rigs, it鈥檚 just the nature of the business, you鈥檙e going to be short guys. We dropped down to one rig in 1998. We sold to a different company and we just bought one rig,鈥� Johnstone said.
A second rig was added in 2008.
鈥淭here鈥檚 lots of rigs sitting in Lloyd. I would assume it鈥檚 tough to find experienced guys.鈥�
One of their rigs has been working on abandonments and production. The second rig is working on production.
One curious thing they鈥檝e done recently was dispatching a service rig tank to work on a well in Quebec in November. They didn鈥檛 have any personnel out east, though.
Asked how iron from Lloydminster ended up in Quebec instead of something a little closer, they replied the outfit working in Quebec was from the Lloydminster area and familiar with the equipment.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a small oilfield, and people from the Lloydminster area end up working all over the world, so we do have that network. That person is familiar with our equipment,鈥� Tobler said.聽
