Engineering Jobs in the Middle East Experience a Surge
“There’s gold in an oil degree” asserts the title of a recent Fortune article on CNNMoney.com which goes on to say that “newly-minted grads in the field are making a killing.’’ Engineers in general a recent Bayt.com month-long online poll has shown, are in top demand across the GCC. Overwhelmingly, employers in the Bayt.com poll have cited that top engineering talent is highly in demand and is difficult to come by in their countries of residence. The poll shows that from a regional employer perspective, engineering positions are significantly harder to fill than Marketing, PR, Sales, Human Resources, IT and Finance positions.
Seasoned engineers across the GCC smile as they remember a previous Middle East boom in the 70s when the demand for their expertise was at record peaks and the regional universities couldn’t churn out enough engineering talent. The Middle East renaissance we are seeing today is more diversified with regional economies such as Qatar Bahrain Kuwait and the UAE enjoying a more diversified growth trajectory with a slew of emerging industries contributing to the phenomenal growth. However even with the emergence of the new regional financial services, healthcare, tourism and retail hubs the petroleum sector remains the main engine of growth in the region at large and demand for the latest talent and technologies in that sector is at record highs.
Workplace inequality prevails in Jordan, recent Bayt.com study shows
Recent research conducted by the Middle East’s number one job site – Bayt.com has found that just 59% of women in Jordan’s workplace feel that they are treated fairly compared to their male counterparts. Furthermore, more than a quarter of working women in Jordan felt that their gender had affected their career prospects, with a total of 26% of women citing that their gender has been a negative element in their career.
The survey additionally revealed that working women in Jordan felt there was a disparity between the sexes in terms of their treatment in the workplace; with 44% of women feeling they have a lower chance of being promoted than their male colleagues and only one fifth of women – 20% – feeling that their chances of promotion depend entirely on their hard work.
The Bayt.com Women in the Workplace survey is a measure of women’s perceptions, attitudes, experiences and satisfaction of various elements of their role in the workplace, especially in regard to their treatment compared to their male counterparts.
