The drop in oil prices is certain to cause some incremental unemployment in the U.S. energy industry; the question is simply how much and what that means for the American economy as a whole. To begin the search for answer, you have to go to the wellhead and consider how many individuals work in American oilfields, as well as those workers that directly support those activities. The answer here, courtesy of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is 812,000 as of March 2014 (the most current data available). That may not sound like a lot, but at average annual wages of $99,854/worker, this small group receives $81 billion in estimated annual compensation. How bad can things get if oil prices stay low? We actually have a recent case study in the 2008 experience, the last great crash in oil prices. The answer is a 20% headcount reduction from October 2008 […]