“It’s when companies are less certain about the economy and/or the state of the industry that they rely more heavily on contract workers due to the flexibility they offer,” Chron quoted Keith Wolf, managing director of Murray Resources, as saying in a story about staffing in the oil and gas industry. “When the market does turn to contract workers, the pay for those roles often exceeds what those same workers would be earning in a similar permanent position, while often offering flexibility that full-time roles don’t.”