Falling oil prices prompt sharp rise in layoffs
DALLAS -- In the oil industry, as always, boom has gone to bust.
Oil prices have fallen to the lowest in years -- $46 a barrel on Friday -- and have cost 100,000 American jobs so far this year.
Wendy Post had worked in the oil and gas business in Houston for 20 years before she lost her job in June.
"This is the first time that it's been to where, wow, I'm really starting to become very concerned," Post told CBS News.
Post needs that income to take care of her special needs son, Duane. She has applied for more than one hundred jobs, with no success.
"I'd say it's like playing the slot machine," Post said. "You keep throwing your resume out there like you're throwing dollars or quarters out there and hoping one hits."
Due to low global demand, the Texas oil industry has been shedding jobs. Houston based energy giant Halliburton eliminated 14,000 jobs. Baker Hughes cut 13,000.
"I've done this pretty much my whole life, and my heart and my soul is in this industry," said Darryl Swilley. The former executive lost his corner office and six-figure salary seven months ago.
"For the first time in my life, I filed for unemployment," Swilley said, adding that he'd never done so before. "And it was absolutely gut wrenching for me to have to do that this time."
Cheap gas is good news for drivers but it isn't helping the oil business. Gas prices are at a ten-year low, dipping below $2.80 a gallon.