This is happening because of how much Exxon pays their other engineers, geologists, etc. and how these employees are caught in between 2 boom and bust industrie

This is happening because of how much Exxon pays their other engineers, geologists, etc. and how these employees are caught in between 2 boom and bust industries (energy & tech). They see competitive pay for other job titles and layoffs are common when markets shift but are likely seen as a back-office function to be managed as "overhead" would (low pay, outsourcing, etc)