Interviewer(s): D. Austin. Thibodaux, LA

Affiliation: University of Arizona

I met Karen Gray and her mother, Moye Boudreaux, at the Le Fete de Ecolgie festival hosted by the Barataria Terrebonne National Estuary Program and Estuary Foundation in September 2001. The two women had walked under the tent to rest out of the sun and happened to see our booth. They started talking about their experiences in the oil and gas industry. I asked them if they would be willing to participate in the study, and they said they would. I met with Moye several times (see DA014 and DA023) but had been unable to coordinate schedules with Karen. During this visit Karen was able to meet me during her lunch break at work. Her discussion focused on the problems facing the first wave of women who worked offshore.

Karen is third generation oilfield. Her grandfather moved his family to Plaquemines Parish from Texas in the early days of the oil industry in Louisiana. Her mother, Moye Boudreaux, and father both worked for oil companies. Karen grew up in Houma and started college majoring in geology, but she did not finish her degree at that time. She left college to take a job with the phone company. Then in the late 1970's, oil companies were forced to allow women and minorities equal access to offshore jobs. Karen applied and was hired by Exxon in January 1981. She worked offshore for two and a half years until she injured her ankles and was moved onshore into a secretarial position at half the salary. She remained with Exxon for 19 ½ years, during which time she finished her bachelor's degree and then took a package during the company's merger with Mobil. She used the money to return to graduate school and got her job with the Department of Natural Resources after finishing her degree.