Welder: Job Duties, Employment Outlook and Training Requirements
Welders work with tools that permanently connect various metal parts. Many trade schools and community colleges offer training and certificate programs for those interested in a welding career. Continue reading to learn more about welders, such as what it takes to enter this field.
What You Need To Know
Welders work in many different industries and use specialized equipment to fasten metal together. The job often requires heavy lifting and spending long hours in uncomfortable positions. Welders can obtain training through high school technical education, colleges, vocational schools, and private training programs.
<table border="1"><tr><td> <b>Responsibilities</b> </td><td> Use specific types of welding techniques to permanently attach two pieces of metal</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Job Outlook (2021-2031)*</b> </td><td> Average growth at 2% (welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers)</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Training</b> </td><td> Trade schools offer training, usually with the opportunity to get certified by the American Welding Society; specific training can help you become a Certified Welding Inspector or earn the Certified Robotic Arc Welding credential</td></tr>
</table><p><i>Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics</i>
</p><h3 id="section---WhatAreMyDutiesAsAWelder">What Are My Duties as a Welder?</h3><p>Welders use tools to heat and melt metal parts in order to fasten them permanently. Most welders specialize in a particular type of welding. These specializations can include basic welding, construction welding, pipe fitting, and metal cutting. Welders use a wide variety of tools in their work; these tools include engine welders, gas-powered welders, plasma cutters, and stick welders. Experienced welders may advance to supervisory positions. Here are some of the responsibilities of welders:
</p><ul><li>Reviewing specifications, blueprints, and sketches
</li><li>Inspecting structures to be welded
</li><li>Determining the size of parts to be welded
</li><li>Igniting torches
</li><li>Maintaining equipment and machines
</li><li>Using power tools
</li><li>Adhering to welding processes
</li></ul><h3 id="section---WhatCanIExpectFromThisCareerInTheFuture">What Can I Expect from This Career in the Future?</h3><p>According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 428,000 people worked as welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers in 2021. Jobs for such workers are expected to increase by about two percent from 2021 to 2031, a rate that aligns with the national average.
</p><p>As of May 2021, the median annual salary earned by welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers was reported as $48,290 by the BLS. Most welders are paid hourly; many also earn extra money by working overtime, weekend, and night shifts. Welders can find work in many different industries, including real estate construction and repair, manufacturing, bridge and road construction and repair, plumbing installation and repair, underwater construction, off-shore oil rig construction, and waste management construction.
</p><h3 id="section---WhatKindOfEducationOrTrainingDoINeed">What Kind of Education or Training Do I Need?</h3><p>Most people interested in a welding career receive training from a trade school. Many of these schools specialize in various aspects of the field and teach classes such as using the electric arc, laser welding, underwater welding, and automated welding. Students also learn ultrasonic welding, plasma welding, gas metal arc welding, pipe welding, pipe fitting, and blueprint reading.
</p><p>Many trade schools offer students an opportunity to receive certification from the American Welding Society; those with experience can earn a certification in welding supervision, which may lead to advanced positions in the workplace. Beginning programs usually last up to one year; those looking for specific training can expect classes to last for a longer period of time. There are also specializations in welding that require certification, such as Certified Welding Inspector and Certified Robotic Arc Welding.</p>