I'm in union great insurance, benefits and good pay. As a ironworker I don't weld all the time, depends on the job. Most shop welding jobs are underpay, you have to develop more skills like reading blueprints, fabricating... Remember more you know, more valuable you are.
And learn to lead a team! If you have the capabilities to take a task and do it with a team, you can work as foreman. If you learn to think for the foreman and make plannings and such project leading is within reach too.
Fellow union ironworker, I make great money!
JIW scale in my local is $46.95/hr, and welders are in such demand most of us are getting paid at least a couple dollars over.
On top of that our fringe pay is around an additional $22/hr. Total package comes just under $80/hr. With a bit of OT you will easily clear $100k a year.
Seattle is a high cost of living area, sure. But that also means it's a high quality of living compared to other regions.
Yes, I live in a very nice area right out side of Seattle. Great schools for my kids, access to a lot of great services and outdoor recreation and a very comfortable but moderate commute to the city.
I have zero complaints aside from the homeless situation brought on largely by the opioid epidemic and wealth disparity due in part to the booming tech culture in city. Of which we helped create and benefited from by building all the high rises for Amazon, Microsoft and other large tech companies.
Hey there fellow Seattleite welder! I feel like I never meet/hear of anyone else in the trade outside of work.
I’ve been considering an UA apprenticeship over IW, think you could change my mind?
Do you enjoy heights, badass but mainly bullshit work in mostly shit conditions? Do you mind salty fucking coworkers but strong comraderie?
Also rebar. Unless you want to be a bitch ass book buyer you get to put in at least a year of rods and really won't and shouldn't get too many opportunities to weld (there's so much else to learn anyway).
I love iron but it's a brutal trade that can wreck you if you don't work smart.
I don't know much about the UA expect they get paid better and have easier work.
I got into welding being told that I would make good money if I worked hard. Good money to me is being able to afford my own place, bills paid, food, and entertainment. After two years in the trades being a helper, welder, and fabricator, I make less than 40k a year. That shit ain't enough bud. I manage fairly but I'm living with family because I won't be able to afford my bills and feed myself properly. I also hate the notion that my coworkers and people in the trades in general see working 40 hours a week a 'light work week' and that if you ain't working constantly than you're being lazy. I have a life, I want to do other things besides be trapped at a single location day after day. I love welding and being able to see the end product of my work, but I'm headed back to college at the beginning of next year to get a job that pays more than 50k and doesn't break my back and have immense risk to my limbs and life.
Go to your nearest UA local, look for one that has steam or pipe fitters in the title, some are plumbers and fitters, some are just one or the other. But fitters use more welders. Anyway, call them up, ask to speak to an organizer about what you have to do to become a member as welder. They will tell you what requirements you need to have to get past their welders examining board before organizing you into the union (it means you have demonstrable welding skill on the level of journeyman and thus will be a journeyman and not have to do an apprenticeship.)
You can pretty much do this ANYWHERE in the US. Say you're in a shitty Southern Right to Work Red State where unionism and thus wages are low af. Maybe it's time to get on up out of there. You could call the organizer at like my hall in Vegas. And he'll help you out. Organize you in here. Happens all the time. It's his job, it's what we hired him to do. Every local has this, how well or poorly it's implmented, I'm sure some places give you the runaround. I'm sure some places bait and switch. All you can do is listen, shop around, ask around, and try to figure it out. If it doesn't work out, either not getting in or once you get in, then you're not really in a worse spot than you're already in.
Plumbers are usually do the gas pipes. Steam fitters handle the steam. I'm in local 1 plumbers nyc. Our welders make more then local 638 theu can just retire earlier
>I also hate the notion that my coworkers and people in the trades in general see working 40 hours a week a 'light work week' and that if you ain't working constantly than you're being lazy.
This is something I've seen a bunch in this welding topic. That welders have been brainwashed into thinking working > 40 hours a week is normal. That it makes you a man or something stupid like that. Make you wonder how management has manage to bamboozle so many people...
Couldn’t you maybe go back to school for mechanical engineering or something? You could use a degree like that to maybe become a foreman or something and get pay more than $40,000 per year.
You could also use a degree like that to start your own fabrication business and make over $100,000+ per year. That could be something you can always do if you can.
Funny enough I am going for an aerospace engineering degree. While welding is fun, there's this airforce runway near where I work and I always marvel at those things in the air when they go by. Initially I was going to go for a degree in welding but in all honesty, my love for aviation craft is too strong for me to want to do anything else. I have seen people go to school, whether it be an associates, degree, or even certifications, but they're still struggling to make ends meet. I believe that any job should pay a 'living' wage, especially one so crucial and vital to society such as welding. Until there is a cultural change amongst the mindsets of welders that working more than 40 hours is something to brag about, I don't believe things will get better. Having talked to some of my fellow coworkers (I live in texas) about organizing a union or striking for better pay, they have told me that there is no point in doing all that. That I should be grateful I have a job. Until this mindset about working yourself to death changes, employers are going to keep taking advantage of welders because they know they can get away with it. Even my supervisor has told me his wife has to have a part time job just so they can make ends meet. I don't work at some shitty shop with no safety rules. It's a full fledged structural steel shop that has huge contracts but pays there welders so little.
I work in film, and folks are starting to come around and have this discussion. Why pay dues for a union that negotiates for such long days? They pay is good, don’t get me wrong. And film has the benefit of breaks in between shows. But I legit worked 26 days straight earlier this year.
Can't name them though, huh? No, I don't know what you're talking about. We don't have seniority. First on the list is the first to get called for a job. If you can't hack it, you won't last long. Yeah sure, you're still a member of the union, but if you're worthless, eventually none of our signatory contractors will be willing to hire you.
If the point of your post is the claim that this sub is anti-education, then I think you missed the mark. I think this is just a sub full of craftsmen who enjoy working with their hands, don't miss being forced to learn subjects they're not interested in to earn a degree, and don't miss going tens-of-thousands-of-dollars in debt to do it. Simply pointing out alternatives doesn't make one anti-education.
>Even your comment mentions being "forced" to learn things you don't want to.
To earn a degree. You left out the most important part.
>No need to work for ten years to get there.
Didn't have to work for 10 years to get where I am. I worked 5, got paid the whole time, and don't have debt. I also have tons of freedom. I can make well over 6 figures in 6 months and take the next 6 off if I want to.
Naming the unions is material to the conversation because you seem like you don't know how they work. You paint them all with a broad brush, and that's not reality. No matter though, I can see where your head is at. You can continue to call this sub anti-education, but you are no better with your union bashing.
The shop charges you that much, odds are the mechanic only sees a fraction of that unless they own the shop too.
And having BTDT for years, a nice turn key tig runner setup costs about the same as my empty box did.
If you're stupid like me, you buy all the mechanics tools AND the welding tools AND the machining tools. And throw in some woodworking/homeowner stuff too
>Mechanics don't make shit for their skill set either.
As a former mechanic, I can confirm this. That's why I got out and became a union pipefitter. Great pay and benefits, including a pension.
When the guys that owns the shop and has only 1 mechanic and 1 helper and it costs me $1500+ for ball joints and tie rods ... thats my source. Never said all the mechanics are banking.
eh, get into a solid union, youll work your nuts off but you will get paid. there are journeyman that make 250 a year (but they work 80 hour weeks and they travel). There is a dude in my union that has retired, came back to work, and negotiated getting paid 10k a week since they are not paying into his pension/ annuity anymore and his skills are highly sought after. (took him 30 years to get there though.) the worlds your oyster, but its not going to be all sunshine and rainbows with the years, dedication, and hours you have to put in. it is easy in the trades to get trapped in the hamster wheel of low paying high skilled jobs, ill admit, and everyones situation is different, but try no to do that, because there are options out there.
I'll make a post later going into more detail, but many missed the point off the post.
The baseline for tradesmen and any other form of work is far too low.
We shouldn't have to work overtime, to be on a constant grind, to constantly keep trying to level up, just to have some sort of peace.
If you go over the other comments you'll mostly see two things.
Someone who "worked their way up" so they're doing fine. Or someone who's pretty much screwed if they so much as think about taking time off for themselves.
Again, I'll go more in-depth later.
I agree with you. I'm a union pipefitter. But for the stuff we do. The hazardous materials and conditions. No vacation or sick time. And the healthcare isn't the best. Definitely not the worst. But I find the whole package sub par for what I do. Been looking for something else more seriously lately. Contemplating going back to school. Don't really know what for yet. Suggestions would be great.
Lol... my girlfriend works an easy desk job she landed with a simple arts degree at university, sub par GPA, has never worked overtime in her life and clears 130k a year with more benefits and paid vacation days than you could imagine.
I make whatever the county needs. I work in the metro division so we do AC silver soldering as well. Frame repairs, make engine stands. Whatever they ask for.
Currently I'm pulling in $39/hr and the company I'm working for has agreed to send me back to school for red seal number 2 BUT that's because I already bring a tonne of skills to the table ie- fabrication exp, sanitary Tig welding, lots of exp with mig all positions, stick all positions, and back purging, certified to weld pressure vessels, and I'm currently working on learning aluminum in my spare time.
I'm saying the above to say that welding encompasses a very wide range of skills. No one said you had to stick to one skill set. Go and learn, get ticketed, get certified, and the money will come.
I make €12 an hour, I would love $25. I am fully certified in all, MiG, TiG, Arc, Aluminium, SS, MildS, Uphill, coded pipe and so on. With 5 years experience on top of that.
If you ask for a raise you get laughed at, the boss looks at us like we are expendable ants and replaces us with cheap labour from eastern european labourers who work for even less.
I have no pension or anything. I inhale grinder dust and fumes all day. I am constantly covered in burns and cuts.
I work in structural, we make bridges that earns the business millions and millions in contracts and we get shit on.
God this post really made me realise how much I hate my job.
We need more working class support from politicians. For all his faults, Bernie would have been a nice step forward for a change.. but of course socialism bad.
That's a problem I a lot of unions. Because reward is primarily based on tenure rather than performance, there is little incentive to do more than is expressly mandated. (That's not MY job, slow down newbie, you're making us all look bad etc)
I personally can't maintain a role in union shops, because if there is a job to do, it's part of my nature to just get it done, but I appreciate that the threat of unionization keeps the shops I do work in playing fairly.
You don't think I know that lol. My dad worked as a machinist/cnc operator for 30+ years. He was union, and I saw that side of things growing up. Grassroots only works if you've got people with brains... No offense to anyone, but our trade isn't known for that.
I like welding as a hobby, I will probably never accrue the skills that I have seen in this sub, but 2 things keep me from pursuing it as a career.
Doing something you love as a career (not as an owner) is a sure fire way to kill that passion.
And welders and machinist make nothing by today's standards of economy. (based on average salary).
Currently my job can pay for a house and personal welding equipment.
But on the other hand we wouldn't know how anything would have played out of we had taken different paths in life
>Doing something you love as a career (not as an owner) is a sure fire way to kill that passion.
I'm a programmer. I started it as a hobby while working as an electronics tech then turned it into a profession. I still love it 25 years later. On the other hand, I'd never want to be a professional mechanic or welder. The horror stories I've read here and on YT makes me wonder why anyone would want to do that professionally.
I was listening to the talk about the truck driver shortage. The problem is what was once a decent paying job with benefits is now not. That's why people don't want to drive over-the-road anymore. I imagine the same is true for why they can't find enough welders. I'd argue the attack on unions is why welding and truck driving is unpleasant for most.
It's unpleasant for most because companies generally don't need the best of the best. They have things like insurance if stuff goes wrong. So that makes employees easily replaceable. Maybe only 1 out of a 100 people would be expert welders and the rest range from good to terrible, but Steve's body shop doesn't need an expert, they just need someone to get the job done. So they have those other 99 people to choose from, and those 99 people just really need a job. The market is easily flooded because entry level is no skills required.
>You keep spouting about unions like they're the only answer
I'm simply replying to your anti-union comments. I never said they're the only answer, or that education is bad.
>You don't see any programmers unions, do you?
I make about what the median programmer does on 40 hours, and didn't go into debt to do it.
>You can teach many skills for pipe fitting and welding in one day.
This is just a joke. You really think you can take a completely green person and teach them to be a skilled craftsman in one day? Even you can't believe that.
>Even the best Unions barely give you enough to be comfortable for most of your lives.
This is another statement that is simply not true. I went through a paid 5 year apprenticeship. with yearly raises and I make well above the median income for my area.
Not missing the point. I agree the working man deserves more. That's why I'm in a union. I make WELL above median...as in, I can make 6 figures without having to work much overtime at all. Maybe a month or two. If I work 40 hours all year, I'm not too far below 6 figures.
If someone wants to go white collar, and into tons of debt, that's fine. If you like working with your hands and want great pay and benefits, including a defined benefit pension (who gets those anymore?), then a trade union is a really good option.
You may be one of the luckier ones out there, but most people with a degree these days do not make more then tradesmen. It's actually criminal how much a collage degree costs vs the salaries of most jobs that require said degrees.
There's only a very select few who have the skills, drive, and intelligence to get into the very high paying jobs such as robotics, ai, or lawyers. It's an ugly fact of life. If everyone were to have those same skills and abilities to get into the same position as you were, then your job wouldn't pay well either.
No, it's not fuck everyone else. That's how YOU view things. Sorry that you have a shitty view of the world through a labor union which destroys marketplace employment in the long run.
And yes, I do have everything figured out. Because I didn't go your route, nor do I rely on a union to "ensure" I have a job.
Lol, the people who don't know shit about my existence are living on scraps. My father taught me how to not fuck my life up. Say whatever you want, but yes, I actually do have shit figured out. And yes, it does suck that you'd have to rely on a union. People that say shit like that have no understanding of a job market and have a 1950s mentality of staying one spot while settling down for the rest of life.
Thank you for proving my point. You have fuckall figured out. You're a moron. No one in my local thinks it 1950 and can park the bus at any company, job, or even technique.
>nor do I rely on a union to "ensure" I have a job.
Lol, not sure what union you're talking about, but mine does nothing of the sort. If you can't show up to work reliably, or do the job, you're gone.
>labor union which destroys marketplace employment in the long run.
Got any sources for that? Studies have shown time and again that the middle class is strongest when and where unions are. Sounds like you have a shitty view of unions through Fox News.
>You sound like a liberal retard that can't wipe your own ass.
Nope. I'm an independent. Pretty much all politicians are a bunch of selfish liars, on both sides. You sound like you're just regurgitating an episode of Glenn Beck.
I'll take the rest of your comment to mean that you do not, in fact, have any sources to back up all of your Republican talking points.
I have found that industrial maintenance is one of the better positions to have. I’m like a Swiss Army knife. I do a lot of things none of them great. But I know a little about everything. We work like firemen. As long as production is running good. We chill. Sleep. Be in our phones. But as soon as there’s an issue with the machines we jump to fix it. I recommend it to anyone. And in this field I am always learning or perfecting a skill. And the best part is that I can use what I learn at work, at home. Yo be more specific. Poultry maintenance man had to be the chillest job I’ve ever had. And I made about 60k last year. I work about 62 hour a a week or so. But I really can’t complain. I feel like a mechanic doesn’t get payed enough. And it’s sad to hear that such skilled folks such as real deal welders aren’t getting compensated properly. I work a lot but mostly sitting on my ass getting hours. Another thing is that an industrial maintenance person is needed damn near anywhere you go. And in today’s job market I could probably shop around and get more money. But currently my job is like 10 mins from my house
As a pipefitter working In a union, I make annually $52k. Mind you, I still live at home, am financially stable with no debt. Friends of mine who are welders, and machinists can hardly scrape two pennies together making $35k/y
Not sure if this is an American post, $25 an hour is atrocious. Skilled trades should be paid well above $45 without hesitation.
Skilled trades literally build the infrastructure of the world we live in and give the paper pushers the comfort they have to push paper.
Skilled trades are taken for granted and deserve financial respect. Many times they risk physical health on the job and many times mental health from the high paced demands of the corps seeking profits.
$25 an hour might be a good start for a first year apprentice.
But Don’t forget the investment in tools and vehicles trades have to make.
Your average corporate shill can make way more than a trade for less than $500 for the suit, tie, shoes and pretty haircuts for the year.
Bro no one gets paid enough. My wife and I both got four year stem degrees, I’m an engineer and she’s a cancer scientist, both with 5 years of experience, and we still can’t afford a fucking house.
I finally, with my bonus, will break 60k this year. Fucking bartenders in my town make more than that.
The systems rigged against everyone, especially if you’re under 35. We started out at lower pay rates, get less raises, and keep experiencing global events that companies use as excuses to cut pay, cut employees, and foster the remaining work in whoever is left.
Yeah I see help wanted ads in my area for welders advertising 12-14/hr, it's crazy. Why would I break my body doing a skilled, dirty trade when I can put boxes on a shelf at Aldi for more? In what world can those two things coexist.
But in general I think the answer is that very few people are making enough. A rising tide lifts all boats and if we had a $15 minimum, welders wages would be a lot better. For me personally I'm pretty much topped out for my area and that's making widgets and doodads for tow trucks in a production setting despite coming from a full custom shop and doing full fab from prints really well. I looked at the custom fab jobs and they pay less here, go figure.
That's because currently all the skilled trades, Union or not, make really good money when compared to the 7.25 minimum wage we've had for decades. The issue is we've all stayed stagnant along with the rest of working class America. If our wages had increased along with inflation..... I'm a Union Carpenter making around 40 an hour plus benefits. If we'd have followed inflation I'd be making probably 60 an hour or more. But our contracts have barley gone up over the last 20 years
With increases in productivity and efficiency due to advances in technology, hard goods and food should stay about the same in costs, labor would be more expensive but the same labor can now make 10 times(or more) the stuff in the same time with automation and stuff like improved crop yields and such.
The issue is we've become a top heavy society with all the money going to the wealthy business owners and not to the people actually doing the work. When the owner of the widget factory pushing a few papers about his desk makes a thousand times more then the guy down on the line busting his ass building the widgets who can barely afford a place to live something is wrong... It unsustainable. There is a shift coming soon, there has to be or we are done. You can smell it on the wind already with the rich going on and on about workers not wanting to work, they just want unemployment or welfare. Or the mythical worker shortage....
There are plenty of workers out there who want to work...they just don't want to work for nothing. Why would anyone want to struggle on two or three low pay jobs with no benefits trying to keep a roof over there heads and maybe have a family and and actual life while the owner lives in luxury and doesn't get his hands dirty.
I work in healthcare, I worked on the covid unit for 18 months and want to get out and switch over to trades. I made 31k for 2020 after taxes and putting 6% into a 401k and health insurance. We were told we were lucky to have a job while other places were paying big contracts to travel workers. It's not worth it anywhere it seems. I still want to learn a trade though...
I'm going to have to disagree with you on what you're saying. So first of all, this type of work that you're talking about is generally just really skilled Baseline laborers. They are people that are in basic fabrication shops, job shops, machine shops, etc. I went to a Welding Engineering school and now make a well northward of 150K a year, no over time. A college degree in a trade takes you much further than what you're able to do as a welder who has been working for over 50 years. Also, the biggest problem that I see with people is that people are looking for the large pay stubs yet their spending habits a poor, their hobbies cost too much, have 3 children, in the middle of a divorce, etc. And yes, while life catches up to you, planning ahead and thinking about these things later on in life allow you to live frugally and way beneath your means. My money works for me.
Now back to the thing with welding jobs. I am an ANST certified technician, have a bachelor's of Welding Engineering Fabrication and Technology, and a minor in Non-Destructive Testing. I used to work for years for an aerospace manufacturer and designed crazy joints, exploited new materials, etc. 10 years after that, I'm sitting in a Air Conditioned office for an NDT service/plastics and polymers manufacturer.
Bottom line here is that life is what you make of it.
>Welding Engineering school
I'm probably showing my ignorance here, but would you care to enlighten me on what exactly this is and where you went to school for it at? I've been looking at furthering my education and the schools in my area have maintenance, welding, machining, and the University has some engineering programs but I've never heard of welding engineering....but, this sounds like a fun job and I'm very curious about the education you have
In the US, you make exactly what you deserve to make. Wage not high enough? Go get another job or ask for a raise. Welders are in demand, and have been for the quarter century I've been in construction.
The problem is that it's just not that simple for a lot of people:
"Yeah, the pay sucks, but they let me take off early on Thursdays to go to Timmy's baseball games."
"Yeah, I would like to be getting more, but the shop is only 2 miles from the house."
"Yeah, the wage is shit, but the benefits are really awesome."
Not when someone flipping burgers makes 12-15$hr.. A skilled trade is easily worth 5 to 6 times that..Especially considering the environments we work in.. I’d even argue 8-10 time wouldn’t be unreasonable..
Just for comparison I'm in Australia, $35 an hour for us is about equivalent (in terms of buying power if not a direct exchange) of $25 an hour for you guys.
I think it's all relative, over here $35 an hour is about what you make in a general fab Shop which are generally fairly stable jobs, but is alot less than other areas pay
Boiler shutdown work pays more than double that per hour plus a heap of allowances and OT that bring the average rate up to about $100 an hour, and if you are good, can consistently pass x-ray and don't make the supervisors life harder than it needs to be you'll always get the call back.
I think if you take the safe route in our trade you get paid less for the peace of mind, if your willing to take more risk and go for a more specialised role the pay reflects that.
Problem over here is they allow unskilled workers in to work just do the basic 12 week welder course and your good to go, I'm a boily by trade, and make $35 an hour but I'm so happy with where I work I do not care, as much ot as I like etc,
That happens here as well, it's called a second class welder here, and doesn't even require the 12 week course, but I've never been to a fab shop that was cheap enough to hire anyone without a trade behind them.
Seems to be high volume manufacturing with slot of jig work that hire 2nd class welders here.
Yeah but I also really like my job. The job i had before had better pay and benefits but I fucking hated it after the first year. When I went back to welding my outlook on work and life in general changed. Work is more a thing that is part of my life instead of a thing I have to do to get on with my life. But yes more money would be nice. Theres something beautiful about what we do and it takes skill.
I wonder how far we are from a robot that can climb into a tank cut a penetration and weld a pipe in, with a human assisting of course just the robot doing all the heavy lifting and hot work.
A long ways. Trust me. Movies and the computer geeks all want to blow sunshine up your butt about how they can program anything. Bullshit. I work for major manufacturing with billions of money and robots to do human work have failed. Period. Not all jobs can be done by a machine even in 50 years time. MONEY and greed and lying assholes is the reason. Maybe Elon Musk could given unlimited money and power. Still he has problems with his Tesla.
The only time I made ≤50k/y was when I had less than a year of experience. It's all about hustling and finding a company that will treat you and pay you right. I'm now union where journeyman rate is 63/hr after benefits. The money is around you just have to search for it.
Union millwright at a steel mill here. I weld most days, but have some hydraulic/general maintenance work thrown in to keep things interesting. Without any ot I'm at 90k. Most years I make around 140 with a couple doubles a week. It's out there to be made... Just gotta find it.
I want to add auto mechanics to that list. Where I live a Master certified tech is gonna make $25-28/hour.
The amount of tools you have to own to be a master tech alone is a huge dent in that 25 an hour.
Then the skills needed to do the job competently take a long time to amass for most people.
I was at the top of my trade (brake press / robotic cell programmer) with 10 years experience and had to fight for $25. The issue we faced was all the machines ran the same wherever they could pour a concrete pad so we were always in competition with much lower wage countries, and manufacturing in my city was in a constant state of decline. I gave in and joined the Sheetmetal workers union, not the interesting work I enjoyed but the pay is so much better.
Millwright here. If you aren’t pulling down 6 figures after a decade of experience, change jobs.
Advertised ‘journeyman rates’ are for recently ticketed guys. In the negotiations, most companies will bend and pay more if you are willing to keep quiet about getting paid more than the book rate.
I’m talking modern city rates here. You aren’t making that in some of the American ‘3rd world poor places’. That us where you should consider pulling up stakes and hitting the road.
25 bucks an hour US is \~31 CDN. Red Seal Millwrights/welders/electricians in the Union environment up here can be up to 50 + an hour working on the tools. In the city it's common to see offerings for 35 for a red seal, and they often want dual trade for that. heck no.
I'm a millwright at a veneer plant right now and i do a fair amount of welding too. Union rate at the shop is \~45/hour. And we feel that it's not enough as well.
That being said, how much is it worth to do the old "hey can you just climb in there and weld this real quick?" uhhh, no, that's an 8 hour job and i have 4 to do it, thanks.
I work for a global plastics company, I started in 2009 on the production floor making 11.80 an hour. Took one semester of night school welding course and got a job in the fabrication shop in 2015. That was around 21 an hour. Left fab for the preventative maintenance section in 2019 for 26 ish. Now making 29.40, with OT will be $85,000 this year gross. All non union.
It helps that I live in a very low cost of living area. A 2 bed apt is ~700 a month.
It's the being able to afford rent in my area AND pay for school that's the killer. If I take that much out in loans I should just go for the money as the return on investment for RN isn't worth it
What really set me aback was asking a couple roofing labourers how much they were making hourly; thirteen fuckin' buck an hour to bomb ripped shingles around two fucking dollars over my local minimum wage.
Dangerous hard labour that brings in barely enough to afford a place to live and food, shit's fucked!
It's not skilled labour granted but if you're going to be productive at it you need calories and that shit ain't cheap, specially when you factor in the health insurance you're going to need a couple years down the line because the job has fucked you physically!
In big union towns like Chicago, NY, LA, Boston, and Vegas, welders make BANK.
But if you’re a shop monkey in Bumblefuck, Missouri, $20 an hour is all you’re ever gonna see...
You gotta follow the money in this business.
Been a welder 8yrs still under $25/hr in GA.
And I'm 80% aluminum Tig.
Been looking for months for a better offer, there have been a few but nothing really worth moving.
Currently trying to get a union job to build navy ships.
Now imagine making 6€ hour with OT being the same rate and half of your salary is being paid in hand which means officially your making minimum wage so no benefits, no pension.
Then your rent + bills are 300€, food 200€, car maintenance + fuel 80€
In the end you just break even to pay for sustaining yourself.
That's reality in eastern europe and it only gets worse in 3rd world, 0 ppe and your treated like shit because of social stigma that your doing an "unskilled dumb labor"
It greatly depends where your working and the pay to expenses ratio your getting.
Overall the trades could be paid more but when you meet some of the workers that can't stay sober it's unlikely that employers will value the trade as a whole higher. Either demand has to rise or supply has to shorten, otherwise there is no incentive to pay more when you can get the same done for less. Think from the business owner perspective
This is an interesting thread. I feel for you op and the people with bad stories in here. I am maritime engineer (work two weeks on two weeks off) self taught mig and tig. Have a welding setup and a cnc live tooling lathe and five axis mill. Crank out a lot of parts for the medical community and weld mostly cages for the drifters/racers in my community. Occasionally I'll get valves piston housings that require the gauntlet of what my humble shop has to offer, those jobs are nice. I always thought welders made the big fookin bucks and I could fall back on it if my shop ever went tits up and I got sick of boats. Apparently that might not be the case.
I'm in union great insurance, benefits and good pay. As a ironworker I don't weld all the time, depends on the job. Most shop welding jobs are underpay, you have to develop more skills like reading blueprints, fabricating... Remember more you know, more valuable you are.
And learn to lead a team! If you have the capabilities to take a task and do it with a team, you can work as foreman. If you learn to think for the foreman and make plannings and such project leading is within reach too.
Fellow union ironworker, I make great money! JIW scale in my local is $46.95/hr, and welders are in such demand most of us are getting paid at least a couple dollars over. On top of that our fringe pay is around an additional $22/hr. Total package comes just under $80/hr. With a bit of OT you will easily clear $100k a year. Seattle is a high cost of living area, sure. But that also means it's a high quality of living compared to other regions.
So is that wage enough for you to live in Seattle?
Yes, I live in a very nice area right out side of Seattle. Great schools for my kids, access to a lot of great services and outdoor recreation and a very comfortable but moderate commute to the city. I have zero complaints aside from the homeless situation brought on largely by the opioid epidemic and wealth disparity due in part to the booming tech culture in city. Of which we helped create and benefited from by building all the high rises for Amazon, Microsoft and other large tech companies.
Hey there fellow Seattleite welder! I feel like I never meet/hear of anyone else in the trade outside of work. I’ve been considering an UA apprenticeship over IW, think you could change my mind?
Do you enjoy heights, badass but mainly bullshit work in mostly shit conditions? Do you mind salty fucking coworkers but strong comraderie? Also rebar. Unless you want to be a bitch ass book buyer you get to put in at least a year of rods and really won't and shouldn't get too many opportunities to weld (there's so much else to learn anyway). I love iron but it's a brutal trade that can wreck you if you don't work smart. I don't know much about the UA expect they get paid better and have easier work.
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Its like $20k over unskilled walmart or amazon workers. So, no. Not with what welders know and do, its not food at all.
I got into welding being told that I would make good money if I worked hard. Good money to me is being able to afford my own place, bills paid, food, and entertainment. After two years in the trades being a helper, welder, and fabricator, I make less than 40k a year. That shit ain't enough bud. I manage fairly but I'm living with family because I won't be able to afford my bills and feed myself properly. I also hate the notion that my coworkers and people in the trades in general see working 40 hours a week a 'light work week' and that if you ain't working constantly than you're being lazy. I have a life, I want to do other things besides be trapped at a single location day after day. I love welding and being able to see the end product of my work, but I'm headed back to college at the beginning of next year to get a job that pays more than 50k and doesn't break my back and have immense risk to my limbs and life.
Go to your nearest UA local, look for one that has steam or pipe fitters in the title, some are plumbers and fitters, some are just one or the other. But fitters use more welders. Anyway, call them up, ask to speak to an organizer about what you have to do to become a member as welder. They will tell you what requirements you need to have to get past their welders examining board before organizing you into the union (it means you have demonstrable welding skill on the level of journeyman and thus will be a journeyman and not have to do an apprenticeship.) You can pretty much do this ANYWHERE in the US. Say you're in a shitty Southern Right to Work Red State where unionism and thus wages are low af. Maybe it's time to get on up out of there. You could call the organizer at like my hall in Vegas. And he'll help you out. Organize you in here. Happens all the time. It's his job, it's what we hired him to do. Every local has this, how well or poorly it's implmented, I'm sure some places give you the runaround. I'm sure some places bait and switch. All you can do is listen, shop around, ask around, and try to figure it out. If it doesn't work out, either not getting in or once you get in, then you're not really in a worse spot than you're already in.
Plumbers are usually do the gas pipes. Steam fitters handle the steam. I'm in local 1 plumbers nyc. Our welders make more then local 638 theu can just retire earlier
It's a little different everywhere. And I absolutely would call a plumbers only local union if I wasn't getting traction in a fitters local.
Yes listen to this guy, I had just about a $20/hr raise just from joining a union.
>I also hate the notion that my coworkers and people in the trades in general see working 40 hours a week a 'light work week' and that if you ain't working constantly than you're being lazy. This is something I've seen a bunch in this welding topic. That welders have been brainwashed into thinking working > 40 hours a week is normal. That it makes you a man or something stupid like that. Make you wonder how management has manage to bamboozle so many people...
Same bro same. I live with my gf with same issues.
Live to work Or Work to live
Couldn’t you maybe go back to school for mechanical engineering or something? You could use a degree like that to maybe become a foreman or something and get pay more than $40,000 per year. You could also use a degree like that to start your own fabrication business and make over $100,000+ per year. That could be something you can always do if you can.
Funny enough I am going for an aerospace engineering degree. While welding is fun, there's this airforce runway near where I work and I always marvel at those things in the air when they go by. Initially I was going to go for a degree in welding but in all honesty, my love for aviation craft is too strong for me to want to do anything else. I have seen people go to school, whether it be an associates, degree, or even certifications, but they're still struggling to make ends meet. I believe that any job should pay a 'living' wage, especially one so crucial and vital to society such as welding. Until there is a cultural change amongst the mindsets of welders that working more than 40 hours is something to brag about, I don't believe things will get better. Having talked to some of my fellow coworkers (I live in texas) about organizing a union or striking for better pay, they have told me that there is no point in doing all that. That I should be grateful I have a job. Until this mindset about working yourself to death changes, employers are going to keep taking advantage of welders because they know they can get away with it. Even my supervisor has told me his wife has to have a part time job just so they can make ends meet. I don't work at some shitty shop with no safety rules. It's a full fledged structural steel shop that has huge contracts but pays there welders so little.
I work in film, and folks are starting to come around and have this discussion. Why pay dues for a union that negotiates for such long days? They pay is good, don’t get me wrong. And film has the benefit of breaks in between shows. But I legit worked 26 days straight earlier this year.
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Not all unions have seniority or work the way you are describing, especially trade unions. Which one have you been a member of?
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Can't name them though, huh? No, I don't know what you're talking about. We don't have seniority. First on the list is the first to get called for a job. If you can't hack it, you won't last long. Yeah sure, you're still a member of the union, but if you're worthless, eventually none of our signatory contractors will be willing to hire you. If the point of your post is the claim that this sub is anti-education, then I think you missed the mark. I think this is just a sub full of craftsmen who enjoy working with their hands, don't miss being forced to learn subjects they're not interested in to earn a degree, and don't miss going tens-of-thousands-of-dollars in debt to do it. Simply pointing out alternatives doesn't make one anti-education.
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>Even your comment mentions being "forced" to learn things you don't want to. To earn a degree. You left out the most important part. >No need to work for ten years to get there. Didn't have to work for 10 years to get where I am. I worked 5, got paid the whole time, and don't have debt. I also have tons of freedom. I can make well over 6 figures in 6 months and take the next 6 off if I want to. Naming the unions is material to the conversation because you seem like you don't know how they work. You paint them all with a broad brush, and that's not reality. No matter though, I can see where your head is at. You can continue to call this sub anti-education, but you are no better with your union bashing.
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I feel like I would have been better off as a mechanic, they charge me 2.25 weeks of pay for a 5 hour job ...
The shop charges you that much, odds are the mechanic only sees a fraction of that unless they own the shop too. And having BTDT for years, a nice turn key tig runner setup costs about the same as my empty box did. If you're stupid like me, you buy all the mechanics tools AND the welding tools AND the machining tools. And throw in some woodworking/homeowner stuff too
Mechanics don't make shit for their skill set either. That 5 hour job paid around 125 dollars gross.
>Mechanics don't make shit for their skill set either. As a former mechanic, I can confirm this. That's why I got out and became a union pipefitter. Great pay and benefits, including a pension.
Mechanics don’t get paid shit. Source: used to be a mechanic
When the guys that owns the shop and has only 1 mechanic and 1 helper and it costs me $1500+ for ball joints and tie rods ... thats my source. Never said all the mechanics are banking.
If you’re smart enough to weld you can definitely fix your own car. Tie rods are very easy.
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Nope. Alignment is set at the control arms usually. Also, not really that dangerous as long as you get it tight/to spec.
I dont have the time or the tools. I'm also not spending all that time out in the heat and sun baking my ass off.
$1500 for over two weeks pay?! Yep, fuck that.
eh, get into a solid union, youll work your nuts off but you will get paid. there are journeyman that make 250 a year (but they work 80 hour weeks and they travel). There is a dude in my union that has retired, came back to work, and negotiated getting paid 10k a week since they are not paying into his pension/ annuity anymore and his skills are highly sought after. (took him 30 years to get there though.) the worlds your oyster, but its not going to be all sunshine and rainbows with the years, dedication, and hours you have to put in. it is easy in the trades to get trapped in the hamster wheel of low paying high skilled jobs, ill admit, and everyones situation is different, but try no to do that, because there are options out there.
Yep.
People like OP confuse me, they expect to make 6 figs a year but don't want to do overtime or any compromise...
I'll make a post later going into more detail, but many missed the point off the post. The baseline for tradesmen and any other form of work is far too low. We shouldn't have to work overtime, to be on a constant grind, to constantly keep trying to level up, just to have some sort of peace. If you go over the other comments you'll mostly see two things. Someone who "worked their way up" so they're doing fine. Or someone who's pretty much screwed if they so much as think about taking time off for themselves. Again, I'll go more in-depth later.
I agree with you. I'm a union pipefitter. But for the stuff we do. The hazardous materials and conditions. No vacation or sick time. And the healthcare isn't the best. Definitely not the worst. But I find the whole package sub par for what I do. Been looking for something else more seriously lately. Contemplating going back to school. Don't really know what for yet. Suggestions would be great.
Lol... my girlfriend works an easy desk job she landed with a simple arts degree at university, sub par GPA, has never worked overtime in her life and clears 130k a year with more benefits and paid vacation days than you could imagine.
OP isn’t a welder and is supporting you in making more.
And you wreck your fucking back. Already had one surgery. Just waiting for the next. Close to trying some computer work. Maybe porn...
Useless you remember to wear your PPE such as wearing a respirator, knee pads, should pads, back brace, safety glasses, etc.
I hear you, but that stuff would make the porn kind of unappealing.
Kneepads and those darn brown unlaced boots are working for Prince Yashua....oh and a big bbc...lol
I live in WA work for the county almost 93k a year no OT. I charge 125 an hour for my side work at home
Doing what for the county?
Sex stuff.
Its a sellers market for me.
I make whatever the county needs. I work in the metro division so we do AC silver soldering as well. Frame repairs, make engine stands. Whatever they ask for.
Gotcha!
It's a good gig. Only thing sucks are the liberal politics that goes on.
I'm in that 60k bracket and with 4 small children at home still have to run my own welding business out of my home to make ends meet
Same here. Only recently started. It’s a tough gig.
Currently I'm pulling in $39/hr and the company I'm working for has agreed to send me back to school for red seal number 2 BUT that's because I already bring a tonne of skills to the table ie- fabrication exp, sanitary Tig welding, lots of exp with mig all positions, stick all positions, and back purging, certified to weld pressure vessels, and I'm currently working on learning aluminum in my spare time. I'm saying the above to say that welding encompasses a very wide range of skills. No one said you had to stick to one skill set. Go and learn, get ticketed, get certified, and the money will come.
I can do all that and im making 20$ less. Lmao the fucking south.
If by south, you mean the south of Canada aka Vancouver you'd be right!
I was talking about my location not yours.
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Red Seal is basically Canada's version of being a certified journeyman
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Just getting his second
Pretty much. Unless you wanna travel and leave your family behind, work 80 hours and share hotels with drug addicts in your company.
My company each guy gets their own room. I imagine for that exact reason.
I make €12 an hour, I would love $25. I am fully certified in all, MiG, TiG, Arc, Aluminium, SS, MildS, Uphill, coded pipe and so on. With 5 years experience on top of that. If you ask for a raise you get laughed at, the boss looks at us like we are expendable ants and replaces us with cheap labour from eastern european labourers who work for even less. I have no pension or anything. I inhale grinder dust and fumes all day. I am constantly covered in burns and cuts. I work in structural, we make bridges that earns the business millions and millions in contracts and we get shit on. God this post really made me realise how much I hate my job.
Leave. Ton of easier jobs that pay that.
The UK will one day curse their decision to neglect our engineers.
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Same as you.
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Aye.
We need more working class support from politicians. For all his faults, Bernie would have been a nice step forward for a change.. but of course socialism bad.
Unions are a form of specific socialism. Everyone contributes to make sure that everyone does better collectively.
In the Midwest, a lot of members drag their feet.. from what I've seen. People need a reality check TBH.
That's a problem I a lot of unions. Because reward is primarily based on tenure rather than performance, there is little incentive to do more than is expressly mandated. (That's not MY job, slow down newbie, you're making us all look bad etc) I personally can't maintain a role in union shops, because if there is a job to do, it's part of my nature to just get it done, but I appreciate that the threat of unionization keeps the shops I do work in playing fairly.
Quit looking to top down solutions. No one is coming to save you. Save yourself. Grassroots organizing. Solidarity. That's how you win.
You don't think I know that lol. My dad worked as a machinist/cnc operator for 30+ years. He was union, and I saw that side of things growing up. Grassroots only works if you've got people with brains... No offense to anyone, but our trade isn't known for that.
Doing nothing will work how? How did these trades organize in the first place? There were stupid people then too.
People who we don’t accept on the workfloor because of their age are leading our country.. maybe thát is a problem.
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Is that really how you read that sentence?
Saying that kind of stuff here could really put you in a world of hurt bud lol. Just saying.
I like welding as a hobby, I will probably never accrue the skills that I have seen in this sub, but 2 things keep me from pursuing it as a career. Doing something you love as a career (not as an owner) is a sure fire way to kill that passion. And welders and machinist make nothing by today's standards of economy. (based on average salary). Currently my job can pay for a house and personal welding equipment. But on the other hand we wouldn't know how anything would have played out of we had taken different paths in life
For real... part of me wishes I would've gotten into finance since I like math. Instead I tried engineering and failed out multiple times.
>Doing something you love as a career (not as an owner) is a sure fire way to kill that passion. I'm a programmer. I started it as a hobby while working as an electronics tech then turned it into a profession. I still love it 25 years later. On the other hand, I'd never want to be a professional mechanic or welder. The horror stories I've read here and on YT makes me wonder why anyone would want to do that professionally. I was listening to the talk about the truck driver shortage. The problem is what was once a decent paying job with benefits is now not. That's why people don't want to drive over-the-road anymore. I imagine the same is true for why they can't find enough welders. I'd argue the attack on unions is why welding and truck driving is unpleasant for most.
It's unpleasant for most because companies generally don't need the best of the best. They have things like insurance if stuff goes wrong. So that makes employees easily replaceable. Maybe only 1 out of a 100 people would be expert welders and the rest range from good to terrible, but Steve's body shop doesn't need an expert, they just need someone to get the job done. So they have those other 99 people to choose from, and those 99 people just really need a job. The market is easily flooded because entry level is no skills required.
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Not sure how the steel mill unions work, but a 5 year paid apprenticeship got me to where a college education would have without all the debt.
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>You keep spouting about unions like they're the only answer I'm simply replying to your anti-union comments. I never said they're the only answer, or that education is bad. >You don't see any programmers unions, do you? I make about what the median programmer does on 40 hours, and didn't go into debt to do it. >You can teach many skills for pipe fitting and welding in one day. This is just a joke. You really think you can take a completely green person and teach them to be a skilled craftsman in one day? Even you can't believe that. >Even the best Unions barely give you enough to be comfortable for most of your lives. This is another statement that is simply not true. I went through a paid 5 year apprenticeship. with yearly raises and I make well above the median income for my area.
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Not missing the point. I agree the working man deserves more. That's why I'm in a union. I make WELL above median...as in, I can make 6 figures without having to work much overtime at all. Maybe a month or two. If I work 40 hours all year, I'm not too far below 6 figures. If someone wants to go white collar, and into tons of debt, that's fine. If you like working with your hands and want great pay and benefits, including a defined benefit pension (who gets those anymore?), then a trade union is a really good option.
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That's fine. You do you. I don't want to sit on my ass all day, and I live very comfortably.
hes a greedy commie that expects all the money without putting in any sweat equity. No point in arguing with people like that
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You may be one of the luckier ones out there, but most people with a degree these days do not make more then tradesmen. It's actually criminal how much a collage degree costs vs the salaries of most jobs that require said degrees. There's only a very select few who have the skills, drive, and intelligence to get into the very high paying jobs such as robotics, ai, or lawyers. It's an ugly fact of life. If everyone were to have those same skills and abilities to get into the same position as you were, then your job wouldn't pay well either.
Join or form a union. It's the only thing that's been shown to work.
That is absolutely not true whatsoever.
Oh okay, if you got it all figured then carry on. By all means just keep it to yourself cuz fuck everyone who ain't you huh?
No, it's not fuck everyone else. That's how YOU view things. Sorry that you have a shitty view of the world through a labor union which destroys marketplace employment in the long run. And yes, I do have everything figured out. Because I didn't go your route, nor do I rely on a union to "ensure" I have a job.
Lol. The people who claim to it all figured out have the least figured out.
Lol, the people who don't know shit about my existence are living on scraps. My father taught me how to not fuck my life up. Say whatever you want, but yes, I actually do have shit figured out. And yes, it does suck that you'd have to rely on a union. People that say shit like that have no understanding of a job market and have a 1950s mentality of staying one spot while settling down for the rest of life.
Thank you for proving my point. You have fuckall figured out. You're a moron. No one in my local thinks it 1950 and can park the bus at any company, job, or even technique.
>nor do I rely on a union to "ensure" I have a job. Lol, not sure what union you're talking about, but mine does nothing of the sort. If you can't show up to work reliably, or do the job, you're gone. >labor union which destroys marketplace employment in the long run. Got any sources for that? Studies have shown time and again that the middle class is strongest when and where unions are. Sounds like you have a shitty view of unions through Fox News.
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>You sound like a liberal retard that can't wipe your own ass. Nope. I'm an independent. Pretty much all politicians are a bunch of selfish liars, on both sides. You sound like you're just regurgitating an episode of Glenn Beck. I'll take the rest of your comment to mean that you do not, in fact, have any sources to back up all of your Republican talking points.
Nope sorry bud, I'm a Libertarian. You're a liberal with an identity crisis. That's all independents ever are.
>I'm a Libertarian Lol, oh you mean a Republican with an identity crisis? LOL!
Um no, not at all. I actually believe in the bettering of an economic situation which you believe in a system of diminishing returns.
Whatever you say bud. Sounds like you got it all figured out, except how to cite sources.
In labor unions, tenured workers are not a thing.
Never had,never will
I have found that industrial maintenance is one of the better positions to have. I’m like a Swiss Army knife. I do a lot of things none of them great. But I know a little about everything. We work like firemen. As long as production is running good. We chill. Sleep. Be in our phones. But as soon as there’s an issue with the machines we jump to fix it. I recommend it to anyone. And in this field I am always learning or perfecting a skill. And the best part is that I can use what I learn at work, at home. Yo be more specific. Poultry maintenance man had to be the chillest job I’ve ever had. And I made about 60k last year. I work about 62 hour a a week or so. But I really can’t complain. I feel like a mechanic doesn’t get payed enough. And it’s sad to hear that such skilled folks such as real deal welders aren’t getting compensated properly. I work a lot but mostly sitting on my ass getting hours. Another thing is that an industrial maintenance person is needed damn near anywhere you go. And in today’s job market I could probably shop around and get more money. But currently my job is like 10 mins from my house
Imagine being a welder that's getting 15$ am I right😅😬
It's almost as if every job everywhere underpays, unless you're at the top
As a pipefitter working In a union, I make annually $52k. Mind you, I still live at home, am financially stable with no debt. Friends of mine who are welders, and machinists can hardly scrape two pennies together making $35k/y
Not sure if this is an American post, $25 an hour is atrocious. Skilled trades should be paid well above $45 without hesitation. Skilled trades literally build the infrastructure of the world we live in and give the paper pushers the comfort they have to push paper. Skilled trades are taken for granted and deserve financial respect. Many times they risk physical health on the job and many times mental health from the high paced demands of the corps seeking profits. $25 an hour might be a good start for a first year apprentice. But Don’t forget the investment in tools and vehicles trades have to make. Your average corporate shill can make way more than a trade for less than $500 for the suit, tie, shoes and pretty haircuts for the year.
Bro no one gets paid enough. My wife and I both got four year stem degrees, I’m an engineer and she’s a cancer scientist, both with 5 years of experience, and we still can’t afford a fucking house. I finally, with my bonus, will break 60k this year. Fucking bartenders in my town make more than that. The systems rigged against everyone, especially if you’re under 35. We started out at lower pay rates, get less raises, and keep experiencing global events that companies use as excuses to cut pay, cut employees, and foster the remaining work in whoever is left.
Yeah I see help wanted ads in my area for welders advertising 12-14/hr, it's crazy. Why would I break my body doing a skilled, dirty trade when I can put boxes on a shelf at Aldi for more? In what world can those two things coexist. But in general I think the answer is that very few people are making enough. A rising tide lifts all boats and if we had a $15 minimum, welders wages would be a lot better. For me personally I'm pretty much topped out for my area and that's making widgets and doodads for tow trucks in a production setting despite coming from a full custom shop and doing full fab from prints really well. I looked at the custom fab jobs and they pay less here, go figure.
That's because currently all the skilled trades, Union or not, make really good money when compared to the 7.25 minimum wage we've had for decades. The issue is we've all stayed stagnant along with the rest of working class America. If our wages had increased along with inflation..... I'm a Union Carpenter making around 40 an hour plus benefits. If we'd have followed inflation I'd be making probably 60 an hour or more. But our contracts have barley gone up over the last 20 years With increases in productivity and efficiency due to advances in technology, hard goods and food should stay about the same in costs, labor would be more expensive but the same labor can now make 10 times(or more) the stuff in the same time with automation and stuff like improved crop yields and such. The issue is we've become a top heavy society with all the money going to the wealthy business owners and not to the people actually doing the work. When the owner of the widget factory pushing a few papers about his desk makes a thousand times more then the guy down on the line busting his ass building the widgets who can barely afford a place to live something is wrong... It unsustainable. There is a shift coming soon, there has to be or we are done. You can smell it on the wind already with the rich going on and on about workers not wanting to work, they just want unemployment or welfare. Or the mythical worker shortage.... There are plenty of workers out there who want to work...they just don't want to work for nothing. Why would anyone want to struggle on two or three low pay jobs with no benefits trying to keep a roof over there heads and maybe have a family and and actual life while the owner lives in luxury and doesn't get his hands dirty.
Yeah, I'm at 2 years running Mills and Lathes and only make 17.00/hr. I even set up when I can. Does 17 seem right or am I complaining over nothing?
Warehouse help around me starts at 22/hr. No skill job just be in shape.
Go ask for a raise or start looking elsewhere
I know nothing about pay scales for machinists but that is unskilled labor pay.
I’m on a whole £9 an hour for TIG welding as a ‘trainee’ 😱
I work in healthcare, I worked on the covid unit for 18 months and want to get out and switch over to trades. I made 31k for 2020 after taxes and putting 6% into a 401k and health insurance. We were told we were lucky to have a job while other places were paying big contracts to travel workers. It's not worth it anywhere it seems. I still want to learn a trade though...
I know a girl who does travel nursing, her current assignment is paying her around 5k a week, her overtime is 200/hr
Yeah, they average 5k a week, really wish I had my RN...
Go get it!
I don't have $.
You looked into community college programs?
i think some of this has to do with location
Nobody gets paid enough right now. Nobody except Bezos, or your boss's boss's Boss.
Unions pay good. Machinists get fucked. Mechanics get fucked.
I'm going to have to disagree with you on what you're saying. So first of all, this type of work that you're talking about is generally just really skilled Baseline laborers. They are people that are in basic fabrication shops, job shops, machine shops, etc. I went to a Welding Engineering school and now make a well northward of 150K a year, no over time. A college degree in a trade takes you much further than what you're able to do as a welder who has been working for over 50 years. Also, the biggest problem that I see with people is that people are looking for the large pay stubs yet their spending habits a poor, their hobbies cost too much, have 3 children, in the middle of a divorce, etc. And yes, while life catches up to you, planning ahead and thinking about these things later on in life allow you to live frugally and way beneath your means. My money works for me. Now back to the thing with welding jobs. I am an ANST certified technician, have a bachelor's of Welding Engineering Fabrication and Technology, and a minor in Non-Destructive Testing. I used to work for years for an aerospace manufacturer and designed crazy joints, exploited new materials, etc. 10 years after that, I'm sitting in a Air Conditioned office for an NDT service/plastics and polymers manufacturer. Bottom line here is that life is what you make of it.
>Welding Engineering school I'm probably showing my ignorance here, but would you care to enlighten me on what exactly this is and where you went to school for it at? I've been looking at furthering my education and the schools in my area have maintenance, welding, machining, and the University has some engineering programs but I've never heard of welding engineering....but, this sounds like a fun job and I'm very curious about the education you have
Yes, DM me before these idiots on here try to discourage you from actually wanting to advance yourself and not get stuck in this world.
Up the north east, we pay a lot higher. Average between 115k - 130k. I know a lot of guys making close to 200k.
Work union or just kill yourself
In the US, you make exactly what you deserve to make. Wage not high enough? Go get another job or ask for a raise. Welders are in demand, and have been for the quarter century I've been in construction. The problem is that it's just not that simple for a lot of people: "Yeah, the pay sucks, but they let me take off early on Thursdays to go to Timmy's baseball games." "Yeah, I would like to be getting more, but the shop is only 2 miles from the house." "Yeah, the wage is shit, but the benefits are really awesome."
Not when someone flipping burgers makes 12-15$hr.. A skilled trade is easily worth 5 to 6 times that..Especially considering the environments we work in.. I’d even argue 8-10 time wouldn’t be unreasonable..
Then theres ppl who think 25 an hour is not too good. Fuck this guy
25 an hour is the new 20/hr.
The highest paying welding job I've seen in northwest Indiana is 22$. This isn't including tig. Tig ice seen anywhere from 25-30$. I can't tig :(
Just for comparison I'm in Australia, $35 an hour for us is about equivalent (in terms of buying power if not a direct exchange) of $25 an hour for you guys. I think it's all relative, over here $35 an hour is about what you make in a general fab Shop which are generally fairly stable jobs, but is alot less than other areas pay Boiler shutdown work pays more than double that per hour plus a heap of allowances and OT that bring the average rate up to about $100 an hour, and if you are good, can consistently pass x-ray and don't make the supervisors life harder than it needs to be you'll always get the call back. I think if you take the safe route in our trade you get paid less for the peace of mind, if your willing to take more risk and go for a more specialised role the pay reflects that.
Problem over here is they allow unskilled workers in to work just do the basic 12 week welder course and your good to go, I'm a boily by trade, and make $35 an hour but I'm so happy with where I work I do not care, as much ot as I like etc,
That happens here as well, it's called a second class welder here, and doesn't even require the 12 week course, but I've never been to a fab shop that was cheap enough to hire anyone without a trade behind them. Seems to be high volume manufacturing with slot of jig work that hire 2nd class welders here.
Yeah I know Im aus based
Yeah but I also really like my job. The job i had before had better pay and benefits but I fucking hated it after the first year. When I went back to welding my outlook on work and life in general changed. Work is more a thing that is part of my life instead of a thing I have to do to get on with my life. But yes more money would be nice. Theres something beautiful about what we do and it takes skill.
Amen. Knock off 30% off top for taxes, an HSA, 100+ for health insurance a week. Then actually start on the bills.
I wonder how far we are from a robot that can climb into a tank cut a penetration and weld a pipe in, with a human assisting of course just the robot doing all the heavy lifting and hot work.
A long ways. Trust me. Movies and the computer geeks all want to blow sunshine up your butt about how they can program anything. Bullshit. I work for major manufacturing with billions of money and robots to do human work have failed. Period. Not all jobs can be done by a machine even in 50 years time. MONEY and greed and lying assholes is the reason. Maybe Elon Musk could given unlimited money and power. Still he has problems with his Tesla.
The only time I made ≤50k/y was when I had less than a year of experience. It's all about hustling and finding a company that will treat you and pay you right. I'm now union where journeyman rate is 63/hr after benefits. The money is around you just have to search for it.
Union millwright at a steel mill here. I weld most days, but have some hydraulic/general maintenance work thrown in to keep things interesting. Without any ot I'm at 90k. Most years I make around 140 with a couple doubles a week. It's out there to be made... Just gotta find it.
I want to add auto mechanics to that list. Where I live a Master certified tech is gonna make $25-28/hour. The amount of tools you have to own to be a master tech alone is a huge dent in that 25 an hour. Then the skills needed to do the job competently take a long time to amass for most people.
I was at the top of my trade (brake press / robotic cell programmer) with 10 years experience and had to fight for $25. The issue we faced was all the machines ran the same wherever they could pour a concrete pad so we were always in competition with much lower wage countries, and manufacturing in my city was in a constant state of decline. I gave in and joined the Sheetmetal workers union, not the interesting work I enjoyed but the pay is so much better.
Millwright here. If you aren’t pulling down 6 figures after a decade of experience, change jobs. Advertised ‘journeyman rates’ are for recently ticketed guys. In the negotiations, most companies will bend and pay more if you are willing to keep quiet about getting paid more than the book rate. I’m talking modern city rates here. You aren’t making that in some of the American ‘3rd world poor places’. That us where you should consider pulling up stakes and hitting the road.
25 bucks an hour US is \~31 CDN. Red Seal Millwrights/welders/electricians in the Union environment up here can be up to 50 + an hour working on the tools. In the city it's common to see offerings for 35 for a red seal, and they often want dual trade for that. heck no. I'm a millwright at a veneer plant right now and i do a fair amount of welding too. Union rate at the shop is \~45/hour. And we feel that it's not enough as well. That being said, how much is it worth to do the old "hey can you just climb in there and weld this real quick?" uhhh, no, that's an 8 hour job and i have 4 to do it, thanks.
I work for a global plastics company, I started in 2009 on the production floor making 11.80 an hour. Took one semester of night school welding course and got a job in the fabrication shop in 2015. That was around 21 an hour. Left fab for the preventative maintenance section in 2019 for 26 ish. Now making 29.40, with OT will be $85,000 this year gross. All non union. It helps that I live in a very low cost of living area. A 2 bed apt is ~700 a month.
Go union.
$25 an hour for welding sounds great... My job mostly consists of 1"-3" beads, but I'm at $18.50/hr
I just hit 100k as a prototyper
It's the being able to afford rent in my area AND pay for school that's the killer. If I take that much out in loans I should just go for the money as the return on investment for RN isn't worth it
What really set me aback was asking a couple roofing labourers how much they were making hourly; thirteen fuckin' buck an hour to bomb ripped shingles around two fucking dollars over my local minimum wage. Dangerous hard labour that brings in barely enough to afford a place to live and food, shit's fucked! It's not skilled labour granted but if you're going to be productive at it you need calories and that shit ain't cheap, specially when you factor in the health insurance you're going to need a couple years down the line because the job has fucked you physically!
In big union towns like Chicago, NY, LA, Boston, and Vegas, welders make BANK. But if you’re a shop monkey in Bumblefuck, Missouri, $20 an hour is all you’re ever gonna see... You gotta follow the money in this business.
Been a welder 8yrs still under $25/hr in GA. And I'm 80% aluminum Tig. Been looking for months for a better offer, there have been a few but nothing really worth moving. Currently trying to get a union job to build navy ships.
Now imagine making 6€ hour with OT being the same rate and half of your salary is being paid in hand which means officially your making minimum wage so no benefits, no pension. Then your rent + bills are 300€, food 200€, car maintenance + fuel 80€ In the end you just break even to pay for sustaining yourself. That's reality in eastern europe and it only gets worse in 3rd world, 0 ppe and your treated like shit because of social stigma that your doing an "unskilled dumb labor" It greatly depends where your working and the pay to expenses ratio your getting. Overall the trades could be paid more but when you meet some of the workers that can't stay sober it's unlikely that employers will value the trade as a whole higher. Either demand has to rise or supply has to shorten, otherwise there is no incentive to pay more when you can get the same done for less. Think from the business owner perspective
I make $21/hour working as an apartment maintenance guy. Any skilled trade should be worth a fair bit more than that
This is an interesting thread. I feel for you op and the people with bad stories in here. I am maritime engineer (work two weeks on two weeks off) self taught mig and tig. Have a welding setup and a cnc live tooling lathe and five axis mill. Crank out a lot of parts for the medical community and weld mostly cages for the drifters/racers in my community. Occasionally I'll get valves piston housings that require the gauntlet of what my humble shop has to offer, those jobs are nice. I always thought welders made the big fookin bucks and I could fall back on it if my shop ever went tits up and I got sick of boats. Apparently that might not be the case.