What Do Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters Do?

Job Description: Use hand-welding or flame-cutting equipment to weld or join metal components or to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products.

Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter Responsibilities

• Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
• Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.
• Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
• Estimate materials needed for production and manufacturing and maintain required stocks of materials.
• Gouge metals, using the air-arc gouging process.
• Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.

Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter Required Skills

Below is a list of the skills most Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters say are important on the job.

Operation and Control: Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Types of Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter Jobs

• Flash Welder
• Welder-Machine Operator
• Gas Burner Operator
• Burner
• Heliarc Welder

Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter Employment Estimates

In 2016, there was an estimated number of 404,800 jobs in the United States for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers.

New jobs are being produced at a rate of 5.6% which is lower than average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 22,500 new jobs for Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters by 2026. The BLS estimates 45,800 yearly job openings in this field per year.

The states with the most job growth for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers are Texas, Florida, and California.

Watch out if you plan on working in Vermont, Maine, or Delaware. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.

Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter Average Salary

The typical yearly salary for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers is somewhere between $28,560 and $63,740. The median salary is $41,380.

Below is a list of the median annual salaries for jobs of this type in different U.S. states.

Annual Mean Salary by State

State	Annual Mean Salary
Alaska	$67,330
Wyoming	$60,960
District of Columbia	$60,780
Hawaii	$59,120
New Mexico	$54,240
Massachusetts	$53,060
Connecticut	$52,920
Louisiana	$52,810
Delaware	$52,180
Washington	$51,230
Rhode Island	$51,000
North Dakota	$50,860
Maryland	$50,550
Colorado	$50,300
Nevada	$48,700
New Hampshire	$48,340
Maine	$48,220
West Virginia	$48,150
New York	$48,040
New Jersey	$47,050
California	$46,560
Virginia	$46,360
Texas	$46,140
Oklahoma	$46,040
Minnesota	$45,490
Oregon	$45,470
Utah	$45,210
Mississippi	$44,350
Montana	$44,310
South Carolina	$43,960
Kansas	$43,830
Pennsylvania	$43,630
Wisconsin	$43,490
Vermont	$43,210
Arizona	$43,150
Illinois	$42,960
Nebraska	$41,850
North Carolina	$41,470
Ohio	$41,380
Alabama	$41,050
Indiana	$40,900
Tennessee	$40,780
Missouri	$40,580
Arkansas	$40,340
Michigan	$39,670
Florida	$39,660
Kentucky	$39,640
Iowa	$39,240
South Dakota	$38,420
Idaho	$37,740
Georgia	$37,500

What Tools & Technology do Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters Use?

Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters may use on a daily basis:

• EZ Pipe
• Microsoft Office
• Microsoft Excel

How to Become a Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter

Education needed to be a Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter:

How Long Does it Take to Become Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter?

Where do Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters Work?

Similar Careers

Those interested in being a Welder, Cutter, or Welder Fitter may also be interested in:

• Rail Car Repairers

Those who work as Welders, Cutters, and Welder Fitters sometimes switch careers to one of these choices:

• Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic
• Tapers

References

Bureau of Labor Statistics

College Factual

O*NET Online

Image Credit: Via Wikimedia Commons