Looks like US needs more welders & AI aint replacing them anytime soon
Also they need you to do it for $15/hr.
How about union jobs?
This aint union. Once the building is built, jobs are gone. These aren’t permanent jobs. Its a boom and bust
Meanwhile I’m not union and work 9-5 sitting in a chair all day welding cooling parts for data centers. I think I may have a job forever.
6 or 7 days a week with mandatory overtime
With rotating swing shifts.
You’re not wrong. 50 hours required right now. It sucks.
I only did welding for film, which was the same, sometimes just 7/12s (sometimes even longer days, which we only would find out at the last possible moment) for a push, for three months one time. When that three months was over I had to check myself in to a rehab. It wrecked me. People got really hurt being so overworked, careless mistakes happened, I watched someone’s hand get degloved….But I know a lot of other guys that do it out in the “real world” and I’d say we had about the same experience in terms of overwork. I’ve since left film/welding/sfx. If the budget is built for those kind of hours across that timeframe and it’s not a literal life or death emergency, I think the company is not worth working for. Especially for a TV show for the CW. And I was union! That union SUCKED.
Been on 50s for the last 6 years
Welllllll technically its not overtime because you agreed to work it when you signed your work contract stating “will perform duties” so we are going to pay you time and a half. Also dont snitch on us or we will fire you. But heres 10/hr
And no respirators.
Lmaoooo this is what they don’t tell you. Went to trade school because I bought into the meme. Got told the whole way I’d get out to offers of \(30 plus easy. Best I got was \)16 with a dollar a year raise until \(20. Busting dick on a production line. Went and made that \)20 off the bat working security and got paid to read books and play games on my phone all day.
You didn’t progress
I make far more now than any place offered back then or still does currently for welding in my state. Got into white collar and am fine with emails and A/C. The degree I got in trade school wasn’t totally useless at least. Most places just want to see you have a piece of paper showing you can commit to something.
Good, i’m glad you’re comfortable cause you’re going to be making 20 an hour the rest of your life doing that.
“Went and made.” Past tense buddy, reading is hard.
And you have to pay for your own schooling & gear upfront. Been trying to get into the trade here in SoCal and half the places want 5-8000$ just for the semester alone ☠️
Don’t forget barely any PPE. And that’s why even after paying for schooling and a few years of work under my belt I am back to retail management.
Just need a HS diploma.
Shipyard work is not for the average welder lol. Especially starting out.
It’s true, most survive 5-9days. I quit the shipyard after three months, a real circus. Only missing the wig and nose.
What’s it like?
This is the same exact trash the news was saying back in 2007. I bought into the hype and got into welding because I listened to it.
Don’t ever believe the hype. It’s never a labor shortage. Its always and forever will be a pay shortage. Join a union and get paid what you are worth.
It’s the “nobody wants to work” myth. It’s just nobody wants to work….for you, or for the shitty/low pay you’re offering. I looked into the career field and saw I was making more in ems than welding would pay, which is wild they were paying less than I was making lol.
Yup. I starting doing structural steel in 2008. Was laid off within 6 months.
Yep. 20+ years the AWS has been pushing this statistic and what has anyone done in response? Absolutely nothing. As domestic manufacturing has declined dramatically, this statistic hasn’t changed. As countless numbers of baby boomers have left the industry (one way or the other), that statistic hasn’t changed. Supposed millions of foreign workers finding their way into the industry, and that statistic hasn’t changed. My thoughts on it are this: (1) Supply and demand. Increase supply, suppress wages. They’ve done it with the CWI’s as an example. (2) They’re playing a very old game. Cry and complain loud and long enough and the government will sweep in and fund all sorts of programs to address the problem. Pisses me off. Want to talk tax equity? Safety? Environmental concerns? Reforming shitty labor practices? Nooo. The goverment needs to stay out of my business…until THEY want some corporate welfare lol. It’s capitalism or death…until THEY want help. And who’s funding it? Yep. The workers. Or the workers kids and grandkids lol. I’m getting too old for this shit.
Waiting on hands and knees for welders to be paid better isnt getting us anywhere, go organize your current workplace
Take classes on effective salting from your local union. They send members into large organizations to agitate for unionization
Fuck you, pay me.
Join your local trade union. Together we are strong, divided we are weak.
Man I love seeing this sub talk about unionizing
Now if only the pay was worthwhile
Not American but Canadian here. I went to trades school about 2 years ago, got my certifications for MIG and Stick, couldn’t find a job for the life of me. Spent all that year in school being told about how needed welders were, and then couldn’t find shit, even the jobs that paid 18/hr didn’t reply.
very dependent on where you’re located. where I’m at, we have a huge shortage of good welders, but we only hire red seal (unless you’re willing to do an apprenticeship, but that’s not guaranteed). there are lots of places in the Fraser Valley that are hiring fairly consistently, but the pay usually tops off at around $43/hr. I hear it’s much much more difficult in Ontario.
Defintely not a red seal over here. I couldn’t even get an apprenticeship to start going for that goal.
I may have to go there. I’m in Alberta and it’s been tough. Journeyman typically tops at $35. More if you got tickets. Course I’m talking shop work. Most places I’ve seen out of town are higher but they’re going by hand, they supply everything, as opposed to rigs. That I’ve seen anyway.
American here from a small town in Virginia school took me 3 years because I paid completely out of pocket no loans or aid because I made too much money as a janitor graduated top of my program built a portfolio of welds I could use as references applied to 200+ jobs with a professionally built resume and nobody would hire me due to lack of experience out in the field literally every job that would pass me up would be vacant the next month so I ended up working in a warehouse not using my trade.
Yep. Same here. I currently work manufacturing trusses. I will get the odd welding task to do because they know I have the skill, but it’s about once every 6 months lol.
Where did you go to school that there wasn’t an apprenticeship? Major Red flag
MITT, now closed do to the big cuts on forgien students. Was a solid program I think. Ended up with my CWB tickets for MIG, Stick and Flux/Metal, however it did not get you an apprenticeship. It only gave you hours towards it and your level 1 in class completion, if you got an apprenticeship within 2 years. I did not.
Went to trade school two years ago, got certifications for mig and stick? Did you finish an apprenticeship? What certification? Pipe, structural, etc? Do you have a red seal? This is all way to vague to mean much of anything regarding how much you’re worth.
Welders who run mig in a shop on structure are a dime a dozen and can be replaced easily. Pipe welders, field welders, tig welders, alloy welders, fabricator welders, that’s where the work is and by extension the money.
The schooling itself was only a year, I finished two years ago. Where I am, apprenticeships are not common, so I couldn’t even find one. I had my CWB certifications, all position for Stock, MIG and Metal/Flux. No red seal, couldn’t even get an apprenticeship.
It wasn’t even about what I was worth, it was the fact I couldn’t even get a job doing the basic production MIG stuff. I have experience doing aluminum and some TIG aswell but nothing extensive.
Did you join a union by chance? I know the UA includes Canada
Biggest issue with ua unions here is population density.
I did not, I should’ve but I think it’s pretty backed up here.
Did you apply to trade unions?
I did not. A lot of the union work around me is construction and at the time I sadly couldn’t drive to sites.
why not join now if you can drive to sites? There are other pathways to the red seal as well - you can do a trade equivalency assessment depending on your experience. Happy to try answer any questions you have. There is a need for good experienced hands across the country and there is a pathway to your red seal.
So as of now, I no longer have any CWB tickets as they have expired and I also am very out of practice. I would love to eventually get back into it, specifically into a job doing TIG, but I just don’t think it’s feasible. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t fit into a union enviornment, as due to my ADHD, I really like to listen to music while working and basically won’t do a job like welding without it. I’m not sure what career I will end up in, if any at all, but welding will likely remain a hobby for me.
Honestly jobs aren’t what they used to be especially for entry level positions, I’m seeing places All over ask for 5 years of experience with only 23 an hour pay. Worst part, is we aren’t in times where you can do a half ass job on a Weld test and places will still take you in and train you, some places that aren’t paying world class wages wantsa polished soldier or something which is insane these days. On top of that in Canada, especially Ontario, every pipefitting union and ironworking union seems like it’s stuffed to hell
I don’t understand how these people are asking for workers that are skilled yet want to pay them under $30 an hour. It’s like how do you expect them to live? You want skilled workers then pay them accordingly, otherwise stop complaining.
The welders are replacing themselves (or at least their kids) though
Not even working metal on my most current job, but it is data center work, and it is legitimately the only thing about the job that makes me want to cry. I can deal with mindless mass-production plastic fusion, but mindless mass-production plastic fusion that is building a dark god of surveillance and generative child pornography is more than I can handle.
I got off subject, kudos to you if you’ve read this far lmao
Problem is- machines are replacing a lot of welders. Combining AI with automated welding machines will reduce the number needed by a lot more. We will always need welders to fix what the machines screw up, but the machines are getting better. Eventually welding will be either programing the machines to do the welds, prototyping, or low volume production or repairs.
this is correct, and coming faster than most around here (and anywhere else in trades) realize.
When they don’t have you they figure out how to do it without you. Welded joints get replaced with mechanical joints that insurance will sign off on. This is happening more and more all the time.
Wait til you hear about the nurse and careworker shortages coming up. 320k welders is peanuts.
And here I am 15 years later regretting my choices. I make 100K sweating my fucking ass when I could make 100K working from home in my goddamn draws.
Why oh why did I drop out of college to weld…
It’s a hard decision, college is stressful and it requires you to think a lot. With welding it’s less thinking just more doing
Yeah man and as a welder. When you are welding you think the whole day about how mutch more easy life would be if you had finished school.
It’s us and the Masons left standing as don’t of the last few professions that can’t get outsourced
Bite your tongue fella.
What everyone doesn’t understand is that there’s more jobs in welding than being a welder. There’s engineering, supervising, NDE inspection, etc. There is a pretty nice career ladder.
Underneath this i saw a post of the shittiest weld ever. Us is healing
The building of data centers is what’s driving the demand. On a union Data Center job now and those dudes are making bank.
Go union scabs
They will be imported. Don’t worry
AI aint replacing them anytime soon
Yeah, I’m not as sure as you are about that. Have you seen AI beating Olympic runners?
I’d say it depends how you define soon.
You mean like the one that exploded halfway down the race? Or the one where it doesn’t stop and slams into the wall
They said the same about planes.
not any current time, unless its assembly line productions welders will still need to crawl around and build projects by scratch because having bots doing that cannot be CURRENTLY justified,
give it 50-60 years and we might see issue with blue collar
Loose the 0’s and you would be much closer.
The news is all bullshit. Anything they report on other than a forest fire, just reverse that shit if you want the truth.
Robots powered by AI incoming! This is genuinely what’s going to happen. Not trying to provoke, but I genuinely disagree with this notion that skilled trades will be any protection from AI. It’s just dependent on the other piece, and manufacturing of robots who can perform skilled labor is in overdrive.
Robots welding in the shop sure, but in the field we are definitely a ways off from that.
Perhaps not as long as you think? https://www.path-robotics.com/rove
Ha. Let’s see that thing climb a column to get to the roof to weld down joists. How long can it operate before running out of both power and consumables? It doesn’t have any cables attached, so is it running on a power generation system that hasn’t been invented yet?
Low paying and they are to build AI data centers, then you’re on your ass again
If you’re a basic pipe welder(6010 root,7018 fill and cap) or a half decent pipefitter the data center work is booming and paying great. They’re paying over scale, 150-200 a day per diem, and paying double time on Saturdays and Sundays. If you can weld and you’re not working right now it’s because you don’t want to be
Sounds like a skill issue
Idiotic take. Browse the sub for 5 minutes. There’s endless skilled welders being paid rock bottom for their skill level. There’s always comments in these posts advising them to jump to this or that where they can earn more. Not always so simple.
What’s idiotic is allowing yourself to be paid shit wages. Pack it up and on to the next employer. Don’t like it? Learn a different trade. Can’t move? Learn a different trade. I’m currently training the incoming welders for a company that has thousands. They are spoiled as hell and still want more money but make poor choices and cry about everything. The ones that show up on time and put in the work are raking it in 💰
For $20 an hour with no benefits because fuck you
