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Welders (NOC 7265)
Nature of Work
Welders operate welding equipment to weld ferrous and non-ferrous metals. They are employed by companies that manufacture structural steel and platework, boilers, heavy machinery, aircraft and ships and by welding contractors, welding shops and other industrial sectors, or they may also be self-employed.
Nature of Work
Welders operate welding equipment to weld ferrous and non-ferrous metals. They are employed by companies that manufacture structural steel and platework, boilers, heavy machinery, aircraft and ships and by welding contractors, welding shops and other industrial sectors, or they may also be self-employed.
Duties
Welders may specialize in certain types of welding, such as custom fabrication, ship building and repair, aerospace precision welding, pressure vessel welding, pipeline construction welding, structural construction welding or machinery and equipment repair welding. There are, however, several general duties that are common to most welders.
Most welders read and interpret blueprints or welding process specifications. They also operate manual or semi-automatic welding equipment and utilize such welding processes as gas tungsten arc (GTAW), gas metal arc (GMAW), flux-cored arc (FAW), plasma arc (PAW), shielded metal arc (SMAW), resistance welding, and submerged arc welding (SAW) to fuse metal segments. Most welders are also required to operate manual or semi-automatic flame-cutting equipment; brazing and soldering equipment; and brakes, shears and other metal straightening and bending machines.
Example Titles
- precision welder
- aircraft welder
- pressure vessel welder
- gas-shielded arc welder
- electric arc welder
- welder
- welder-fitter
Training Paths
Welder is a designated trade in Saskatchewan. Individuals wishing to become certified in this trade must apprentice for three years1800 hours per yearunder a certified tradesperson and complete 22 weeks of in-class technical training. Technical training is delivered at SIAST. Applicants to the Welder apprenticeship program must be working in the trade. High school completion will ensure academic entrance requirements are met. Individuals who have not completed high school should contact the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission. Welding certificate programs are also delivered at SIAST and regional colleges. Production Line Welder is also a designated trade in Saskatchewan, and an apprenticeship program in this trade is also offered at SIAST.Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT) offers a Welding Applied certificate program.
Trends and Outlooks
The employment prospects for this occupation are: good
Despite a slight drop in employment between 2000 and 2005, there are a lot of welders working in Saskatchewan; nearly 4,300 in 2006, according to Statistics Canada. Even if this downward trend continues, qualified job seekers can anticipate some employment opportunities over the next few years due to new job creation and to attrition.
Welders in Saskatchewan are not highly paid. In 2005, the average full-time income for this occupation was $41,000 per year. This is on par with the provincial full-time average for all occupations the same year ($42,300 per year). Annual incomes for paid (as opposed to self-employed) Saskatchewan welders ranged from $16,300 to $78,700 per year in 2005. Many self-employed welders earned considerably more (or less) than the average. Welders working in or around Regina and Saskatoon typically earn more than their counterparts elsewhere in the province.
According to the last Census, 97% of all welders and soldering machine operators in the province were male in 2006. That same year, employment for this occupation was distributed throughout Saskatchewan. Forty-one percent of all Saskatchewan welders in 2006 worked in or around Saskatoon or Regina. There is a high incidence of part-time employment in this field of work; just 65% of all welders in the province were employed on a full-time basis in 2005. While not unheard of, self-employment is rare in this field. Employment for sheet metal workers is not seasonal but can be highly sensitive to overall economic conditions.
Professional Associations
Related Occupations
- Welding, Brazing and Soldering Machine Operators (9515)
- Supervisors of welders in this unit group (in 7214 Contractors and Supervisors, Metal Forming, Shaping and
- Erecting Trades)
- Underwater welders (in 7382 Commercial Divers)
Main Industries of Employment
Average Earnings
Self Employment
Percentage of Workers Employed Full-Time
Where They Work
Aboriginal Identification
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