A Wall Street Journal article reported that one welder in Texas named Justin Friend, who recently graduated with a two-year degree from a technical school, has been making $140,000 a year while welding in the energy industry. That six-figure number may seem unlikely and even ‘fabricated’ for some welders who are putting in long hours working in their welding shops for what seems like a lot less in comparison to this young man’s take-home pay. This week we’re going to look at the factors that contributed to Friends’ top-paying welding job.
Image Source: Wall Street Journal
What are the factors that determine a higher annual salary for welders? And most importantly, how can you find a job that pays really well… even six-figures?
Choosing Your Time and Place for a Welding Job
Right now the energy industry in Texas is in an admitted boom. Higher energy prices drove exploration throughout Texas for more oil and gas, resulting in more wells, structures, and pipelines that needed to be welded. Structures for drilling in the ocean call for especially technical welds, and Justin Friend just happens to specialize in those processes.
So right off the bat, Friend has benefitted from having highly specialized skills in the midst of a boom where there’s extremely high demand for skilled welders. Without taking anything away from Friend’s abilities, his eye-popping salary can be attributed in part to his situation. If you can’t find a welding job in the same pay range, that most likely isn’t all your fault. However, you can improve your chances at finding a higher paying job by getting certified in a process like TIG welding and even looking into additional education in engineering if you want to seek higher pay as a welding engineer.
Check the Hourly Rate for a Welding Job
Friend’s welding jobs have paid $22 an hour and then $25 when he got a raise. That is roughly in line with many top welding salaries today, with the base pay for many welders landing closer to $15 an hour. However, Friend typically works roughly 72 hours a week, and a good deal of that overtime is paid at a higher rate, including the Sundays and holidays when he works.
The article in the Wall Street Journal is careful to note that Friend is single. He’s focusing on saving money, making some investments, and dabbling in a hobby or two while he’s at it. It’s most likely that Friend can’t sustain his current pace for the long term since he will most likely grow weary or his employer will see a decrease in demand for welding. And if he wants to have a family, his schedule will also need to change, leading to a decrease in his salary.
Moving for Welding Work
If you look at the current trends in welding jobs, you’ll find that there are a few regions where the jobs tend to be clustered. The gulf coast and coastal Virginia regions are major welding hubs for shipbuilding and fabrication work. You can also find a ton of welding jobs in the Dakotas, Texas, and West Virginia where the energy boom continues moving forward.
And while you can certainly move to one of these locations in order to find a higher paying welding job in a high-demand area, it also helps to be even more flexible. There are welding jobs that may temporarily open up in Canada or even in more exotic locations along the African coast. If you can present a desirable skill set and are willing to move where the work is, you will have a much better chance at landing a welding job that pays top dollar. As you can imagine, if you go overseas for a welding job there’s a good chance you’ll also work a ton of overtime!
Getting Your Priorities Straight for a Welding Job
In the case of Justin Friend, he’s a single man who is focusing on building up his savings before taking his next step forward in his welding career. Friend has plans to explore an additional welding degree in order to land a different job in the future. He recognizes that his high-demand, six-figure job that comes with overtime, bonuses, travel, and few days off will only be temporary.
So you’ll need to decide how much time you can dedicate to your welding job now before committing to a particular career path. Keep in mind that welding is still a stable, high-paying career that will allow you to raise a family. It’s pretty typical for a skilled welder to graduate from trade school and to land a job that pays roughly $50,000 a year with benefits. So even if six figures is out of reach for you, there are still plenty of opportunities to find stable jobs that will support a family.
Get Deals on Welding Supplies
Welders need high quality helmets, gloves, and clothes for their jobs, and there’s no better place to pick up welding gear on sale than Baker’s Gas and Welding, which regularly offers free UPS shipping on most orders.
