Welders

NOC
72106

- Welders and related machine operators

use a variety of welding processes to join metal. They work in many industries, including construction, manufacturing and industrial repair.

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Quick facts

3-Year Outlook

Moderate
Moderate

3-Year Job Openings

208
 

Median Hourly Wage

$26.00
$19.00
Low
$42.63
High

Average Salary

$53,400
 

Typically Required

College or apprenticeship

Employed

2,238
 
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Job details

Full NOC Description

Welders operate welding equipment to weld ferrous and non-ferrous metals. This unit group also includes machine operators who operate previously set up production welding, brazing and soldering equipment. They are employed by companies that manufacture structural steel and platework, boilers, heavy machinery, aircraft and ships and other metal products, and by welding contractors and welding shops, or they may be self-employed. Apprentices are also included in this unit group.

Main Duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:
  • Welders
  • Read and interpret blueprints or welding process specifications
  • Operate manual or semi-automatic welding equipment to fuse metal segments using processes such as gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), gas metal arc welding (GMAW), flux-cored arc welding (FCAW), plasma arc welding (PAW), shielded metal arc welding (SMAW), oxy-acetylene welding (OAW), resistance welding and submerged arc welding (SAW)
  • Operate manual or semi-automatic flame-cutting equipment
  • Operate brazing and soldering equipment
  • Operate metal shaping machines such as brakes, shears and other metal straightening and bending machines
  • Repair worn parts of metal products by welding on extra layers.
  • 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.
  • Welding, brazing and soldering machine operators
  • Operate previously set up welding machines such as spot, butt and seam resistance or gas and arc welding machines to fabricate or repair metal parts
  • Operate previously set up brazing or soldering machines to bond metal parts or to fill holes, indentations and seams of metal articles with solder
  • Start up, shut down, adjust and monitor robotic welding production line
  • Assist with the maintenance and repair of welding, brazing and soldering equipment
  • May adjust welding heads and tooling according to work specifications.

    • Also Known As

    • aviation welding technician
    • brazing machine operator
    • brazing machine setter
    • electric arc welder
    • journeyman/woman welder
    • laser welding operator
    • pressure vessel welder
    • production welder
    • soldering machine operator
    • spot welder
    • submerged arc welder
    • welder
    • welder apprentice
    • welder-fitter
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    Requirements

    Employment Requirements

    Welders
  • Completion of secondary school is usually required.
  • Completion of a three-year apprenticeship program or A combination of over three years of work experience in the trade and some college or industry courses in welding is usually required to be eligible for trade certification.
  • Trade certification is compulsory in Alberta and available, but voluntary, in all other provinces and the territories.
  • Red Seal endorsement is also available to qualified welders upon successful completion of the interprovincial Red Seal examination.
  • Welding, brazing and soldering machine operators
  • Some secondary school education is required.
  • Several months of on-the-job training are usually provided.
  • Experience as a machine operator helper may be required.
  • Experience with robotics may be required.

    • Provincial Regulation

    • Provincially Regulated: Yes
    • Compulsory: No
    • Red Seal: Yes

    Regulation Body

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    Employment by Sex

    The following graph shows the percentage of men and women working in this occupation in New Brunswick.

    Data legend

    2.3%
    Female
    97.7%
    Male
    Employment by age

    The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by age group.

    Data legend

    15.8%
    15-24
    25.2%
    25-34
    19.2%
    35-44
    21.5%
    45-54
    14.3%
    55-64
    4.0%
    65+
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    Employment by highest level of education

    The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by highest level of education achieved.

    Data legend

    5.5%
    No Certificate, Diploma or Degree
    11.8%
    High School, Diploma or Equivalent
    30.7%
    Apprenticeship or Trades Certificate or Diploma
    52.0%
    College or University Below Bachelor Level
    0.0%
    University - Bachelor Level or Above
    Employment by Industry

    The following graph shows the industry groups in which the largest shares of persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick are employed. Small percentages for all top three industry groups may suggest employment for this occupation is widely distributed amongst many industry groups.

    Data legend

    38.8%
    Manufacturing
    27.6%
    Other services (except public administration)
    16.1%
    Construction
    17.5%
    All Other Industries
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    Employment by Economic Regions

    The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons employed in this occupation in New Brunswick by which economic region they reside in.

    Data legend

    34.30%
    Northeast
    20.90%
    Southeast
    21.10%
    Southwest
    6.90%
    Central
    16.90%
    Northwest
    Province of New Brunswick Economic Regions

    Economic Regions

    The following map displays New Brunswick’s five economic regions. An economic region (ER) is a grouping of counties, created as a standard unit for analysis of regional economic activity across Canada.

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    Annual Average Salary by Economic Regions

    The following graph shows the average salary of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

    Data legend

    $50,000
    Northeast
    $53,600
    Southeast
    $58,800
    Southwest
    $58,000
    Central
    $52,800
    Northwest
    Province of New Brunswick Economic Regions

    Economic Regions

    The following map displays New Brunswick’s five economic regions. An economic region (ER) is a grouping of counties, created as a standard unit for analysis of regional economic activity across Canada.

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    Hourly Median Wages by Economic Regions

    The following represents the median hourly wage of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

    Northeast

    $26.00
    $21.00
    Low
    $43.00
    High

    Southeast

    $25.00
    $21.00
    Low
    $46.00
    High

    Southwest

    $29.00
    $21.00
    Low
    $42.56
    High
    No Data Available

    Northwest

    $24.00
    $16.00
    Low
    $42.00
    High
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    Salary

    The following shows the average salary of everyone who worked full-time and year-round in this occupation across each of the Atlantic Provinces and nationally.

    New Brunswick

    $53,400

    Newfoundland

    $87,600

    Prince Edward Island

    $48,800

    Nova Scotia

    $56,800

    Canada

    $62,150
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    Employment Outlook

    The following represents the number of job openings that are expected to occur in this occupation over the next three and ten years respectively, broken down by openings expected to result from growth (“new jobs”) and openings expected to result from attrition (death and retirements).

    Three Year Outlook

    Total Openings: 3-Year

    208
     

    New Jobs: 3-Year

    89
     

    Retirements/Deaths: 3-Year

    119
     

    Ten Year Outlook

    Total Openings: 10-Year

    551
     

    New Jobs: 10-Year

    132
     

    Retirements/Deaths: 10-Year

    419
     
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