Hello-
I am not a welder, I am the girlfriend of a welder. I need some advice because hes hit somewhat of a slump..job wise. He has a 2 year degree in welding and fabrication and is very good. He won first place at the weld off that they have here in Pittsburgh every year. He even taught me, which impressed my mechanic father! He also has his own welding machine his teacher sold to him, and hes always doing something with it. Eventually he wants to get more education in welding technology, but in the meantime I'm going to school right now (I'm working on a bachelor's degree and someday hope to pursue a master's so I can teach) so hes decided to wait until I get settled for awhile, get into a rountine. We are also both in our early 20s.
Well, the problem is he graduated almost 3 years ago, and has had one (1 year) job in "welding". I put quotes on that because the job he had made him weld part of the time...most of the time he was basically made a chore boy. His school found him this job which kinda pissed him off because it really had nothing to do with developing his skills. Hes been a laborer at a mill for 5 years and does not get paid very well. This mill also lays off employees more and more often and is in danger of closing down. He does not want to be a laborer all his life. All I ever hear is that there are great welding jobs, but so far hes only been offered laborer jobs or jobs that still pay him crap. A close friend of our's father was a welder for over 20 years and he had the same luck. Perhaps, its Pittsburgh I don't know..unless you are in the medical field or have alot of schooling you really have to look long and hard for a nice job. We do have good unions from what I hear, but hes under the notion that once you're in a union you cannot advance in your job. I also know that most jobs you don't get paid well at first anyways, but guys hes graduated with moved and found some really good jobs.
Hes really gotten down on this and I need some advice to get him motivated.Part of his worrying comes from how he saw his father struggle with no type of education, to raise a family, and work 2 full time jobs all his life. Believe me he has the upmost respect for his father as do I, but of course his father wants him to do better! We've got a 3 year old child to support and we eventually want to get married, to buy our own home, move away from Pittsburgh ect.. I know that he does want to be a welder. So my questions are, Do all welding jobs start off low paying and then the more experience you get the better the pay? Are there any paticular companies or even cities/states that offer decent jobs? Hes also talked about becoming an instructor/teacher, what do you need to accomplish this? Is it good to join a union? What about journeymen? Any advice would be much appreciated. I'm sorry this is so long, but I'm running out of ideas and I hate to see him go under. Thank you!
Tell him to retrain as an electrician or plumber if he likes the trades. There are 1000s of stories just like yours in the welding field. Dead end jobs that make it hard to support a family in today's society. Your guy has a 2 year degree in welding and a welding contest win. So in the future, both parents have to work, the kids get jerked around in day care and are forever sick and miserable. One parent's paycheck goes to pay the daycare and the doctors' bills. You live paycheck to paycheck with very little savings and no retirement benefits. Any emergency situation requiring money causes major upheaval with creditors calling. And the scenario goes on. Welcome to the lower socioeconomic class in the USA; are we having fun yet? ---Ratboy
First my grandma was an organizing secretary in the IWW during the silk strikes in Patterson NJ (I have this mental picture of my gentle old grandma as a young woman in the street with a picket sign and a brick). My dad was a union carpenter. So I may be a little biased but I would surely recommend that he at least look into the unions. Many have at least a part of the trade which involves welding. Even carpenters (as millwrights and to install metal studs) so don't only look at the obvious ones. I see no reason why a union job is a dead end- my dad was foreman or superintendant on some of the jobs he worked. Besides the union doesn't own you so you can move on when or if that seems wise.
I assume that your schooling may force you to remain where you are but as manufacturing flees the country that can mean hard times in smokestack towns like pittsburgh.
Is your dad an independant? Do he and your man get along? If we are still getting yesses perhaps expanding into construction equipment could work. A mechanic and a welder are a natural combination there.
Luck never hurts and I wish it for you.
Bill
I honestly wonder why people like ratboy come here to throw stones at our trade. Maybe he should try a world where welding doesn;t happen. ATM, it really depends on what you and your boyfriend have in mind for a future ~ there are plenty of high paying jobs in the construction industry but these typically require very frequent travel or even worse, him being away for extended periods of time. The future of welding (and welders) is really unlimited. Sure, you'll hear plenty of people say welding in the USA is on the decline both from a standpoint of pay and available work but from my 33 years in this business I have found it is what you make of it; if one sits back waiting for work to come to him or her then he or she will be sadly disappointed! Tell him to try checking some of the available websites (for example AWS Jobfind) or Monster.com or any other number of employment search engines. If you guys were a bit closer to Michigan I would invite him in for a test, I have a permanent position available for an expert GTAW (TIG) pipewelder... there is tons of work available if he looks in the right places! Good luck, and keep us updated?
I think ratboy is stuck in a job he hates just because he was not man enough to tell mommy and daddy what he wanted to do.
I am in Virgina working 50 to 70 hours a week just because my company cannot find good people to hire. The pay is good enough to make the people that get fired come back begging for a job.
Most of the people we get need to be in a hospital wiping butts and giving sponge baths because they lack common sense and the ability to do anything else.
The biggest problem with this country today is the fact that there are to many ratboys trying to tell other people what is best for them. Which brings me to say this:
I have a CHRISTMAS TREE in my house not a holiday tree. My kids get CHRISTMAS PRESENTS not holiday presents. And last but not least if you cannot say MERRY CHRISTMAS to me may you choke on the happy holidays.
Bottom line ratboy she asked for help finding a better job for her boyfriend. She did not ask you to criticize the job her boyfriend loves and wants to do. ratboy take some advice if you are not helping solve the problem then you are part of the problem. But remember have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!
ATM3702,
The problem with advice is that it is hard to know the situation and what will really work...but I'll try anyway.
I don't know your boyfriend, so if he sees himself in a nagative light over what I say, that is merely coincidence; but maybe this will point to the right direction.
That advice on learning electrical work, while written for "shock and awe", is not a bad concept Depending on the types of jobs available in your area, your boyfriend might have to work in a different occupation for a while. At least until welding work becomes available or if he moves to where that kind of work is.
It sounds like your boyfriend has his heart set on welding. Nothing wrong with that and apparently he is good at it. One of the problems that we run into in our shop is that it is easier to get people who can weld than it is to get people who can read blueprints, do layout, and do fit-up. Finding someone who can build handrails and stair stringers is even harder. And usually those people can weld too. We really don't have many openings for people who do only welding. Versatile is the operative word here.
When we hire people, we look first for a good attitude. That is a valuable attribute because that person is likely willing to learn and stick with the job. No one wants to hire a sourpuss who will "infect" others with a poor attitude, no matter how "good" they are.
Good references are also important, as well as honesty in the interview.
Confidence, but not over-confidence, is also important. And never whine about bad breaks, bad luck, bad anything, it doesn't look good no matter how well justified.
He has to expect to start off at the bottom. People who have been on the job for years will drive him out or make the job difficult for him if he expects to jump right over them. There are times when a person's abilities earn a higher position, but that will be obvious to the majority if it happens.
He might volunteer at the local high schools or trade schools, even if the tasks seem menial, it shows a commitment to doing a good job and a willingness to be useful. Where he has won a weld competition, maybe he could help out with the "behind the scenes" work for the next one. That will be greatly appreciated.
(Believe it or not, people do respect the janitors in the world because they free up time for people to do other things; no one should ever look down on them, it is honest useful work.) But the point is, that it will give your boyfriend exposure to people in the industry so he should keep the best foot forward.
Other than that, he must have patience. It will happen if he doesn't give up.
Chet Guilford
ATM,
very nice letter, your boyfriend is certainly lucky to have you and your support. Here is a link to another welding forum, where you can also ask for assistance. http://weldingweb.com/index.php
Keep your positive attitude and dig in areas that may not be obvious, welding is way more widespread than many people realize. Try searching companies and welded products through Thomas Register at this link.
http://www.thomasnet.com
Another option, if you can possibly swing it, is continued education.
AWS has a certified welding inspector program and CWI's appear to be in good demand.
There are welding programs that could prepare your guy for a position as a welding technician or weldng engineer. Ohio State has a welding engineering program which would allow your welder to go almost anywhere and be involved in whatever type of welding, metallurgy, automation, testing, inspection, etc. he may find he is interested in.
Maybe you should consider a career in the welding industry as well.
ATM,
some of the responces seamed to be pretty neg. My experiance has been very pos. I am a pipefitter welder and started in the nuclear industry back in 1981. I too went through a two year welding tech. program at a junior college. I have made a good living as a welder. My career moved from being a pipefitter welder to a welding inspector to now, a welding engineer. If your willing to go where the work is, it's out there. Also getting on in a maintence group at a petro-chem plant is also a good idea. If he is good at what he does and has a passion to do it, he can find work out there. Look on Fluor Daniel web site, or TIC web site or Halaburton, or Bechtel/BECON. These companies are always looking for good hands.
Hope that helps
Jim
To everybody-
Thank you all so much for your input and advice. When I show him this I'm sure he'll see that it is not hopeless. Before I posted I read some previous posts, and I liked the replies I saw. Mostly no negativity and really honest people here to help.
Ratboy was my first reply, and I got a little scared! But I myself am an ambitious person, and my boyfriend is also, so we try not to let it get us down. Its just right now he seems a little bummed out, there have been some unrelated problems in our life as well with some people in our families, and that is why I am so determined to show him that he can make it. And I'm glad CHGuilford brought up the blueprints and layout, because he does know all of that. At that first job, when he wasn't doing chores, he built and welded a few projects and I believe he did work on stairs. Hes also a very good employee, he works his butt off! His boss calls him his "best employee". Hes the youngest guy there and few of the grown men there are actually hard workers supporting families and what not...the rest of them are either alcoholics or drug addicts. I believe the good guys there maybe pulled down by such a work enviroment. Hes always putting in overtime, even before we had our son. And hes always eager to learn. So judging from the posts I got, hes probably on his way, hes just gotta get moving again. So, if anybody else has anymore suggestions I'm all for it! Again, you all are really great for helping me. I do appreciate it. Thank you! And I will keep you all posted!
It's only natural to be bummed when things are down. Everybody gets that way. Good luck to you both, don't lose faith or let the "ratboys" of the world get you down!
May I ask what salary is your boyfriend making now? ---Ratboy
ratboy, while no one can deny your "right" to be here and post almost anything you wish, may I ask why you feel it necessary to downtrod this noble trade? Perhaps you would be better received if you weren't so negative...
ratboy,
why do you come on this forum and bitch about our trade? I mean, I bet that nobody goes on medical sites and puts down doctors, because doctors take care of people and welders build this world. What do you drive? a plastic car? I'm an underwater welder and I make $150 an hour on some jobs. thats twice as much as you'll ever make. one more thing, how much does your boyfriend make?
Charles Richards
Not that it is any of your buisness, Ratboy, I will tell you considering that we are 22 years old and have a three year old child, a house to pay rent on, car, bills, and also the fact that I am working and going to school full time and he works full time..not much.What do you expect? I can say one thing is that we are hard working people from working class families. I have never been on welfare (although I do understand how some people may need it) and I have worked since I was a kid. My grandfather was a carpenter, a husband and a father who worked 2 sometimes 3 jobs went to night school for eight years and got a degree in criminal justice. He later became a well respected policeman and detective in our community. My father was a high school drop out, he was 17 when I was born. He got his GED went to trade school and became a mechanic and later opened his own shop.I must say hes not rich but hes doing very well. Its all in the choices you make to better yourself. That is why I posted on here, to get advice on this field of work from people who actually know what they are talking about. So far everybody has been able to give me some hope. And its clear that these people are hardworking and understand what it takes.
The difference between what you have posted vs. everybody else's posts is that you have obviously not found something you enjoy doing. Something that you make a living off of, and won't regret what you did for a living when you are 85 years old. My boyfriend enjoys welding and creating, and fixing anything he can. Hes well mannered, upright, honest and works for everything he has. People trust him. Hes been that way all his life. People run into hard times in their lives, but it doesn't mean you can't make a change. Stop expecting things to happen and make go make it happen. Guess what? Its takes hard work, people that I have seen succeed in life have never had a lazy bone in their body and learned all they could about what they enjoyed. Its not easy, but what can you do..thats just life. Giving up just doesn't make any sense, thats a cop out. Everybody knows that you probably will not become a millionaire, but who cares? Stability and comfort is all I'm after. Why have so much damn money when all you'll spend it on is ridculous items that you have no use for.
I honestly don't know if you are really trying to be helpful, but you come off extremely critical and bitter. Just because you maybe in the gutter now doesn't mean you have to stay there. I hope things work out for you.
And so the student becomes the teacher. I salute you on an eloquent post.
Bill
Hello.
Welding IS a rewarding career and we all who choose it as a vocation do so because it is what we enjoy and you can do more than just pay the bills with it.
I live in New England (where we call it Christmas too!) and there is plenty of work that will hire experienced or properly trained people (such as your boyfriend). Have faith and soon the "Right" job will come along.
I know of one company in PA that is always looking for craftsman. I am not sure where they are specifically located,but I am sure you can find it.
The company is called Abec (not sure of the spelling) and they build skids out of stainless steel. My company had supplied manpower to help them catch up to a back log of work (a few years ago). While I was not there....I talked to some co-workers who were there and they had said that it was a good place to work.
They are not union so it may be easier to get hired there. I don't know. If you (your boyfriend) are persistent...than I am sure the right opportunity will come up for you.
Be well and Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year to all of you!
Extremely well said ATM and I agree with Bill, the student becomes the teacher. You and your family will do just fine!
Have you or your boyriend checked out the search engines yet? Monster, etc? Almost everyone here is here to help people advance their knowledge or in some ways, their career. Keep posting, let us help however we may!
Words normally just flow from me, I've been writing since I was a kid..:o) And I really do wanna be a teacher! I will definitely look into the job search engines. I can't thank you all enough for the advice an encouraging words. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and the best of luck in the New Year!
http://www.aws.org/sections/pittsburgh/pittsburghofficers.html
This is the link to the officers in the Pittsburg Section of the AWS. One of them should be able to tell you if they know of a place that is hiring welders. They should be willing to help you out. I have made calls to the people in my local AWS Section and they have always been willing to help me.
I am not sure if there are any steel fabrication shop in your area. He could start out at a fitter/fabricator and might be able to move to welder one day.At the shop I work in most of the welders started out as fitters.
Well ATM I will say I understand and feel your pain. Ive done work in both construction and manufac. Manufacturing for me just doesnt pay, but im finishing up some school and then Ill be back out on the road. These guys are all right though, its all in what you put into it. I know if hes as dedicated to this welding as you are to him hell make one hell of a good welder and a good hubby and daddy. Tell him to keep his head up. The years are spinnin by y'all and they onlky spin faster. If you dont hang on to your britches it'll all be gone and youll be left wondering what happened. Give the lil one a big hug and a kiss too, wiht them lil ones you never get enough hugs and kisses before they grow up on ya. Good luck and tell him to hang with it. Welding is rewarding trade and he will make it.
CHRIS
I have been offshore since Katrina hit, only getting 5 days off for the second hurricane. All laybarges and oilfield service companies are screaming for welders, helpers, and other personnel.
12 + hours / day, 7 days a week
Obviously you have internet, lookup Welders under "superpages.com" and have them pay for his flight (the right companies will do that).
Welding is a rewarding career that is always in demand, pays well, challenging and constantly changing.
Best of luck
You might also wan't to check out companies like Atlas Pacific and Trane they both offer entry level welder positions which means they offer extended education and the pay and benefits are reasonable. I have some friends that chose to go that way.
Also if there are any pipe fitters unions around your area He could look at joining and starting of as a apprentice then could move on to a helper/welder and enentually to a journeyman welder. Like someone said this does not limit him to working none union.
I am rig welder in the pipeline industry and haved worked union and none union. The pay for either is very respectible and the gas industy is always looking younger highly skilled employees. well good luck.
I am a boilermaker here in Pgh.tell him to consider trying to join a union,my local just took, in the last couple years 300 new members.if he can weld and does not mind hot and dirty work,you start off at about $19.44 an hour plus 2.00hr into pension $2.00 anuity (it used to be $4.00in pension &$4.50anuity)the journeyman scale is now about $30.71 bottom line it is the best part time job in the world.i have my summers off and make $60k+ a year.I am not a 3rd generation union boilermaker I did not marry into the union I did not BUY MY book I started six years ago, I now have $50k in my anuity and $45k towards a pension if i live that long.I went through the apprenticeship program at 43years old they taught me how to weld at NO COST,(but a lot of my time, and the help of a great welding instructer,that I will never be able to Repay for his knowledge) THANK GOD I CAN WELD BECAUSE I KNOW I CAN'T TYPE OR SPELL.email me i will let you know were to go for application nad good luck
It's great to see someone who wasn't afraid to take a chance on a career even though in some folks eyes they may think that they're too late. I applaud your dedication to a trade that has obviously given you a great restart in life. It's also nice to see your words of encouragement for another who may not really know what direction to go yet. There are a whole lot of younger folks and older ones too who need to take a hard look at what is out there and take the step towards fullfilling work opportunities such as you have. Regards, aevald
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