Welder | Average UK Salary & Outlook

Welders join, cut and shape metal plate, pipework and composite materials in industries like aerospace, construction and civil engineering.

Typical task
Working hours
Attractive values

Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.
Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.
Lay out, position, align, and secure parts and assemblies prior to assembly, using straightedges, combination squares, calipers, and rulers.
Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure

Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.
Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.
Lay out, position, align, and secure parts and assemblies prior to assembly, using straightedges, combination squares, calipers, and rulers.
Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure conformance with specifications.
Recognize, set up, and operate hand and power tools common to the welding trade, such as shielded metal arc and gas metal arc welding equipment.
Weld separately or in combination, using aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron, and other alloys.
Clamp, hold, tack-weld, heat-bend, grind or bolt component parts to obtain required configurations and positions for welding.
Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.
Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.
Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
Monitor the fitting, burning, and welding processes to avoid overheating of parts or warping, shrinking, distortion, or expansion of material.
Operate manual or semi-automatic welding equipment to fuse metal segments, using processes such as gas tungsten arc, gas metal arc, flux-cored arc, plasma arc, shielded metal arc, resistance welding, and submerged arc welding.
Analyze engineering drawings, blueprints, specifications, sketches, work orders, and material safety data sheets to plan layout, assembly, and welding operations.
Mark or tag material with proper job number, piece marks, and other identifying marks as required.
Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
Remove rough spots from workpieces, using portable grinders, hand files, or scrapers.
Prepare all material surfaces to be welded, ensuring that there is no loose or thick scale, slag, rust, moisture, grease, or other foreign matter.
Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.
Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.
Position and secure workpieces, using hoists, cranes, wire, and banding machines or hand tools.
Guide and direct flames or electrodes on or across workpieces to straighten, bend, melt, or build up metal.
Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.
Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.
Cut, contour, and bevel metal plates and structural shapes to dimensions as specified by blueprints, layouts, work orders, and templates, using powered saws, hand shears, or chipping knives.
Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
Fill holes, and increase the size of metal parts.
Check grooves, angles, or gap allowances, using micrometers, calipers, and precision measuring instruments.
Operate metal shaping, straightening, and bending machines, such as brakes and shears.
Set up and use ladders and scaffolding as necessary to complete work.
Hammer out bulges or bends in metal workpieces.
Dismantle metal assemblies or cut scrap metal, using thermal-cutting equipment, such as flame-cutting torches or plasma-arc equipment.
Signal crane operators to move large workpieces.
Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies.
Estimate materials needed for production and manufacturing and maintain required stocks of materials.
Join parts such as beams and steel reinforcing rods in buildings, bridges, and highways, bolting and riveting as necessary.
Gouge metals, using the air-arc gouging process.
Mix and apply protective coatings to products.
Operate brazing and soldering equipment.

Average salary
29,696 GBP *
per year

Average salary for Welder

Big gender gap

29,868 GBP
19,433 GBP

Average salary for part-time Welder

Average salary for full-time Welder

Showing:

25,204 GBP
25,961 GBP

29,696 GBP
19,433 GBP
29,868 GBP

Salary over time for Welder

Salary for this role has increased over time

27,988 GBP
28,734 GBP
27,808 GBP
27,294 GBP
28,538 GBP
29,664 GBP
29,696 GBP
29,735 GBP
31,185 GBP

Ads

Road Construction Materials and Construction Technologies Training

London Premier Centre

Multiple (10)

From 3,900 GBP

Road Construction Materials and Construction Technologies Training

London Premier Centre

Multiple (8)

From 3,750 GBP

HND in Construction Management for England (Construction Design and Build Technician)

Global Business School

4.6 (5)

Multiple (3)

From 6,000 GBP

Future outlook for Welders

Fair outlook

68 000+ jobs available

Balanced outlook

1% yearly wage growth (on average)

Which qualifications do I need?

Find out what you need to know in order to become a Welder and the highest average level of education for people in this role.

In terms of people already doing this job:

41% of people in this role have a post-secondary qualification such as a Higher National Diploma
40% of people in this role have GCSEs or equivalent
13% of people in this role have a certificate of higher education or equivalent but no degree

You could take a welding qualification at college before applying for a job as a trainee welder. Relevant courses include:

Level 2 Award in Welding Skills
Level 2 Certificate in Fabrication and Welding Practice
Level 3 Diploma in Fabrication and Welding Engineering Technology

Get the right qualification to begin your journey to becoming a Welder

Construction

What technical skills do I need?

Technical skills are programmes, softwares and things you need to know in order to be a successful Welder. Check that you know:

Analytical or scientific software Scientific Software Group Filter Drain FD

Computer aided design CAD software

Electronic mail software IBM Notes

Office suite software Microsoft Office

Spreadsheet software Microsoft Excel

Improve your skills today

Construction

Attention to Detail Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. Dependability Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. Adaptability/Flexibility Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. Independence Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. Innovation Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.

Not sure if you are in the right job?

Take our career change quiz

Welder | Average UK Salary & Outlook

Salary statistics

Similar Courses

Road Construction Materials and Construction Technologies Training

Road Construction Materials and Construction Technologies Training

HND in Construction Management for England (Construction Design and Build Technician)

Construction Industry Scheme

Construction Project Management

Construction Project Management

Construction Projects Explained

Certificate in Construction Project Management

Foundation: Construction Pathway (Oxford)

Future outlook for Welders

Welder - Your future job?

Which qualifications do I need?

What technical skills do I need?

Things to highlight for your Welder interview

Related jobs

Carpentry

Carpenter

Construction

Carpet fitter and floor layer

Construction

Cavity insulation installer

Construction

Ceiling fixer

Construction

Cellar technician

Construction

Construction labourer

Construction

Bricklayer

Construction

Construction plant operator

Construction

Domestic energy assessor