Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters

Fabricate, position, align, and fit parts of structural metal products.

O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 51-2041.00

$49,900median annual wage, May 2024

53,380people employed, United States

▼ 16.3%projected change, 2024→2034

4,100openings a year, incl. replacements

What it pays

A single “average salary” hides the spread. This is the whole distribution — the gap between the bottom and top bar is usually the number that matters.

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 · national, cross-industry · annual wage

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Pay over time

Median up 72% between 2003 and 2024, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.

BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.

Where the jobs are

Metro area	Median wage	Employed
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	$53,530	2,450
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	$49,520	1,530
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	$50,190	1,390
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	$50,180	1,040
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA	$63,460	780

BLS OEWS May 2024, metropolitan estimates · the 5 areas with the most people in this occupation

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Typical education to enter: High school diploma or equivalent · BLS Employment Projections 2024–34

What people in this job actually do

Ordered by how important the work is rated.

Verify conformance of workpieces to specifications, using squares, rulers, and measuring tapes.
Study engineering drawings and blueprints to determine materials requirements and task sequences.
Position, align, fit, and weld parts to form complete units or subunits, following blueprints and layout specifications, and using jigs, welding torches, and hand tools.
Lay out and examine metal stock or workpieces to be processed to ensure that specifications are met.
Tack-weld fitted parts together.
Move parts into position, manually or with hoists or cranes.
Set up and operate fabricating machines, such as brakes, rolls, shears, flame cutters, grinders, and drill presses, to bend, cut, form, punch, drill, or otherwise form and assemble metal components.
Mark reference points onto floors or face blocks and transpose them to workpieces, using measuring devices, squares, chalk, and soapstone.
Position or tighten braces, jacks, clamps, ropes, or bolt straps, or bolt parts in position for welding or riveting.
Lift or move materials and finished products, using large cranes.
Set up face blocks, jigs, and fixtures.
Align and fit parts according to specifications, using jacks, turnbuckles, wedges, drift pins, pry bars, and hammers.

O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale

Skills that matter most

Importance, rated 1 to 5.

Critical Thinking3.0

Reading Comprehension3.0

Speaking3.0

Active Listening3.0

Monitoring2.9

Active Learning2.2

Writing2.2

Mathematics2.1

Learning Strategies1.8

Science1.8

O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale

Software and tools

A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.

Microsoft Excel●Microsoft Office software●Microsoft Outlook●Microsoft Word●Computer aided design and drafting CADD softwareDassault Systemes CATIATekla softwareThree-dimensional modeling software

O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag

What this work is actually like

Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.

2 / 5Some preparation — a school diploma and a few months of on-the-job training.

O*NET 30.3 Job Zones

Working conditions that stand out

Indoors, Environmentally Controlled−2.3 below average

Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled+2.1 above average

Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets+2.0 above average

E-Mail−2.0 below average

Exposed to Contaminants+1.8 above average

Exposed to Hazardous Equipment+1.7 above average

Telephone Conversations−1.7 below average

O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2024-08

How people actually get in

Share of workers by the education they hold.

High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)77%

Less than a High School Diploma18%

Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)3%

Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)2%

O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2024-08

What kind of person the work suits

Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.

Realistic7.0

Conventional3.9

Investigative2.6

O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)

Tasks O*NET flags as emerging

Troubleshoot and repair electrical or mechanical equipment.

O*NET 30.3 emerging tasks

What you take with you

Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.

Operations Monitoring2.9

Time Management2.6

Social Perceptiveness2.6

Judgment and Decision Making2.4

Operation and Control2.4

Coordination2.4

Quality Control Analysis2.2

Instructing2.2

O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale

Knowledge the work draws on

MathematicsProduction and ProcessingMechanicalEnglish LanguageAdministration and ManagementEducation and Training

Abilities it leans on

Near VisionArm-Hand SteadinessStatic StrengthMultilimb CoordinationControl PrecisionManual Dexterity

O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale

How this job is advertised

The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.

FitterFabricatorLayout ManWeld FitterSteelworkerHand FormerShip FitterMetal FramerSteel FitterMetal Box MakerSteel FabricatorMotorcycle MakerMill Beam FitterMetal Fabricator

O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation

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III$50,000

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Microsoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft Word

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$29Occupation reportPay where you are, conditions, preparation, education, what you carry into another job.$49Professional reportAdds two decades of pay, industries, geography, what changed, adjacent occupations and what to study.$99International offerAdds named employers and their actual rates from visa filings, the seniority pay ladder and the cities that hire.

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What you learn	$29	$49	$99
What it pays in your city and industry	✓	✓	✓
Working conditions, preparation, education	✓	✓	✓
What you carry into another occupation	✓	✓	✓
What this job is called in postings	✓	✓	✓
How pay changed over the years	brief	✓	✓
Where the industry changes the number	—	✓	✓
Where the work actually is	—	✓	✓
What appeared and disappeared in the job	—	✓	✓
How long it takes to become competent	—	✓	✓
Where to move next and what to learn	—	✓	✓
What AI is already changing in this job	—	✓	✓
What your tools are worth on the market	—	✓	✓
What to study to get in	—	✓	✓
What the same work pays in Britain	—	—	✓
What the same work pays in Canada	—	—	✓
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The money ladder by skill level	—	—	✓
Cities that actually sponsor visas	—	—	✓
Sections in the report, typically	73–7	155–16	198–23
Who it is for	If you are deciding whether this work is worth your time.	If you are in the occupation and deciding where to move next.	If you are aiming for an offer abroad.

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What changed since 2015

Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning.

Now listed 6

+Microsoft Office software+Tekla software+Dassault Systemes CATIA+Three-dimensional modeling software+Microsoft Outlook+Microsoft Word

No longer listed 4

−Enterprise resource planning ERP software−Data entry software−Spreadsheet software−Word processing software

Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.

O*NET 30.3 related occupations

Also called

FitterFormerShipfitterFabricatorLayout ManShip FitterWeld FitterTack WelderSteelworkerHand FormerSteel FitterMetal Framer

O*NET 30.3 alternative titles

The same work in Europe

ESCO occupation	ISCO	Match
structural ironworker	7214.3	close
coppersmith	7213.3	close
electron beam welder	7212.3.1	close
welder	7212.3	close
sheet metal worker	7213.4	close
ornamental metal worker	7223.14	broader
riveter	7214.3.1	broader
spot welder	7212.3.4	broader
metal products assembler	8219.8	broader

Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)

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