welder shortage b.s.

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i have seen a lot of topics on welder shortage form other forums and news stories.  the biggest thing that i see is that the company's that are complaining are the ones who only want 3 to 5 years of experience and try to pay them 8.00 /hr.  To me this is just plain stupid. and what is even worse than the company paying this is the people who actually accept these jobs.  PEOPLE STOP THE CYCLE.!!! i have in the past taken a job not in either one of my 2 Fields of expertise(mechanics / welding) just because i will not accept crap pay for what i have spent time and money to learn to do.  if the job dose not pay well dont take it. find somthing else and keep searching for somthing in that field. You have to sell your skills to the highest bidder. stop allowing these company's to offer crap pay for your skill and it is a skill.  They need you .... you need the money .......i am sorry for the rant i had a friend take a crap pay job and he is worth a lot more money than he is getting paid. when good people get $#*t on it tends to piss me off.63' Lincoln SA200 2008 miller trailblazer 302fibre-metal pipelinermiller camo BWEand all the guns and ammo a growin boy needs
Reply:Yup i too hear and see those ads for welders and they pay nothing as you said...BobBob WrightSalem, Ohio  Birthplace of the Silver & Deming Drillhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/southbend10k/http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sawking/1999 Miller MM185 w/ Miller 185 Spoolmate spoolgun
Reply:Gotta love  working in a trade that on average pays LESS then it did 20 yrs ago.Just goes to show what is valued in this country when you can get a job at jack in the box or wally world with zero experience for 9.00 an hr yet they think skilled trade that is one of the key elements of the worlds infrastructure is cheap grunt work.A large part of the problem(at least here in texas)is the cheap immigrant labor but sadly almost as big of a problem is the fact that a large part of this countries population believes that the dirtier and swettier you get while working the less your worth both finacialy and as a person.Would love to see what would happen if every and i mean every welder went on a mth long strike.
Reply:If every welder went on strike they would just hire Mexicans at $7.00 an hr and then find out they made a huge mistake when all of the welds fail lol.
Reply:Originally Posted by ridgerunnerGotta love  working in a trade that on average pays LESS then it did 20 yrs ago.Just goes to show what is valued in this country when you can get a job at jack in the box or wally world with zero experience for 9.00 an hr yet they think skilled trade that is one of the key elements of the worlds infrastructure is cheap grunt work.A large part of the problem(at least here in texas)is the cheap immigrant labor but sadly almost as big of a problem is the fact that a large part of this countries population believes that the dirtier and swettier you get while working the less your worth both finacialy and as a person.Would love to see what would happen if every and i mean every welder went on a mth long strike.
Reply:Too many people have no pride in the trade, and will work for low wages.  I'll be damned if I work as a skilled trade, for any less than TWICE what somebody makes to hire in at McDonalds...and I likely won't even take a job for that much.I refuse to lower the integrity of my trade.  I have my own worth, and if I can't get paid what I think I whould reasonably get, I will find a different job.
Reply:Come over here, guys.We've got a shortage of tradesmen.Lots of work, good money, better beer.
Reply:I'll probably take a flaming for this, but I do agree with the sentiments above.  However as a business owner the sad fact is that TRUE SKILLED weldors are not easy to come by.  I have one man who works for me and I pay him $16hr, and that's far more than he would make at any of the other shops with in 50 miles of here.  He's worth every penny.  However the other two I have get $8.00/hr, and sometime's i ask myself if they are worth that.  "Most" of the guys who are taking these jobs aren't worth more than $8/hr to start with.  I agree if you are worth more then hold out until you get what you are worth, but the majority of so called weldors these days aren't worth that kind of money, and they do not want to put forth the effort to become worth more money.  I think we are spoiled in a way by the fact that there are so many knowledgable guys around this forum it's sometimes easy to assume that the average weldor knows more than most actually do.     Truly knowledgeable weldors are far and few between.I'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:Originally Posted by scott brunsdonCome over here, guys.We've got a shortage of tradesmen.Lots of work, good money, better beer.
Reply:I'm involved in several different aspects of metals joining, and there is a shortage of code welders. Welders that can fit and pass a RT or UT examination on every weld, and keep up production. There is no shortage of none code, uncertified welders ($8). Skilled welders with no baggage will have no problem finding work for a minimum of $20 and up to $50. That is where the shortage is.
Reply:">>I have one man who works for me and I pay him $16hr, and that's far more than he would make at any of the other shops with in 50 miles of here. He's worth every penny. However the other two I have get $8.00/hr, and sometime's i ask myself if they are worth that. "Most" of the guys who are taking these jobs aren't worth more than $8/hr to start with.>Billing rate and hourly wage, are practically irrelevant to each other. Market forces dictate the two rates, separately.>I'm not saying all weldors are only worth $8/hr but that pay level has a place. It's up to the weldor to decide what he is worth. If he takes a job beneath his worth then it's his own fault not the business's,>Unless you can figure out a faster way to hang the bumper on that next Cadillac... it's 10 dollars an hour!>This position was previously posted through PRiSM on 05/09/07 with no bidders Candidates should submit their resume to Human Resources__________________________________________________  _________________________Tammy MeamberSupervisor, Human ResourcesTesoro Refining and Marketing CompanyGolden Eagle Refinery150 Solano WayMartinez, CA  94553Direct:  (925) 335-3483Fax:  (925) [email protected]
Reply:refinery works always pays well.The company ive been working for is set to start up at chevron in richmond pretty soon.  Lots of dirty, sh*t*y work to go around, but theres also lots of overtime.
Reply:You won't see these jobs in the local paper, but they are available, right now in several trades including the pipefitters, ironworkers, pile drivers, carpenters and pipeliners.
Reply:Originally Posted by Hammack_WeldingYou can spout off that stuff about one good $20/hr man will equal two $8 guys all you want.  It just doesn;t happen.
Reply:I left a company down in SoCal to move up here. They hired three guys to replace me. A month later they called wanting me back. They offered more money, more bennies, an apartment for 6 months and pay all my moving costs......I declined.....A year later, they went out of business........I'm just sayin'.......
Reply:Well, as others have said, its based on the economy of the area, the bussiness, and the skill level of the welder.I have been offered several jobs in the past 9 months.  My first job payed $12 an hour.. woopdy doo!  BUT, being a 20 year old, recent college grad with no experience, and $20,000 dept.  I had to take it.   You can all say "well you didnt have to take it"  but when there are no other offers at the time, and you can't afford to eat, its hard to say no to a paycheque.I ended up spending just shy of 3 months there, went to many local shops for interviews and at the end they all had the same question "what do you think is fair pay"  my answer was simply, Pay me what Im worth.  Which they did, I started at $14 and after 3 months I got a $3 raise to $17 an hour, as well as signing an apprenticeship with them.  I believe its all up to the employee to make sure they get the pay they deserve.  And as I said previously, there will always be that situation where you just can't say no to the $8 that someone wants to  pay you.