Welder

O*NET: Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers·51-4121.00

The Verdict:Welding demands hands-on torch work, grinding, and hammering in tight, variable shop and field spots from flat benches to overhead rigs. No robot handles custom alloys or real-time distortion fixes. AI aids blueprints and checks but core craft stays human. Steady manufacturing needs lock in the role long-term.

Resilience Score

/100

Highly Resilient

Score tiers

Highly Resilient81–100

Resilient61–80

Moderate Risk41–60

High Risk21–40

Critical Risk0–20

How is this scored?

Task Resilience

How much of this role's daily work remains beyond AI and robotic automation.

30% of score

Physical Presence

The degree to which this job needs a human present — hands-on, in the field, or in the room.

20% of score

Human Necessity

How important the unique human edge is — for trust, accountability, or judgment.

15% of score

Regulatory Shield

How strong the legal requirement is for a human in this job (by law, licensing, or credentials).

13% of score

Technological Maturity

How far AI remains from performing this role's core functions.

10% of score

Displacement Evidence

The volume of jobs in this field being eliminated by AI or automation right now.

12% of score

Score last updated: February 2026Full methodology

Avg Salary

Median annual wage from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024 release.

$51k

Job Growth (10yr)

Projected change in total number of jobs (not salary) from 2024–2034. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections.

+2.2%

AI Exposure

Percentage of this role's analyzed tasks that AI can handle autonomously or nearly so. 0 of 30 tasks are classified as AI-exposed.

Low exposure

Task Analysis

This role's core work is hard to automate.
22 of 30 tasks require human judgment, presence, or trust. The 27% that are AI-leverage offer an edge — professionals who learn these tools will outperform those who don't.

0exposed

8AI leverage

22human-essential

View all 30 tasks

AI Can Handle This0 tasks

Tasks AI can do autonomously or nearly so

No exposed tasks identified

AI Leverage8 tasks

Master these tools — humans who do outperform those who don't

Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure conformance with specifications.

Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.

Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.

Mark or tag material with proper job number, piece marks, and other identifying marks as required.

Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.

Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.

Check grooves, angles, or gap allowances, using micrometers, calipers, and precision measuring instruments.

Analyze engineering drawings, blueprints, specifications, sketches, work orders, and material safety data sheets to plan layout, assembly, and operations.

Human Advantage22 tasks

Tasks requiring trust, presence, or novel judgment

Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.

Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.

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.

Prepare all material surfaces to be welded, ensuring that there is no loose or thick scale, slag, rust, moisture, grease, or other foreign matter.

Align and clamp workpieces together, using rules, squares, or hand tools, or position items in fixtures, jigs, or vises.

Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.

Position and secure workpieces, using hoists, cranes, wire, and banding machines or hand tools.

Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.

Monitor the fitting, burning, and welding processes to avoid overheating of parts or warping, shrinking, distortion, or expansion of material.

Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.

Weld separately or in combination, using aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron, and other alloys.

Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.

Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.

Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.

Hammer out bulges or bends in metal workpieces.

Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.

Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.

Guide and direct flames or electrodes on or across workpieces to straighten, bend, melt, or build up metal.

Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies.

Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.

Set up and use ladders and scaffolding as necessary to complete work.

Operate metal shaping, straightening, and bending machines, such as brakes and shears.

Resilience Landscape

Welder lands in Stable, Lower Pay

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