Lead welder vs welder first class

The differences between lead welders and welders first class can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a lead welder and a welder first class. Additionally, a lead welder has an average salary of $45,718, which is higher than the $45,016 average annual salary of a welder first class.

The top three skills for a lead welder include aluminum, stainless steel and safety equipment. The most important skills for a welder first class are flux core, arc welding, and SMAW.

Lead welder vs welder first class overview

	Lead Welder	Welder First Class
Yearly salary	$45,718	$45,016
Hourly rate	$21.98	$21.64
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	8,274	38,450
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	High School Diploma, 43%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

Lead welder vs welder first class salary

Lead welders and welders first class have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Lead Welder	Welder First Class
Average salary	$45,718	$45,016
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $62,000	Between $33,000 And $60,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between lead welder and welder first class education

There are a few differences between a lead welder and a welder first class in terms of educational background:

	Lead Welder	Welder First Class
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	High School Diploma, 43%
Most common major	Precision Metal Working	Precision Metal Working
Most common college	-	-

Lead welder vs welder first class demographics

Here are the differences between lead welders' and welders first class' demographics:

	Lead Welder	Welder First Class
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 95.9% Female, 4.1%	Male, 92.7% Female, 7.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 2.9% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.7%	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.6% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between lead welder and welder first class duties and responsibilities

Lead welder example responsibilities.

Create weekly work schedules, process payroll information, manage inventory counts and job cost for each project.
Certify in restaurant grade stainless steel and aluminum TIG welding, carbon stick welding and stainless and carbon MIG welding.
Weld with solid wire (GMAW), flux core (FCAW) and stick (SMAW).
Used MIG and TIG welding to fit electrical and mechanical components.
Execute daily operations of MIG, and TIG welding, and rework welding.
Develop and record documentation for PQR's and WPS's.

Welder first class example responsibilities.

Manage and run production parts through the brake.
Programme and operate automatic GTAW, and GMAW machines.
Fuse metals together using GMAW and FCAW processes within code guidelines.
Apply repairs to various types of vessels, utilizing FCAW, and SMAW processes.
Operate brazing and soldering equipment.
Train in tig and stick pipe welding.

Lead welder vs welder first class skills

Common lead welder skills

Aluminum, 7%
Stainless Steel, 7%
Safety Equipment, 6%
Blueprint Specifications, 5%
GMAW, 5%
Tig Welding, 5%

Common welder first class skills

Flux Core, 9%
Arc Welding, 8%
SMAW, 6%
FCAW, 5%
GMAW, 5%
Stainless Steel, 5%