How To Become A Structural Ironworker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a structural ironworker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a structural ironworker. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.26 an hour? That's $42,151 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 3,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreStructural IronworkerUS Average

Salary

3.3

Avg. Salary $42,151

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.3

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 2.01%

Asian 1.64%

Black or African American 8.69%

Hispanic or Latino 18.13%

Unknown 4.90%

White 64.63%

Gender

female 1.96%

male 98.04%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress level

8.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.0

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a structural ironworker

Explore structural ironworker education requirements

Most common structural ironworker degrees

High School Diploma

52.2 %

Associate

26.1 %

Bachelor's

13.0 %

Start to develop specific structural ironworker skills

Skills	Percentages
Grating	19.87%
Hoisting	18.69%
Pulleys	15.07%
Laser Equipment	9.89%
Horizontal Alignment	7.23%

Complete relevant structural ironworker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New structural ironworkers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a structural ironworker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real structural ironworker resumes.

Research structural ironworker duties and responsibilities

Lead ironworkers and coordinate with project managers, superintendents, and other tradespeople to complete projects on-time and within budget.
Rig up structural pieces for crane hoisting with knowledge and use of crane signals (hand and radio).
Read blueprints, erect and bolt up structural steel and install grating.
Bolt up/impact/ operate aerial lifts/ signal cranes/lay grating

Prepare your structural ironworker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your structural ironworker resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a structural ironworker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable structural ironworker resume templates

Build a professional structural ironworker resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your structural ironworker resume.