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The differences between welder apprentices and maintenance welders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a welder apprentice and a maintenance welder. Additionally, a maintenance welder has an average salary of $40,659, which is higher than the $34,266 average annual salary of a welder apprentice.
The top three skills for a welder apprentice include MIG, hand tools and arc welding. The most important skills for a maintenance welder are MIG, arc welding, and hand tools.
| Welder Apprentice | Maintenance Welder | |
| Yearly salary | $34,266 | $40,659 |
| Hourly rate | $16.47 | $19.55 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 14,044 | 78,332 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 53% | High School Diploma, 35% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A welder apprentice analyzes engineering specifications and engineering drawings to plan layout and assembly welding operations. Besides using rulers, calipers, combination squares, and straight edges to secure, position, and layout parts and assemblies as per the assignment specifications, welder apprentices also perform their duties based on established safety procedures and quality standards. They use arc welding, gas welding, electric welding, and other welding forms to weld and track-weld assemblies and different components. Moreover, a welder apprentice uses precision measuring instruments, calipers, and micrometers to find gap variance.
A Maintenance Welder diagnoses and repairs a variety of metal work including construction vehicles and equipment. They cut, fit, and weld metal using gas and electric welding equipment.
Welder apprentices and maintenance welders have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Welder Apprentice | Maintenance Welder | |
| Average salary | $34,266 | $40,659 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $43,000 | Between $30,000 And $54,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Renton, WA |
| Highest paying state | - | Washington |
| Best paying company | - | BNSF Railway |
| Best paying industry | - | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a welder apprentice and a maintenance welder in terms of educational background:
| Welder Apprentice | Maintenance Welder | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 53% | High School Diploma, 35% |
| Most common major | Precision Metal Working | Precision Metal Working |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between welder apprentices' and maintenance welders' demographics:
| Welder Apprentice | Maintenance Welder | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.0% Female, 8.0% | Male, 92.8% Female, 7.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 2.7% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 2.6% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 3% |