The shortage of welders has been a story for at least a decade. What is interesting are
stories like this, which asks the question who makes more, a welder or a shift manager at McDonalds?
There are a lot of Reddit discussions on welding salaries. It appears most of them agree the concept of someone getting their credentials and making $140,000/year are so rare that they shouldn't be mentioned. One discussion started with a job posting for experienced welders being offered full-time work for $13/hour. No mention of other benefits. Now in some parts of the country, $13 isn't terrible money. In other parts of the country, one can't possibly raise a family on it. And mind you, that is for experienced welders.
There was a welder in that Reddit who said the big money are for those on 100% travel, which he is. He said he has no idea what country he will be in when his current assignment finishes. It is an option, but let's be honest, that life isn't necessarily for everyone. And of course there are multiple welding types, and some pay more than others.
If that is the poster child for a skills mismatch, I'm not sure it doesn't illustrate a different problem - the under valuing of manual labor. If there is a tremendous shortage of welders and there are still jobs offering $13/hour for experienced welders then the market is broken.
I thought this Reddit post was interesting:
Let me answer, because the article may as well have been written about me. I have an AAS degree from an accredited technical college and multiple industry certifications in CNC machining and quality management. I spent nearly $20k on my education and many years slumming it in underpaid manufacturing positions learning everything I was exposed to.
After all this, I've been through interviews with companies ecstatic about my experience and then at the end they ask me what I consider a fair salary for my experience and they laugh at a measly $18. Several share what they considered fair, and one even came in at a low $13 - that was the most they would pay new machinists.
Why? Because they were poorly managed manufacturers who relied on an abundance of cheap labor to mitigate their lack of technological advancement. They haven't invested in the high productivity machines, the process control, the advanced inspection tools or the software that will enable them to compete with the foreigners.
And they struggle to stay afloat with unqualified staff and subpar equipment. That is life in small time midwest manufacturing right now. The best of those manufacturers are the ones who have the right knowledge to leverage technological advancement - the rest get left in the dust.