Welders are about average in terms of happiness.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, welders rate their career happiness 3.1 out of 5 stars which puts them in the bottom 44% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy welders are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Rigger | 3.3 | $51k |
| Grain elevator worker | 3.2 | $35k |
| Wind turbine services technician | 3.2 | $53k |
| Extraction worker | 3.2 | $37k |
| Radio mechanic | 3.1 | $55k |
| Welder | 3.1 | $38k |
| Pump operator | 3.1 | $45k |
| Locksmith | 3.1 | $42k |
| Building and construction inspector | 3.1 | $61k |
| Solar thermal installer | 3.1 | $37k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are welders happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do welders find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as welders?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are welder’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are welders making the best use of their abilities?
Are welders happy with their salary?
Welders rated their satisfaction with their salaries 3.1/5. Few are explicitly unhappy with their salaries, with most welders having generally positive views of their salary.
We asked welders how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
3.1 out of 5 stars
869 welders
18% of welders rated their compensation 5 stars
23% of welders rated their compensation 4 stars
27% of welders rated their compensation 3 stars
21% of welders rated their compensation 2 stars
12% of welders rated their compensation 1 stars
Do welders find their jobs meaningful?
On average, welders rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.9/5. While most welders aren’t very fulfilled by their work, some people may still manage to find meaning in it.
We asked welders how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
2.9 out of 5 stars
873 welders
17% of welders rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
16% of welders rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
24% of welders rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
20% of welders rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
22% of welders rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as welders?
Welders rated their personality fit with their work an average of 3.8/5. The majority of welders find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked welders how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
3.8 out of 5 stars
910 welders
30% of welders rated their career fit 5 stars
36% of welders rated their career fit 4 stars
21% of welders rated their career fit 3 stars
7% of welders rated their career fit 2 stars
7% of welders rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a welder’s work environment?
As a whole, welders rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.4/5. A solid majority of welders enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a welder.
We asked welders how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.4 out of 5 stars
909 welders
23% of welders rated their work environment 5 stars
27% of welders rated their work environment 4 stars
24% of welders rated their work environment 3 stars
15% of welders rated their work environment 2 stars
11% of welders rated their work environment 1 stars
Are welders making the best use of their abilities?
Former welders on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 3.2/5. Most welders are satisfied with how well their abilities are skills are made of use.
We asked welders how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
3.2 out of 5 stars
918 welders
22% of welders rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
23% of welders rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
24% of welders rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
17% of welders rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
13% of welders rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars