Starting Salary

• The bureau reports that boilermakers in the 10th and 25th percentiles earned approximately $30,410 to $40,970 per year on average as of 2010. The mean annual wage for all boilermakers was $55,750; the median annual wage was $54,640. With experience, boilermakers can expect to earn much higher salaries with those in the 75th percentile earning approximately $68,650 per year and those in the 90th percentile earning $80,830.
  
  

Leading Industries

• As of 2010, the bureau reports that there were 19,030 people working as boilermakers. Two industries, nonresidential building construction and building equipment contractors employed nearly half of all boilermakers. With experience, these professionals can expect to earn at above the national mean salary for all boilermakers.
  
  

Top States

• Texas had the most boilermakers, with 3,540 employed as of 2010 reports the bureau. These professionals earned below the national salary average at $49,630 per year. Indiana and Illinois are the second- and third-largest states for boilermaker employment, with 1,660 and 1,330 employed, respectively. Indiana boilermakers earned an average of $58,420 per year; Illinois boilermakers averaged $58,900 annually.
  
  

Training

• Formal apprenticeship programs enable boilermakers to learn their trade. Programs are usually four years long and involve 6,000 hours of paid on-the-job training. Boilermakers are also required to complete 144 hours of classroom instruction per year, with classes in blueprint reading, rigging, welding and layout. Upon completion of training, boilermakers received certification as qualified journeymen.
  
  

Job Outlook

• The bureau forecasts a 19 percent growth rate for boilermakers from 2008 to 2018, which is a faster pace than the average for all jobs. Maintaining and upgrading equipment designed to last for more than 50 years rather than replacing such equipment is fueling demand for boilermakers. New units, meeting updated federal energy efficiency guidelines, is expected to spur demand for boilermakers as well. Boilermakers who are skilled and certified welders should have the best opportunities for being accepted into apprenticeship programs.