Job Description

Overview

The Auto Body Technician at Gerber Collision & Glass is responsible for providing exceptional customer experiences through the quality repair of vehicles, ensuring they are restored to pre-accident condition. The role involves meticulous assessment, disassembly, repair, and reassembly of vehicles while contributing to the company's commitment to speed, quality, and customer excellence.

Responsibilities

  • Ensure consistent execution of WOW (Wow Operating Way) plan.
  • Plan the repair work necessary and prepare cost estimates for customers.
  • Use various tools to repair sections of a vehicle.
  • Hammer out dents and other minor body damage when possible.
  • Realign car chassis and frames to repair structural damage.
  • Remove damaged sections of vehicles and replace them with new or aftermarket parts.
  • Replace or repair glass and windshields as needed.
  • Replace or repair interior parts as needed.
  • Weld and attach parts into place and prepare and repaint vehicles.
  • Complete work orders within labor time guidelines.
  • Inspect vehicles after repair to ensure all work has been executed correctly.
  • Perform other related duties as assigned.

Requirements

  • High school diploma or equivalent required.
  • Successful completion of technical school program OR a 3-year apprenticeship as an auto body repairer.
  • Ability to read job orders and work with very little supervision.
  • Ability to work with other repairers within an auto body shop.
  • Thorough understanding of methods and procedures to repair vehicle bodies.
  • Thorough understanding of how to use tools required for the trade.

Benefits

  • PTO
  • Health Insurance
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • 401k

Additional Information

  • Must be able to work safely in a noisy area with many odors present.
  • Must be able to lift up to 30 pounds at times.
  • Must be able to visually inspect vehicle damage in a variety of weather conditions.
  • Must be able to bend, stretch, kneel, and squat to perform repairs and inspections.

Benefits

PTO
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
401k

How this job compares in Chicago, IL

Pay in context

At roughly $31/hr, this posting comes in about 11% below the $35/hr median for welding jobs in Chicago, IL, where the middle half runs $25–$39/hr across 36 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 39% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. That gap is worth raising directly — in a market this size there is normally room to negotiate toward the median, particularly if you already hold the certifications the posting asks for.

The local market in Chicago, IL

We're tracking 56 other active welding openings in Chicago, IL right now, from 36 different employers. 2 of them were added in the last week. Across Illinois as a whole we're tracking 237 other active welding openings from 175 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Chicago, or widen the search to Illinois.

Gerber Collision & Glass currently has 8 other openings live in Illinois, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in Illinois at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are S&C Electric Company (14), Gerber Collision & Glass (8), and Aerotek (7). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Illinois, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Chicago at $35/hr and Peoria at $31/hr. Chicago is among them.

Similar openings near Chicago, IL

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Auto Body Technician figures were last recalculated when this page was built.