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Job Description

Overview

Kick off 2026 with a career at Leonardo DRS in West Plains, MO, as an Uncertified Welder. The company is a recognized leader in the design and integration of complex technologies for military and commercial customers, and they are actively hiring for multiple roles.

Responsibilities

  • Produce quality work to prescribed standards with a focus on continuous improvement.
  • Follow written work instructions and maintain a safe work environment.
  • Properly use required PPE.
  • Support and communicate the mission, values, and culture of the organization.
  • Understand requirements and perform various welding processes on specific metal types.
  • Be proficient in aluminum TIG and MIG welding processes.
  • Weld with proficiency and meet various codes and specifications including AWS and ASME.
  • Perform material preparation and fit to meet process requirements.
  • Read and interpret blueprints, weld symbols, and NDE symbols.
  • Perform visual inspections of weldments to confirm compliance with codes and standards.

Requirements

  • High School diploma or GED.
  • Weld school certification preferred.
  • Weld experience preferred.
  • 4 or more years of aluminum welding experience preferred.

Benefits

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

Additional Information

  • Location: West Plains, MO
  • Full Time position
  • Schedule: 4/10 - Monday - Thursday (OT possible on Friday)
  • Shift: 3rd (7:30pm - 6:00am)
  • No Telework
  • No Relocation Available

Benefits

Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
401k
PTO
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How this job compares in West Plains, MO

Pay in context

This employer didn't publish a rate. For reference, welding jobs across Missouri currently run a median of $29/hr in our index, with the middle half of them falling between $24–$33/hr across 67 postings with published pay. That median is a reasonable floor to anchor on when a recruiter asks what you're looking for.

The local market in West Plains, MO

This is the only active welding job we're currently tracking in West Plains, MO, which makes it worth moving on quickly — there is no local competing offer to weigh it against. Across Missouri as a whole we're tracking 90 other active welding openings from 49 employers. Browse welding jobs across Missouri.

Leonardo DRS currently has 3 other openings live in Missouri, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in Missouri at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are Webco Manufacturing (18), QPS Employment Group (8), and CGB Enterprises, Inc. (4). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Missouri, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Saint Louis at $29/hr and Kansas City at $24/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for MIG and TIG work. MIG (GMAW) feeds a continuous wire electrode through a shielding-gas nozzle. It lays down metal fast and is forgiving on clean material, which is why it dominates production and light fabrication work. TIG (GTAW) uses a non-consumable tungsten electrode with filler added by hand, giving the operator the most control of any process. It is slow, demanding, and the standard for stainless, aluminum, and anything where the bead has to look as good as it holds.

Certifications this posting mentions

  • ASME Section IX — the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code qualification. It covers welding on pressure-retaining equipment — boilers, vessels, and process piping — where a failed weld is a safety incident rather than a rework ticket.

Read straight from this posting's text. Confirm the exact qualification the employer wants before you test — requirements vary by shop even under the same code.

Similar openings near West Plains, MO

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