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Job Description

Overview

SpaceX is focused on developing technologies to enable human life on Mars. The TIG Welder (Starship Electronics) position involves precision TIG welding on flight hardware and supporting electro-mechanical assembly.

Responsibilities

  • Perform TIG welding on Starship stainless and aerospace alloys per drawings, WPS, and work instructions.
  • Execute fit-up, tack, and weld sequences with high dimensional accuracy and weld quality.
  • Set up TIG equipment (tungsten, gas, amperage, AC/DC/pulse as required).
  • Perform visual and dimensional inspection of own welds.
  • Complete as-built documentation and maintain traceability.
  • Use MIG (GMAW) as a secondary process when required for fit-up, tacking, or production needs.
  • Occasional electro-mechanical support: chassis/PCB assembly, harness routing, basic functional checks, conformal coat/masking support.
  • Follow HT27 5S, safety, ESD, and FOD protocols.
  • Collaborate with production, engineering, and quality.

Requirements

  • High school diploma or equivalency certificate.
  • 1+ years TIG welding experience (aerospace, pressure vessel, or structural preferred) OR certificate of completion for welding from an accredited program.
  • Ability to read blueprints, weld symbols, and detailed work instructions.
  • Experience TIG welding stainless steel and similar alloys.

Benefits

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

Additional Information

  • Standing for long periods, climbing ladders, bending, grasping, sitting, pulling, pushing, stooping, and stretching.
  • Must be able to lift up to 25 lbs unassisted.
  • Overtime, weekends, or shifts as production requires.

Benefits

401k
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
PTO
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How this job compares in Hawthorne, CA

Pay in context

At roughly $31/hr, this posting lands within a few percent of the $31/hr median for TIG welder jobs in Hawthorne, CA, whose middle half runs $31–$31/hr across 8 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 13% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. In other words it is a market-rate offer, so benefits, overtime, and shift schedule are where the real difference between this and the next posting on the list shows up.

The local market in Hawthorne, CA

We're tracking 39 other active welding openings in Hawthorne, CA right now, from 4 different employers. 14 of them were added in the last week. Across California as a whole we're tracking 623 other active welding openings from 288 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Hawthorne, or widen the search to California.

SpaceX currently has 33 other openings live in California, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in California at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are SpaceX (33), Vast (22), and Relativity Space (20). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within California, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Redondo Beach at $71/hr, Long Beach at $54/hr, and Torrance at $43/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.

See all TIG welder openings if you want to compare this against similar roles.

Similar openings near Hawthorne, CA

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