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Job Description

Overview

L3Harris is seeking a highly skilled Welder / Fabricator to join their Norfolk VA team, focusing on delivering end-to-end technology solutions in defense tech. The company is dedicated to recruiting high-performing talent and fostering an inclusive environment for professional growth.

Responsibilities

  • Perform TIG (GTAW) and MIG (GMAW) welding on various metals, including aluminum, steel, and stainless steel.
  • Fabricate structures and machined components according to specifications.
  • Read and interpret tight tolerance drawings to ensure accurate fabrication and assembly.
  • Use precision welding tables and fixturing to set up parts for welding.
  • Perform assembly tasks as needed in addition to welding duties.
  • Work collaboratively with other departments to achieve project goals.
  • Maintain general knowledge of workmanship to military standards.

Requirements

  • Requires a High School Diploma or equivalent and a minimum of 6 years of prior relevant experience or 2 years post-Secondary/Associates Degree with a minimum of 2 years of prior related experience.
  • Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience or trade school certifications in welding.
  • Demonstrated strong foundational knowledge and practical skills in welding techniques.
  • Ability to pass a 3G plate test in all positions for aluminum, steel, and stainless steel.
  • Strong proficiency in TIG (GTAW) and MIG (GMAW) welding processes.
  • Ability to read and interpret technical drawings with tight tolerances.
  • Experience with fixturing and setting up parts using precision welding tables.

Benefits

  • Health Insurance
  • 401k
  • PTO

Additional Information

  • Job Location: Norfolk, VA
  • Schedule: 5/8: Employees work 8 hours per day, 5 days a week.

Benefits

Health Insurance
401k
PTO
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How this job compares in Norfolk, VA

Pay in context

At roughly $36/hr, this posting sits about 12% above the $32/hr median for welding jobs in Norfolk, VA — toward the top of a $29–$38/hr middle band drawn from 20 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 75% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. Pay that far above local median usually comes attached to something: a harder cert requirement, travel, night shift, or overtime that isn't really optional. Worth establishing which before you accept.

The local market in Norfolk, VA

We're tracking 37 other active welding openings in Norfolk, VA right now, from 16 different employers. 17 of them were added in the last week. Across Virginia as a whole we're tracking 141 other active welding openings from 74 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Norfolk, or widen the search to Virginia.

The most active employers in Virginia at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are General Dynamics NASSCO (11), Mission Technologies, a division of HII (7), and Colonna's Shipyard (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 Virginia, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Newport News at $34/hr, Norfolk at $32/hr, and Chesapeake at $28/hr. Norfolk is among them.

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 welder fabricator openings if you want to compare this against similar roles.

Certifications this posting mentions

  • 3G / 4G — plate position tests — 3G is welded vertically, 4G overhead. Together they demonstrate you can hold a puddle against gravity, and they are the common entry qualifications for structural and production shops.

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 Norfolk, VA

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