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Job Description

Overview

Ingalls Shipbuilding, the largest manufacturing employer in Mississippi, is seeking Entry-Level Welders to join their skilled team in building advanced naval vessels for the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard. The role offers training in core welding processes and opportunities for career growth.

Responsibilities

  • Learn and perform basic welding processes, including SMAW ('stick') and FCAW ('wire').
  • Join metal materials that support ship construction and repair.
  • Work in a dynamic shipyard environment with varied conditions.
  • Follow detailed weld instructions and safety procedures.
  • Support evolving production needs across active shipbuilding programs.

Requirements

  • Ability to pass military-standard weld tests in vertical (3G), horizontal (2G), and overhead (4G) positions.
  • Comfort working in active industrial environments.
  • Strong commitment to safety, craftsmanship, and teamwork.
  • Minimum of one year of work experience in FCAW and SWAW welding, or completion of a welding technical training certification program.

Benefits

  • Health Insurance
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • 401k
  • Tuition Reimbursement

Additional Information

  • Full-Time position with multiple shifts available.
  • No relocation assistance available.
  • No telework opportunity.
  • Must be available to work any shift in a 24/7 manufacturing environment.

Benefits

Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
401k
Tuition Reimbursement
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How this job compares in Pascagoula, MS

Pay in context

At roughly $22/hr, this posting comes in about 45% below the $39/hr median for welding jobs in Pascagoula, MS, where the middle half runs $28–$53/hr across 12 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 0% 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 Pascagoula, MS

We're tracking 20 other active welding openings in Pascagoula, MS right now, from 9 different employers. 7 of them were added in the last week. Across Mississippi as a whole we're tracking 80 other active welding openings from 46 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Pascagoula, or widen the search to Mississippi.

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

The most active employers in Mississippi at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are TIC - The Industrial Company (13), Ingalls Shipbuilding, a Division of HII (5), and MOHR Talent (5). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for Stick and Flux-Core work. Stick (SMAW) burns a flux-coated consumable rod and needs no shielding gas, so it works in wind, rain, and on dirty or rusted steel. That tolerance for bad conditions keeps it the default for field, structural, and repair work. Flux-cored (FCAW) runs a hollow wire filled with flux, combining MIG-like deposition rates with the outdoor tolerance of stick. It is the workhorse on heavy structural steel and shipbuilding, where thick sections and long welds reward speed.

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 Pascagoula, MS

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