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Job Description

Overview

We are seeking an experienced Welder/Fitter to fabricate and weld components for overhead cranes and related equipment in Ashland, VA. This contract-to-hire position offers competitive pay based on experience and requires strong blueprint-reading skills and the ability to produce quality flux-cored arc welds that meet AWS industry standards.

Responsibilities

  • Fabricate metal components using shop drawings and specifications.
  • Perform flux-cored arc welding to meet AWS D1.1 and AWS D14.1 standards.
  • Read and interpret welding symbols and technical drawings.
  • Complete full-penetration vertical weld and overhead fillet weld tests.
  • Follow safety procedures in a heavy industrial shop environment.
  • Maintain reliable attendance and punctuality.
  • Lift and handle materials weighing up to 50 pounds.

Requirements

  • Welding and fitting experience in an industrial or fabrication environment.
  • Ability to read shop drawings and interpret AWS weld symbols.
  • Ability to produce consistent, high-quality flux-cored arc welds.
  • Must pass a full-penetration vertical weld test and an overhead fillet weld test.
  • Familiarity with AWS D1.1 and D14.1 welding standards.
  • Ability to work safely in a heavy industrial setting and lift up to 50 pounds.
  • Dependable and able to meet the required work schedule.

Benefits

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

Additional Information

  • Contract-to-Hire position.
  • Starting pay at $26.00/hour; higher depending on experience, up to $32.00/hour.
  • 1st Shift, Monday–Friday, 6:00 AM–4:30 PM.
  • Additional hours on Saturdays as required.
  • $850 sign-on bonus after six months of employment.

Benefits

401k
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
PTO
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How this job compares in Ashland, VA

Pay in context

At roughly $29/hr, this posting lands within a few percent of the $29/hr median for welding jobs across Virginia, whose middle half runs $24–$34/hr across 70 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 50% 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 Ashland, VA

Ashland, VA currently has 3 other active welding openings besides this one, spread across 3 employers. 1 of them was added in the last week. Across Virginia as a whole we're tracking 128 other active welding openings from 71 employers. That's enough local activity to be worth comparing two or three offers before committing. Browse every welding job in Ashland, or widen the search to Virginia.

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

The most active employers in Virginia at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are Innovative Refrigeration Systems, Inc. (14), General Dynamics NASSCO (10), and Atlantic Constructors, Inc. (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 $38/hr, Norfolk at $30/hr, and Chesapeake at $28/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for Flux-Core. 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.

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

Certifications this posting mentions

  • AWS D1.1 — the American Welding Society's Structural Welding Code for steel. It governs almost all building and structural steel work in the US, so a D1.1 qualification is the baseline credential for construction and ironworking.

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 Ashland, VA

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