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Job Description

Overview

Caterpillar Inc. is seeking an Experienced Welder to join their global team in Decatur, IL. The company values innovation and teamwork, aiming to create sustainable communities through their operations.

Responsibilities

  • Set up, operate, and adjust manual and/or automatic machines for welding operations.
  • Perform manual finish welding operations on plain and alloy steels in all positions.
  • Operate robotic welding equipment.
  • Follow documented procedures and standard work for safe and defect-free operations.
  • Perform carbon arc cutting and gouging.
  • Sand to dress welds.
  • Use jib and overhead crane to manually position work pieces.

Requirements

  • 3+ years of GMAW or FCAW welding experience.
  • Must be able to pass multiple welder qualification tests during the Caterpillar provided training.
  • Ability to perform simple computer operations.
  • Be available to work any shift.
  • Ability to work overtime to support production demands.
  • Technical school or equal educational background in mechanical or similar discipline.
  • Experience using GMAW or FCAW with 0.045” or larger wire.
  • Experience welding ½” or greater thickness material.

Benefits

  • PTO
  • 401k
  • Health Insurance

Additional Information

  • This position is located in Decatur, IL.
  • Shift: 2nd, 3rd, or AWS.
  • No relocation package is available.

Benefits

PTO
401k
Health Insurance
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How this job compares in Decatur, IL

Pay in context

At roughly $30/hr, this posting lands within a few percent of the $32/hr median for welding jobs across Illinois, whose middle half runs $27–$41/hr across 252 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 46% 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 Decatur, IL

Decatur, IL is a small market in our index: 2 other active welding openings alongside this one, from 2 employers. Across Illinois as a whole we're tracking 341 other active welding openings from 217 employers. With this few local postings, most welders here end up either commuting or looking at travel work. Browse welding jobs across Illinois.

Caterpillar currently has 1 other opening live in Illinois, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in Illinois at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are Gerber Collision & Glass (16), S&C Electric Company (10), and The Boyd Group LLC (8). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Illinois, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Chicago at $39/hr, Downers Grove at $36/hr, and Elk Grove Village at $34/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.

Similar openings near Decatur, IL

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