Explore national salary, projected growth, education requirements, and career opportunities across the United States.
A concise view of this occupation’s national scale, compensation, and projected demand.
National median annual wage for this occupation.
Estimated jobs currently supported nationwide.
Projected employment change through 2034.
Estimated openings created each year.
The typical education, prior experience, and on-the-job training associated with entry into this career.
High school diploma or equivalent
None
Apprenticeship
These are the highest-rated capabilities associated with success in this occupation. Scores are derived from occupational skill analysis and are measured on a 100-point scale.
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Explore the states and metropolitan areas offering the strongest combination of salary, employment, demand, and long-term opportunity.
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Understand the salary, outlook, education, and geographic opportunities shaping this career.
Structural iron and steel workers build careers around physically demanding, technically precise work with significant responsibility for quality and safety. Nationally, there are about 66,000 workers in this occupation, with a median annual salary of $62,700 and projected employment growth of 4.4%. The occupation offers around 6,000 annual openings, suggesting ongoing hiring needs over time. Career success draws on a blend of physical strength and stamina, fine motor skills, and strong attention to detail, supported by mechanical aptitude and solid mathematics and science abilities. Leadership, interpersonal skills, creativity and innovation, and project management capabilities can also contribute to advancement opportunities, such as leading teams or managing parts of larger projects. With a typical education requirement of a high school diploma or equivalent, this field may appeal to people who prefer hands-on work and are ready to develop a broad skill set that combines physical capabilities with technical and coordination skills.
Structural iron and steel workers earn a national median salary of $62,700, with pay varying by location. Several states stand out with notably higher median salaries. Massachusetts reports a median of $120,840, while Washington offers $107,660 and New York $92,610. California’s median salary is $76,370, and Colorado’s is $58,830, showing a range of earning levels across the top states by opportunity score. At the metro level, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH matches the state median of $120,840, while San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA offers $109,440 and New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ offers $102,060. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA has a median of $87,340, and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV reports $68,320. These figures indicate that workers in certain states and metro areas, especially in parts of Massachusetts, Washington, New York, and California, may see substantially higher earnings than the national median.
This occupation shows a national projected employment growth rate of 4.4%, with about 66,000 structural iron and steel workers currently employed. The field is expected to generate approximately 6,000 annual openings, which can come from a combination of new positions and the need to replace workers who leave the occupation. The 4.4% growth rate is consistent across the highlighted top states and metro areas, including California, Massachusetts, New York, Colorado, Washington, and key metros such as San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, New York-Newark-Jersey City, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, and Boston-Cambridge-Newton. For job seekers, this combination of a defined national workforce size, consistent projected growth, and thousands of openings each year suggests a labor market with ongoing opportunities for entry and movement within the field over time.
Location plays a major role in both opportunity and pay for structural iron and steel workers. Among states, California has the largest employment level at 7,110 workers and a median salary of $76,370, with an opportunity score of 67.38. Massachusetts offers the highest state-level median salary at $120,840 with 2,050 employed and an opportunity score of 65.87. New York follows with a $92,610 median, 2,700 employed, and a 65.78 opportunity score. Washington’s median is $107,660 (employment 850, score 56.29), while Colorado’s is $58,830 (employment 860, score 56.97). At the metro level, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA has the highest opportunity score at 77.42 and a median salary of $109,440. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ has a similar score of 77.27 with a $102,060 median and 2,300 employed. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH matches the $120,840 median with 1,310 employed and a 63.37 score. These differences highlight how both earnings and opportunity scores can vary significantly by region.
Structural iron and steel workers typically enter the field with a high school diploma or equivalent, making it a pathway that does not require a college degree as a standard entry point. However, success in this occupation depends on building a strong mix of physical and cognitive skills. Physical strength and stamina and fine motor skills are central, reflecting the hands-on and physically intensive nature of the work. Being detail oriented supports accuracy and quality, while mechanical skills and solid grounding in mathematics and science help workers understand measurements, forces, and technical specifications. Leadership and interpersonal skills are important for coordinating with others and, potentially, supervising teams. Creativity and innovation, along with project management abilities, can support problem solving and handling complex tasks or phases of larger projects. Together, this skill set allows workers to move beyond entry-level roles and take on more responsibility as they gain experience.
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