What does a Structural Iron and Steel Worker do?

Raise, place, and unite iron or steel girders, columns, and other structural members to form completed structures or structural frameworks. Day to day that includes work like read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required and Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors.

What skills should a Structural Iron and Steel Worker put on a resume?

O*NET rates Coordination, Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, and Critical Thinking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Structural Iron and Steel Worker list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Computer aided design CAD software, Cost estimating software, Inventory tracking software, Microsoft Outlook, and Project scheduling software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Structural Iron and Steel Worker work?

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Fitter, Iron Worker, Ironworker, and Steel Worker. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Structural Iron and Steel Worker need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 42% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Structural Iron and Steel Worker role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Structural Iron and Steel Worker resume example

A resume for a Structural Iron and Steel Worker needs to show the work itself: raise, place, and unite iron or steel girders, columns, and other structural members to form completed structures or structural frameworks. Day to day that means work like this: read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required; connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Fitter
Iron Worker
Ironworker
Steel Worker
Steel Fabricator
Structural Steel Erector
Tower Hand
Assembler
Awnings Mechanic
Billboard Erector
Billboard Installer
Billboard Mechanic
Bolter
Bridge Ironworker
Bridge Maintainer
Bridgeman
Building Construction Ironworker
Combination Worker

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required.
Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors.
Bolt aligned structural steel members in position for permanent riveting, bolting, or welding into place.
Fasten structural steel members to hoist cables, using chains, cables, or rope.
Hoist steel beams, girders, or columns into place, using cranes or signaling hoisting equipment operators to lift and position structural steel members.
Verify vertical and horizontal alignment of structural steel members, using plumb bobs, laser equipment, transits, or levels.
Cut, bend, or weld steel pieces, using metal shears, torches, or welding equipment.
Erect metal or precast concrete components for structures, such as buildings, bridges, dams, towers, storage tanks, fences, or highway guard rails.
Force structural steel members into final positions, using turnbuckles, crowbars, jacks, or hand tools.
Pull, push, or pry structural steel members into approximate positions for bolting into place.
Unload and position prefabricated steel units for hoisting, as needed.
Drive drift pins through rivet holes to align rivet holes in structural steel members with corresponding holes in previously placed members.

19 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Bolt aligned structural steel members in position for permanent riveting, bolting, or welding into place, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Fasten structural steel members to hoist cables, using chains, cables, or rope, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Computer aided design CAD software
Cost estimating software
Inventory tracking software
Microsoft Outlook
Project scheduling software
Turtle Creek Software Goldenseal

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Adjustable widemouth pliers
Adjustable wrenches
Air compressors
Blow torches
Bolt cutters
Bull pins
C clamps
Center punches
Chalk lines
Cold chisels
Combination squares
Crowbars

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Coordination
02Operation and Control
03Operations Monitoring
04Active Listening
05Critical Thinking
06Active Learning
07Complex Problem Solving
08Judgment and Decision Making
09Monitoring
10Quality Control Analysis

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Building and Construction
Mechanical
Mathematics
Public Safety and Security
Administration and Management

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

42%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
34%Less than a High School Diploma
19%Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Some Preparation Needed”. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Common questions

What does a Structural Iron and Steel Worker do?: Raise, place, and unite iron or steel girders, columns, and other structural members to form completed structures or structural frameworks. Day to day that includes work like read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required and Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors.
What skills should a Structural Iron and Steel Worker put on a resume?: O*NET rates Coordination, Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, and Critical Thinking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Structural Iron and Steel Worker list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Computer aided design CAD software, Cost estimating software, Inventory tracking software, Microsoft Outlook, and Project scheduling software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Structural Iron and Steel Worker work?: O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Fitter, Iron Worker, Ironworker, and Steel Worker. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Structural Iron and Steel Worker need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 42% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Structural Iron and Steel Worker role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.