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Do you agree with the AI automation risk score calculated for this occupation?
AI Automation Index
Will AI Replace Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers?
Task-level automation exposure for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers: 30 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.
E-E-A-T Verified
Developed & audited by Gini Loh Automation Exposure
18%
weighted task index
30 of 30 tasks scored
Median Salary
$53,750 / year
BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation
Employment Level
Very High
416,210 people hold this job — size, not growth
Projected 2025–35
+2.4%
employment change
40,300 openings a year · BLS line item
Pay by state
BLS OEWS publishes 54 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.
$30,220 – $80,840
Highest medians
Alaska $80,840
Hawaii $79,000
Connecticut $64,880
Wyoming $63,820
Washington $63,020
Lowest medians
Puerto Rico $30,220
Guam $40,600
Virgin Islands $46,270
Arkansas $47,970
Tennessee $48,040
State figures come from the 51-4121 row in the May 2025 state panel. States where the estimate was suppressed or too small to publish are absent.
What the score is made of
Each task is mapped to its work activities, scored for AI automation potential, and weighted by how important those activities are to the job. These are the components.
Automation potential 18%
Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.
Physical work 71%
Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.
Judgment & influence 11%
Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.
Routine administration 0%
Share in documenting, recording, and administrative activities.
Rewritten by O*NET 0%
Share of weighted tasks O*NET rewrote in a recent update. Reported, not folded into the score.
Consequence of error 33/100
Moderate
O*NET's own rating of how serious an uncorrectable mistake would be here — respondents, not us. Deliberately not in the index: the score measures what AI can do with the task content, and multiplying it by stakes would be our judgment dressed as data.
Constituent Task Mix
30 tasks for this occupation, weighted by work-activity importance. Shares below are of total task weight, not task count.
High exposure (≥ 60% of the task is automatable) 7%
2 tasks
Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 7%
2 tasks
Low exposure (below 35%) 85%
26 tasks
How would you survive?
Move your week away from the high-exposure tasks and toward the ones that need judgment. The simulator recalculates the index as you shift the mix.
Simulate Upskilling →Constituent Tasks
#23583 · Core · 10% automatable
Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.
situated mobility — Physical presence maintaining safety in world
Maintain safety.
#23584 · Core · 28% automatable
Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure conformance with specifications.
physical manipulation — Hands-on dimensional measurement of workpieces
Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
#23582 · Core · 5% automatable
Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.
physical manipulation — Manual welding requires dexterity and live judgment
Operate welding equipment.
#23600 · Core · 52% automatable
Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.
text generation — Notifying maintenance needs is routine messaging
Watch operating equipment to detect malfunctions. Notify others of equipment repair or maintenance needs.
#23585 · Core · 5% automatable
Recognize, set up, and operate hand and power tools common to the welding trade, such as shielded metal arc and gas metal arc welding equipment.
physical manipulation — Manual welding requires dexterity and live judgment
Operate welding equipment.
#23587 · Core · 30% automatable
Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.
decision support — Equipment selection against specs; human verifies fit
Select production equipment according to product specifications. Operate welding equipment.
#23592 · Core · 12% automatable
Mark or tag material with proper job number, piece marks, and other identifying marks as required.
physical manipulation — Marking workpieces is hands-on physical task
Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information.
#23590 · Core · 53% automatable
Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
decision support — Equipment selection against specs; human verifies fit
Determine metal or plastic production methods. Select production equipment according to product specifications.
#23594 · Core · 9% automatable
Prepare all material surfaces to be welded, ensuring that there is no loose or thick scale, slag, rust, moisture, grease, or other foreign matter.
physical manipulation — Hands-on cleaning of physical workpieces
Clean workpieces or finished products.
#23596 · Core · 6% automatable
Align and clamp workpieces together, using rules, squares, or hand tools, or position items in fixtures, jigs, or vises.
physical manipulation — Aligning parts for assembly needs hands and judgment
Align parts or workpieces to ensure proper assembly.
#23589 · Core · 15% automatable
Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.
physical manipulation — Manual gas flow control adjustment
Adjust equipment controls to regulate gas flow.
#23599 · Core · 5% automatable
Position and secure workpieces, using hoists, cranes, wire, and banding machines or hand tools.
physical manipulation — Mounting workpieces is physical loading
Mount materials or workpieces onto production equipment.
#23602 · Core · 8% automatable
Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.
physical manipulation — Soldering requires fine manual dexterity
Melt metal, plastic, or other materials to prepare for production. Solder parts or workpieces.
#23591 · Core · 25% automatable
Monitor the fitting, burning, and welding processes to avoid overheating of parts or warping, shrinking, distortion, or expansion of material.
visual inspection — Physical product flaw monitoring is on-machine
Monitor equipment operation to ensure that products are not flawed.
#23603 · Core · 8% automatable
Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.
physical manipulation — Grinding requires hands-on control and feel
Reshape metal workpieces to established specifications. Cut industrial materials in preparation for fabrication or processing. Operate grinding equipment.
#23586 · Core · 5% automatable
Weld separately or in combination, using aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron, and other alloys.
physical manipulation — Manual welding requires dexterity and live judgment
Operate welding equipment.
#23593 · Core · 10% automatable
Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
physical manipulation — Grinding requires hands-on control and feel
Trim excess material from workpieces. Operate grinding equipment.
#23597 · Core · 68% automatable
Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.
visual inspection — Generates template designs; aesthetic fit needs human review
Design templates or patterns.
#23604 · Core · 7% automatable
Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
physical manipulation — Physical disassembly and reassembly of parts
Reshape metal workpieces to established specifications. Disassemble equipment for maintenance or repair. Repair parts or assemblies.
#23601 · Core · 9% automatable
Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.
physical manipulation — Grinding requires hands-on control and feel
Clean production equipment. Operate grinding equipment.
#23608 · Core · 4% automatable
Hammer out bulges or bends in metal workpieces.
physical manipulation — Hammering metal is physical hand work
Shape metal workpieces with hammers or other small hand tools.
#23605 · Supplemental · 28% automatable
Check grooves, angles, or gap allowances, using micrometers, calipers, and precision measuring instruments.
physical manipulation — Hands-on dimensional measurement of workpieces
Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
#23609 · Supplemental · 8% automatable
Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.
physical manipulation — Soldering requires fine manual dexterity
Melt metal, plastic, or other materials to prepare for production. Solder parts or workpieces.
#23588 · Supplemental · 7% automatable
Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
physical manipulation — Physical ignition of heating equipment
Ignite fuel to activate heating equipment. Operate welding equipment.
#23598 · Supplemental · 5% automatable
Guide and direct flames or electrodes on or across workpieces to straighten, bend, melt, or build up metal.
physical manipulation — Manual welding requires dexterity and live judgment
Operate welding equipment.
#23610 · Supplemental · 8% automatable
Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies.
physical manipulation — Firefighting equipment operated in hazardous physical space
Operate firefighting equipment.
#23595 · Supplemental · 8% automatable
Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.
physical manipulation — Heating workpieces requires physical operation
Heat material or workpieces to prepare for or complete production.
#23607 · Supplemental · 10% automatable
Set up and use ladders and scaffolding as necessary to complete work.
physical manipulation — Erecting temporary structures requires physical assembly
Assemble temporary equipment or structures.
#23606 · Supplemental · 12% automatable
Operate metal shaping, straightening, and bending machines, such as brakes and shears.
physical manipulation — Metal and plastic forming equipment run by hand
Operate metal or plastic forming equipment.
#23611 · Core · 66% automatable
Analyze engineering drawings, blueprints, specifications, sketches, work orders, and material safety data sheets to plan layout, assembly, and operations.
visual inspection — Blueprints need spatial reading, human verifies sequence
Review blueprints or other instructions to determine operational methods or sequences.
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How this was scored
- 1. Tasks. O*NET task statements for this occupation, from a release whose newest record is dated 08/2026.
- 2. Work activities. Each task maps to 1–5 Detailed Work Activities; each activity belongs to one of 41 Generalized Work Activities that O*NET rates for importance (1–5) in this occupation.
- 3. Automation potential. Every work activity carries one score for how far current AI can perform it end-to-end. Tasks inherit the mean of their activities.
- 4. Weighting. Task weight = 0.35 + 0.65 × (importance − 1)/4, scaled by how often the task is performed and by 0.7 for Supplemental tasks. Importance is the task's own O*NET rating where it exists (18,369 of 18,838 tasks); the rest inherit their work activities' importance. The index is the weighted mean.
Check: across the 910 occupations where O*NET also rates how far machine speed sets the pace, this index moves opposite to it (Spearman ρ = -0.49). The more a job is paced by equipment, the less of its task content AI can address — the relationship you would expect if the scoring is working.
Sources · O*NET 31.0 (task records to 08/2026) · BLS OEWS May 2025 · BLS projections 2025-2035 · rubric v2.1 · tasks for O*NET, not a forecast
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