Money · 1 of 5
What metal fabricators make
Journeyperson
$60,000
1st-year apprentice
$44,000
Lead hand or industrial
$90,000
Job Bank's national median is $29 an hour, about $60,000 a year full time. Shipyards, oil and gas fabrication and unionized structural steel shops pay at the top; small job shops pay near the bottom.