Boilermaker
Heavy fabrication trade making and repairing pressure vessels, tanks and structural steel. Overlaps with welding and metal fabrication.
Jobs, demand and who does this work
Figures for the ANZSCO occupation Metal Fabricator (322311), the closest official match for boilermaker, from Your Career (Jobs and Skills Australia data, sourced 2026-09-23).
- Median weekly earnings (full-time)
- $1,755
- People employed
- 42,600
- Future demand
- Stable
- Work full-time
- 91%
- Average full-time hours
- 47 a week
- Women
- 1%
- Median age
- 38
Where the jobs are (share of workers)
| NSW | 23.3% |
| VIC | 18% |
| QLD | 27.2% |
| WA | 19.9% |
| SA | 7.6% |
| TAS | 2.5% |
| ACT | 0.4% |
| NT | 1% |
Highest qualification held by workers
| Postgraduate qualification | 0.3% |
| Bachelor degree | 1.8% |
| Diploma or advanced diploma | 2.8% |
| Certificate I-IV | 72.7% |
| Year 12 | 8.9% |
| Below Year 12 | 11.5% |
What a boilermaker actually does
Boilermaking is the heavy end of metal trades. Days usually start 6 to 7am in a workshop or on a maintenance shutdown. Workshop days mix reading drawings, marking out plate steel, cutting with oxy or plasma, setting up jigs and welding heavy sections (often stick or MIG, with TIG used for thinner stainless work). Sparks, grinder noise and heat define the day. Shutdown work on mine sites or refineries is intense - 10 to 12 hour shifts, 14 days on, 7 off, doing repairs on pressure vessels, conveyor structures, chutes and dump trucks. Site work means lots of PPE: respirator for welding fumes, leather jacket, shields and ear protection. Most boilermakers carry strong welding tickets across MMAW, FCAW and pressure-vessel codes. After-hours shutdown call-outs are common in maintenance work. Earnings are some of the best in the trades once you have the high-pressure tickets.
Skills you'll use
- Reading fabrication drawings and AS/NZS 1554 welding standards
- Marking out, cutting and rolling plate steel
- MIG, MMAW and FCAW welding to position
- TIG welding for stainless and pressure work
- Reading weld procedure specifications and producing WPS test welds
- Use of oxy-fuel, plasma and air-arc gouging
- Working at heights and confined-space entry
How to become one
- 1Finish Year 10 with maths, English and ideally engineering studies
- 2Get a White Card (CPCWHS1001) for construction or site induction for mining
- 3Sign a 4-year apprenticeship with a fabrication workshop or maintenance contractor
- 4Complete the MEM31925 Certificate III in Engineering - Fabrication Trade through TAFE
- 5Pass weld qualification tests under AS/NZS 1554 or pressure-vessel codes as required by employer
- 6Add a working-at-heights, confined-space and rigging ticket if pursuing shutdown maintenance
Where you can work
- General engineering and fabrication workshops
- Mining and resources sites (WA Pilbara, central QLD, NT)
- Oil and gas refineries and LNG plants
- Power stations and renewable-energy projects
- Heavy-vehicle and trailer manufacturers
- Marine and shipbuilding yards
- Self-employed mobile welding business
Career progression
Typical stages and roles. Apprentice and tradesperson pay is set by the modern award or enterprise agreement that covers the job; check it with the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool.
- Apprentice4 yearsTypical roles: First-year apprentice boilermaker, Fourth-year apprentice boilermaker
- Tradesperson0-4 yearsTypical roles: Workshop boilermaker, Maintenance boilermaker, Structural fabricator
- Leading hand or shutdown5-10 yearsTypical roles: Leading hand, Shutdown boilermaker (FIFO), Welding supervisor
- Subcontractor or business owner8+ yearsTypical roles: Sole-trader fabricator, Mobile welding contractor, Fabrication shop owner
Is this for you?
You might love this if
- You're comfortable lifting and moving heavy steel sections
- You can hold steady technique through long welds
- You don't mind shutdown rosters away from home
- You're tolerant of noise, fumes and heat for an 8-12 hour day
- You can read drawings and visualise a 3D structure
This might not suit you if
- You can't commit to 4 years of low apprentice pay
- You have lung, eye or skin conditions made worse by welding fumes and UV
- You can't tolerate weeks away from home on FIFO rosters
- You have a back injury that limits heavy lifting and overhead work
Entry requirements
- Year 10 or equivalent
- A signed apprenticeship training contract with a host employer.
State licensing
Not nationally licensed. Some states impose contractor licensing once work exceeds a value threshold.
| State | Licensing authority |
|---|---|
| NSW | No trade-specific licence listed |
| VIC | No trade-specific licence listed |
| QLD | No trade-specific licence listed |
| SA | No trade-specific licence listed |
| WA | No trade-specific licence listed |
| TAS | No trade-specific licence listed |
| NT | No trade-specific licence listed |
| ACT | No trade-specific licence listed |