How to hire welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders
A job description you can copy, interview questions tied to the real work, and what to pay. Free.
Job description template
Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.
[Job title] at [Company name] [City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range] About the role [Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.] What you will do • Correct problems by adjusting controls or by stopping machines and opening holding devices. • Inspect, measure, or test completed metal workpieces to ensure conformance to specifications, using measuring and testing devices. • Lay out, fit, or connect parts to be bonded, calculating production measurements, as necessary. • Prepare metal surfaces or workpieces, using hand-operated equipment, such as grinders, cutters, or drills. • Read blueprints, work orders, or production schedules to determine product or job instructions or specifications. • Record operational information on specified production reports. • Select torch tips, alloys, flux, coil, tubing, or wire, according to metal types or thicknesses, data charts, or records. • Set up, operate, or tend welding machines that join or bond components to fabricate metal products or assemblies. What you bring • [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any] • [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: High school diploma or equivalent] • Strong active listening, critical thinking, monitoring, reading comprehension and speaking skills • Working knowledge of production and processing and administration and management • [Anything else you would really turn someone away for] Pay and benefits [Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $23.04 an hour ($47,920 a year). [Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.] How to apply [Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]
Interview questions for welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders
Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.
- Tell me about a time you had to correct problems by adjusting controls or by stopping machines and opening holding devices. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to inspect, measure, or test completed metal workpieces to ensure conformance to specifications, using measuring and testing devices. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to lay out, fit, or connect parts to be bonded, calculating production measurements, as necessary. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to prepare metal surfaces or workpieces, using hand-operated equipment, such as grinders, cutters, or drills. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
- Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
- How do you keep track of your own work quality during a busy shift or week? Give an example of catching a problem early.
- Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?
Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.
What welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders do
- Correct problems by adjusting controls or by stopping machines and opening holding devices.
- Inspect, measure, or test completed metal workpieces to ensure conformance to specifications, using measuring and testing devices.
- Lay out, fit, or connect parts to be bonded, calculating production measurements, as necessary.
- Prepare metal surfaces or workpieces, using hand-operated equipment, such as grinders, cutters, or drills.
- Read blueprints, work orders, or production schedules to determine product or job instructions or specifications.
- Record operational information on specified production reports.
- Select torch tips, alloys, flux, coil, tubing, or wire, according to metal types or thicknesses, data charts, or records.
- Set up, operate, or tend welding machines that join or bond components to fabricate metal products or assemblies.
Skills that matter most
Education, experience and outlook for welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Typical education to start: High school diploma or equivalent (BLS)
- Related work experience most have: 6 months to 1 year (O*NET)
- Training on the job: Moderate-term on-the-job training (BLS)
- Job outlook: -8.9% over ten years, declining · about 2,500 openings a year (BLS)
What to pay welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders
Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:
| State | Median yearly pay |
|---|---|
| Wisconsin | $57,640 |
| Minnesota | $57,560 |
| Nebraska | $57,280 |
| Missouri | $56,210 |
| New Jersey | $53,680 |
| Michigan | $42,530 |
| Florida | $41,420 |
| Alabama | $40,050 |
See welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders pay in every state
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Post a job freePay by areaJob duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.