Construction and Extraction · Holland code RC

Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers

Position and secure steel bars or mesh in concrete forms in order to reinforce concrete. Use a variety of fasteners, rod-bending machines, blowtorches, and hand tools. Includes rod busters.

Also called: Iron Installer, Iron Worker, Ironworker, Rodbuster, Field Ironworker, Ironworker Journeyman, Ironworker Laborer, Reinforced Ironworker.

O*NET 47-2171.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $58,970; Middle half earn $47,990 to $77,320. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Position and secure steel bars, rods, cables, or mesh in concrete forms, using fasteners, rod-bending machines, blowtorches, or hand tools.
Determine quantities, sizes, shapes, and locations of reinforcing rods from blueprints, sketches, or oral instructions.
Space and fasten together rods in forms according to blueprints, using wire and pliers.
Use forklifts or cranes to move construction material, such as rebar.
Cut rods to required lengths, using metal shears, hacksaws, bar cutters, or acetylene torches.
Unload rebar from trucks.
Place blocks under rebar to hold the bars off the deck when reinforcing floors.
Cut and fit wire mesh or fabric, using hooked rods, and position fabric or mesh in concrete to reinforce concrete.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Critical Thinking3.0 / 5
Monitoring2.9 / 5
Reading Comprehension2.6 / 5
Active Listening2.6 / 5
Speaking2.6 / 5
Mathematics2.4 / 5

Knowledge areas

Building and Construction4.7 / 5
Mathematics3.9 / 5
Design3.5 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.4 / 5
Engineering and Technology3.4 / 5
Production and Processing3.4 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic100
Investigative20
Artistic2
Social3
Enterprising6
Conventional42

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

structural ironworker · DE Metallbauer – Konstruktionstechnik/Metallbauerin – Konstruktionstechnik · FR charpentier en structures métalliques/charpentière en structures métalliques

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Steel erectors (5311)8,200 employed
Boat and ship builders and repairers (5235)9,900 employed
Metal plate workers, smiths, moulders and related occupations (5212)10,700 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Craft and related trades workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Craft and related trades workers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€40,086
Germany	€38,638
Austria	€38,194
Sweden	€37,856
Netherlands	€37,077
Ireland	€36,098
France	€27,145
Italy	€26,488
Spain	€22,817
Portugal	€11,142
Poland	€10,099

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -1.97. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (47-2171).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

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