What Do Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers Do (including Their Typical Day At Work)

Job Description

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. They also determine quantities, sizes, shapes, and locations of reinforcing rods from blueprints, sketches, or oral instructions.

Other tasks include:

• Space and fasten together rods in forms according to blueprints, using wire and pliers.
• Position and secure steel bars, rods, cables, or mesh in concrete forms, using fasteners, rod-bending machines, blowtorches, or hand tools.
• Cut rods to required lengths, using metal shears, hacksaws, bar cutters, or acetylene torches.
• 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.
• Bend steel rods with hand tools or rodbending machines and weld them with arc-welding equipment.

We asked Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.

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63% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 56% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.

Typical Day At Work

On a daily basis, Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers space and fasten together rods in forms according to blueprints, using wire and pliers. They place blocks under rebar to hold the bars off the deck when reinforcing floors.

A typical day for a Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Worker will also include:

• Cut rods to required lengths, using metal shears, hacksaws, bar cutters, or acetylene torches.
• 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.
• Bend steel rods with hand tools or rodbending machines and weld them with arc-welding equipment.
• Cut and fit wire mesh or fabric, using hooked rods, and position fabric or mesh in concrete to reinforce concrete.

We asked some Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.

	Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job?	50% said yes
	How important is it to work in a team in this job?	45% said very important
	Do you have group discussions everyday in this job?	68% said yes
	Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job?	10% said yes
	Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job?	17% said yes
	Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job?	33% said yes

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers also bend steel rods with hand tools or rodbending machines and weld them with arc-welding equipment. They may also cut and fit wire mesh or fabric, using hooked rods, and position fabric or mesh in concrete to reinforce concrete.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers Cut rods to required lengths, using metal shears, hacksaws, bar cutters, or acetylene torches. They might also Place blocks under rebar to hold the bars off the deck when reinforcing floors.

In addition, they Position and secure steel bars, rods, cables, or mesh in concrete forms, using fasteners, rod-bending machines, blowtorches, or hand tools.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them Space and fasten together rods in forms according to blueprints, using wire and pliers.

To some Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers, it is also their responsibility to Determine quantities, sizes, shapes, and locations of reinforcing rods from blueprints, sketches, or oral instructions.

Working life

Standard 40 hour work week

Irregular work schedule that changes depending on weather conditions, customer demand or contract duration.

In a typical work week as a Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Worker, you can expect to work 40 hour work week.

Is this right for me

People who are suitable for this job tends to like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery..

They also like following set procedures and routines. They like working with data and details more than with ideas.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

Explore other careers

http://www.bls.gov/OOH/construction-and-extraction/structural-iron-and-steel-workers.htm

http://www.ironworkers.org/

http://www.nccer.org/curriculum?mID=86

http://www.abc.org/