Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers
Also called: Concrete Buster, Concrete Rod Buster, Concrete Worker, Field Ironworker, Iron Installer, Iron Worker, Ironworker, Ironworker Journeyman
Position and secure steel bars or mesh in concrete forms in order to reinforce concrete.
What reinforcing iron and rebar workers do
Typical tasks
- 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.
- Bend steel rods with hand tools or rod-bending machines and weld them with arc-welding equipment.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers salary
The median annual wage for reinforcing iron and rebar workers is $58,970 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $43,310 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $104,540. The mean annual wage is $66,060.
The mean hourly wage of $31.00 is 4.3× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $58,970 → in 3 years $64,200 → in 5 years $67,900 → in 10 years $78,200 (10-year range $67,200–$90,700). The model assumes pay growth of +2.9% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers United States | 鉄筋工 Japan | |
|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $58,970 | ¥4.15M ≈ $26,360 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $78,200 | ¥5.51M |
| Outlook score | 48 | 57 |
| AI replacement risk | 7% Very low | 18% Very low |
| Workers | 14K | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 2 — some preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★☆☆ Moderate (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become reinforcing iron and rebar workers
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as reinforcing iron and rebar workers
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.