April is National Welding Month. Every year since 1996 National Welding Month has been an opportunity to promote and celebrate the achievements of the welding industry.
It’s a crucial time to raise awareness of job opportunities for young people in an industry that is facing a shortage of hundreds of thousands of skilled welding professionals. We need to inspire new welders and keep the industries thriving that rely on them.
“Welding is the secret ingredient that keeps today’s world together.”
10 ways to support National Welding Month
Welding Month isn’t just about self appreciation and thinking how great we are, it’s about taking an active part in progressing the industry. If you need some ideas, below are 10 things you can do to help support National Welding Month.
1. Be a teacher
There is an abundance of books, videos and articles available to people starting out welding, but there is nothing quite like getting in a workshop and seeing the equipment in action. April is a great month to reach out to people and show them around your workshop. Teach them techniques and what different things do. Show some of your projects and the great things you can achieve with a welder. Answer any questions and focus on inspiring them.
Fun facts are a great way to spark an interest. Try sharing a couple of these:
- Did you know that over 50% of all man made products undergo a welding process. Everything from cars, buildings, bridges, technology, healthcare and more. Pretty much anything that contains metal has been welded at some point.
- Welding processes improved significantly during WWII and were crucial to the war effort as welding replaced riveting. The fastest built ship was in 1942, the SS Robert E Peardy, which took just 4 days and 15 hours to build.
- Welding has been around for thousands of years. It started in the Bronze Age where metal was forged together by Blacksmiths to make tools, weapons and armour. There are even Hieroglyphics that depict welders
3. Talk to students
Talk to students about the great opportunities that are available in the welding industry. Many students are simply unaware of the job opportunities, salaries, and day-to-day life of skilled welding professionals. Speak to your local school and sign up to talk about your welding career and share your experience as a welder.
4. Donate to a welding charity
You can help support the welding industry by donating to a charitable organization such as the AWS Foundation who provide scholarships to students. There are also various organisations that help support veterans enter the welding industry, such as Hiring Our Heroes and Workshops for Warriors.
5. Write a blog post
Are you a business owner with a website and a blog? If so, try writing a blog post and adding it to your website. If you’re in an industry that relies on welders or works with welders, show your appreciation of the welding industry by writing about your relationship with them.
Similarly, if you have social media accounts you could add a post about National Welding Month. If you’re a welder by trade, share your story and talk about how you got into welding, the people you work with, what it entails and what your favorite parts of the profession are.
7. Inspire Change
Try and inspire change in your community. Wherever you are in the country, if you feel more needs to be done to help bring welders into the workforce, try and push for change. If your local vocational school doesn’t offer a welding program, get in touch and request a review. Raise issues with local politicians if you feel there isn’t enough emphasis on welding education.
8. Set up a partnership with a Welding School
If you’re an employer, speak to your local welding schools and try to set up partnerships to help them gain employment after certification. Help provide the skills needed to students to have a smooth transition into the workplace.
9. Help Boy Scouts earn a Welding Merit Badge
Help out at the local Boy Scouts so they can earn a Welding Merit Badge. Share your skills and stories and give them tips on how to achieve this. If you know kids in the local area who need things to do in their spare time, help them sign up for the Scouts to achieve their badge.
10. Thank a welder
Finally: Say thanks to the welders in your life! Such a crucial part of the economy that so often gets forgotten about, they deserve a thumbs up every now and then.
Happy National Welding Month!