Getting in
How to become an ironworker in Ontario
You become an ironworker in Ontario through an apprenticeship — paid, on-the-job training with in-school levels, finishing with the 420A (structural & ornamental, voluntary) — often paired with 452A reinforcing Certificate of Qualification (voluntary for this trade, but it is the credential employers recognize). You earn from day one, typically starting around half of journeyperson rate and stepping up each level.
Structural Steel at a glance
- Licence to do the work
- Not required as a trade — but structural welding needs CWB qualification
- Path in
- Ironworkers union apprenticeship (420A) — about 3–4 years
- Regulated by
- CWB (welding); engineered drawings govern the work
- Insurance baseline
- $5M CGL on commercial sites
- Union route
- Ironworkers locals — the dominant route
The path, step by step
- 1
Line up a sponsor
An apprenticeship needs an employer or union training centre willing to register and train you. For this trade that usually means a steel erector, or the Ironworkers union training centre. Cold-calling shops with a resume and any safety tickets (WHMIS, Working at Heights) in hand still works — contractors are chronically short of apprentices.
- 2
Register the apprenticeship
You and your sponsor sign a training agreement through Ontario's apprenticeship system, and you register with Skilled Trades Ontario. Registration is what makes your hours count.
Start an apprenticeship — ontario.ca - 3
Do the hours and the school
Complete the on-the-job hours and in-school levels for the trade — about 3–4 years of hours plus in-school levels. The in-school blocks run at colleges and union training centres; you alternate between earning on site and learning in class.
- 4
Write the Certificate of Qualification exam
When your hours and schooling are done, you book and write the C of Q exam with Skilled Trades Ontario. We wrote a full operator-level guide to the last mile — closing out the logbook, booking, prep, and exam day.
Full guide: 420A Ironworker (Structural & Ornamental) - 5
Then: CWB welding tickets
CWB qualification (CSA W178.2) is what lets you weld structural connections — the credential that moves you from bolting to the best-paid work on the steel.
Full guide: 420A Ironworker (Structural & Ornamental)
Already an apprentice closing in on your ticket? Skip ahead. Our Last Mile guide covers closing out the logbook, booking the C of Q exam, what to expect on exam day, and the credentials that stack on top. 420A Ironworker (Structural & Ornamental) →
The real picture
Ironwork carries the most mythology and the most real danger of the trades, and the questions are honest about both: is it as dangerous as they say, structural vs rebar vs ornamental, is the union the only real way in (mostly yes), and how the welding ticket multiplies your pay. It's high, it's hard, and it pays accordingly — and almost everyone respects the people who do it.
What you'll actually make
From day one to the top of the trade. Ontario figures, approximate and worth verifying against current rates.
Apprentice
A % of journeyperson rateRising each level through the Ironworkers apprenticeship.
Journeyperson ironworker (420A)
$40–52/hr + pensionIronwork is overwhelmingly union (Ironworkers locals) with strong benefits.
CWB-certified welder ironworker
PremiumCertified welders are the best-paid hands on the steel.
Foreman / general foreman
MoreRunning raising gangs and the job.
Steel erector / misc-steel contractor
Business incomeOwning an erection or fabrication shop.
Which lane is right for you
Structural vs reinforcing vs ornamental
Structural (420A)
Erecting the steel skeleton — high steel, connecting, raising gangs. The dangerous, iconic, well-paid end; connectors are the elite.
Pay: Top of the trade.
Best for: People with a head for heights and nerve.
Reinforcing / rodwork (452A)
Rebar and post-tensioning — ground-level, bent-over, hard on the back, but steady and a more accessible entry.
Pay: Steady.
Best for: People who want ironwork without the high steel.
Ornamental
Railings, stairs, curtain-wall steel, and architectural metal — finish-end and fabrication-adjacent.
Pay: Varies.
Best for: People who like detail and fabrication.
The welding multiplier
Get CWB-certified
CWB / CSA W178 welding qualifications are the pay multiplier in ironwork — certified structural welders earn well above non-welding rates and are first hired.
Best for: Anyone who wants the top of the pay scale.
Getting in
Almost entirely through the Ironworkers union apprenticeship — intakes are competitive and screen for aptitude and a genuine head for heights. The 420A is a voluntary certificate, but the union route is what defines and dominates the trade. You apply, test, and get placed with an erector; the apprenticeship combines on-the-job time with technical and welding training.
Where it leads (and the way out)
The danger and the body make the exit ramps important: foreman and superintendent, steel detailing and estimating, welding inspection (CWB), safety, or owning an erection/miscellaneous-steel shop. Many ironworkers move into supervision, the fabrication shop, or inspection as the years (and the heights) add up. Welding inspection in particular is a respected, well-paid landing off the steel.
Where the real conversations are
The communities, official bodies, and wage data tradespeople actually use.
Go to the source
The official pages that govern this trade. Bookmark these, they are the final word on requirements and fees.