How much do ironworkers make in Missouri in 2026?

Ironworkers in Missouri earn a median wage of $77,410 per year, which works out to roughly $37.22 per hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That median sits in a range that runs from $58,520 at the 25th percentile up to $81,800 at the 75th percentile. In hourly terms, that's about $28.13/hr at the low end and $39.33/hr at the high end. All figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025.

The gap between the 25th and 75th percentile — roughly $23,280 per year — is meaningful. It reflects real differences in experience, specialty, employer type, and geography within the state. An ironworker just starting out or working for a smaller regional contractor is more likely to land near that $28.13/hr mark. A journeyman with years of structural steel, reinforcing iron, or ornamental work under their belt, especially one working on large commercial or infrastructure projects, pushes toward and past the $39.33/hr figure.

Missouri has a steady pipeline of ironworker demand. The St. Louis metro area is the largest construction market in the state, with ongoing commercial builds, bridge work, and industrial projects that keep structural ironworkers busy. Kansas City is the other major hub, with significant infrastructure investment and industrial construction contributing to consistent employment. Workers in these two metros generally have more access to large-project work that supports higher pay. Ironworkers in smaller Missouri cities and rural areas may find fewer large-scale jobs available, which can keep wages closer to the 25th percentile.

Specialty matters a lot in this trade. Structural ironworkers who erect steel frames on high-rises or industrial facilities tend to command higher rates than reinforcing ironworkers placing rebar on residential or light commercial work. Ornamental ironworkers and those certified for welding or rigging often have additional leverage when negotiating pay, particularly on union-affiliated projects. No union scale data is available for Missouri ironworkers in this dataset, so the figures above represent the full market across union and non-union employers.

Overtime is a significant part of total compensation in this trade. Ironwork is deadline-driven — when steel needs to go up, it goes up, often before or after standard hours. Workers logging regular overtime at time-and-a-half can meaningfully boost their annual take-home beyond what base hourly rates suggest. A worker earning $37.22/hr base who averages 10 hours of overtime per week could add well over $14,000 annually to their earnings.

Certifications and endorsements also shift the pay needle. OSHA 30-hour cards, crane signaling certification, welding credentials (particularly AWS D1.1 structural), and rigging qualifications all make an ironworker more deployable on complex jobs — and contractors pay for that flexibility. If you're sitting at the 25th percentile and looking to move up, adding a verifiable skill that expands what you can legally and safely do on a job site is one of the most direct paths to a raise.

Benefits vary by employer. Union ironworkers typically access defined-benefit pension plans, health coverage, and annuity funds as part of their total package. Non-union workers may receive employer-sponsored health insurance and retirement contributions, but the structure and value differ widely. When comparing job offers, it's worth converting benefits to dollar values — a job at $36/hr with strong health and pension benefits can easily beat a $40/hr position with minimal benefits when you run the full-year math.

The BLS OEWS data used here covers all ironworker subcategories — structural, reinforcing, and ornamental — as reported by Missouri employers in May 2025. It represents what workers are actually being paid in the state right now, not projections or estimates from surveys of job postings.