Related job titles are: Auto Body Technician, Body Technician, Auto Body Repairman, Automotive Painter, Auto Body Repair Technician, Auto Body Repairer, Autobody Technician.
How Much Does an Auto Body Technician Make? | Auto Repair Technician Salary
The median yearly salary for automotive body and related repairers was $38,130 in May 2010 (the most recent data available). This median salary is simply the salary where half the employees earned more and half earned a lesser amount. Employees in the lower 10 percent had an annual salary less than $22,990, and those employees in the top 10 percent earned greater then $64,320. The majority of repair shops and auto dealers pay repair technicians on an incentive basis.
What Does an Auto Body Technician Do? | Job Description
Automotive body and glass repairers can repair most damage from everyday vehicle collisions and make vehicles look and drive like new. Damage may be minor, such as replacing a cracked windshield, or major, such as replacing an entire door panel. Repair technicians use many tools for their work. To remove damaged parts, such as bumpers and door panels, they use pneumatic tools, metal-cutting guns, and plasma cutters. For major structural repairs, such as aligning the body, they often use heavy-duty hydraulic jacks and hammers. For some work, they use common handtools, such as metal files, pliers, wrenches, hammers, and screwdrivers.
How to Become an Auto Body Technician?
Most employers prefer to hire repair technicians who have completed a formal training program in automotive body repair or refinishing. Still, many new repair technicians begin work without formal training. Industry certification is increasingly important.
Auto Body Technician Classes and Courses | Degree Programs
High school, trade and technical school, and community college programs in collision repair combine hands-on practice and classroom instruction. Topics usually include electronics, physics, and mathematics, which provide a strong educational foundation for a career as a repair technician. Although not required, career college education often provides the best preparation. Trade and technical school programs typically award certificates after 6 months to 1 year of study. Some community colleges offer associate's degree programs in collision repair.
Auto Body Technician Jobs | Who is Hiring?
Job opportunities should be very good for jobseekers with industry certification and formal training in automotive body repair and refinishing and in collision repair. Furthermore, demand for qualified workers with knowledge of specific technologies, materials, and makes and models of cars should create new job opportunities. Those without any training or experience will face strong competition for jobs.
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