Steeplejack
Impact: Preserving the heritage buildings, industrial structures, and renewable energy infrastructure that define the built environment
Work at extreme heights on chimneys, steeples, towers, and tall industrial structures to carry out inspection, repair, maintenance, and demolition work using traditional and modern access techniques. Erect scaffolding and steeplejack ladders; inspect and repair masonry, brickwork, and metalwork at height; install lightning conductors; dismantle chimney stacks; and carry out rope access work. Develop expertise in a specific steeplejack domain such as industrial chimneys, church steeples, or wind turbine towers.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- 50% Team / 50% Solo
- Client facing
- Sometimes
- Impact visibility
- Very High
- Travel
- 50-80% travel to sites
- Schedule flexibility
- Moderate
- Remote work
- On-site Only
- Typical work hours
- 40-55 hours/week
- Stress level
- High
At a glance
- Median salary
- $55,000
- Entry-level
- $28,000 - $42,000
- Senior
- $90,000+
- Growth by 2033
- 5% (heritage building maintenance and wind turbine inspection driving demand)
- Demand
- Growing
- Freelance potential
- High
- Salary growth potential
- Very High -- 100-200% growth from apprentice to steeplejack company owner
- Typical student debt
- $0 - $5,000
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Rope access (IRATA Level 1-3)
- Scaffolding erection
- Masonry and brickwork repair at height
- Lightning conductor installation
- Industrial chimney inspection and repair
- Working at height regulations (WAH)
Soft skills
- Physical fitness
- Attention to detail
- Safety awareness
- Problem-solving
- Reliability
Technical complexity: High
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Certificate or Vocational Training
- Licensing
- Yes
- Years to mid-career
- 3-5 years
- Years to senior
- 7-15 years
- Career switching
- Hard
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
- Scaffolder
- Bricklayer
Where you can go from here
- Senior Steeplejack
- Steeplejack Company Owner
Typical progression
- Steeplejack Apprentice
- Steeplejack
- Senior Steeplejack
- Steeplejack Company Owner
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- 5% -- steeplejack work requires human dexterity and judgment at extreme heights
- AI disruption risk
- Very Low
- Demand trend
- Growing
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 8.5/10
- Meaning
- 8.5/10
- Work-life balance
- 7/10
- Prestige
- 7.5/10
- Social perception
- High