Fence Erectors
Erect and repair fences and fence gates, using hand and power tools.
Most important skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Coordination
- Time Management
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
Key knowledge
- Customer and Personal Service
- Building and Construction
- Transportation
- Administration and Management
- Design
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Education and Training
What the work involves
- Establish the location for a fence, and gather information needed to ensure that there are no electric cables or water lines in the area.
- Align posts, by lines or sighting, and verify vertical alignment of posts, using plumb bobs or spirit levels.
- Measure and lay out fence lines and mark posthole positions, following instructions, drawings, or specifications.
- Dig postholes, using spades, posthole diggers, or power-driven augers.
- Set metal or wooden posts in upright positions in postholes.
- Discuss fencing needs with customers, and estimate and quote prices.
- Mix and pour concrete around bases of posts, or tamp soil into postholes to embed posts.
- Make rails for fences, by sawing lumber or by cutting metal tubing to required lengths.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) (47.5% of respondents)
- Related experience
- None (31.5%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (36.9%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 2: Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Fence Erectors is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Lower on contact with others than 54% of occupations compared | 65% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | High | Higher on dealing with the public than 60% of occupations compared | 31% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Low | Lower on teamwork than 69% of occupations compared | 37% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Moderate | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 59% of occupations compared | 62% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very high | Higher on time pressure than 91% of occupations compared | 56% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | High | Higher on conflict situations than 75% of occupations compared | 53% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 82% of occupations compared | 39% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Consequence of error | Very high | Higher on consequence of error than 91% of occupations compared | 57% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very high
- Conflict situations: high
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very low
- Consequence of error: very high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 0%
- Contact with others about half the time: 30.95%
- Contact with others most of the time: 3.79%
- Constant contact with others: 65.26%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 1.76%
- Fairly important: 24.19%
- Important: 11.73%
- Very important: 31.15%
- Extremely important: 31.17%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 33.72%
- Very important: 29.58%
- Extremely important: 36.7%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 7.17%
- Some freedom: 62.48%
- A lot of freedom: 30.35%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 3.85%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 39.82%
- Every day: 56.33%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2019
Conflict situations
- Never: 4.94%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 25.6%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 14.29%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 53.17%
- Every day: 2%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 27.36%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 28.02%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 38.64%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 2.59%
- Every day: 3.39%
n = 18, Incumbent 08/2019
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 1.24%
- Fairly serious: 4.77%
- Serious: 32.58%
- Very serious: 4.68%
- Extremely serious: 56.73%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2019
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O*NET-SOC 47-4031.00 · SOC 47-4031 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8