Roofers
Cover roofs of structures with shingles, slate, asphalt, aluminum, wood, or related materials. May spray roofs, sidings, and walls with material to bind, seal, insulate, or soundproof sections of structures.
Most important skills
- Coordination
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Time Management
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Operations Monitoring
Key knowledge
- Building and Construction
- Mechanical
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Design
- Engineering and Technology
- Public Safety and Security
What the work involves
- Inspect problem roofs to determine the best repair procedures.
- Set up scaffolding to provide safe access to roofs.
- Cement or nail flashing strips of metal or shingle over joints to make them watertight.
- Install, repair, or replace single-ply roofing systems, using waterproof sheet materials such as modified plastics, elastomeric, or other asphaltic compositions.
- Cut felt, shingles, or strips of flashing to fit angles formed by walls, vents, or intersecting roof surfaces.
- Install vapor barriers or layers of insulation on flat roofs.
- Cover exposed nailheads with roofing cement or caulking to prevent water leakage or rust.
- Install partially overlapping layers of material over roof insulation surfaces, using chalk lines, gauges on shingling hatchets, or lines on shingles.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Enterprising.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) (58.4% of expert ratings)
- Related experience
- None (41.1%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months (40.6%)
- 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 Roofers 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 | High | Higher on contact with others than 66% of occupations compared | 81% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Moderate | Lower on dealing with the public than 59% of occupations compared | 35% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly important” |
| Teamwork | Very high | Higher on teamwork than 96% of occupations compared | 87% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 99% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Very little freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very high | Higher on time pressure than 95% of occupations compared | 73% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very low | Lower on conflict situations than 89% of occupations compared | 67% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 92% of occupations compared | 47% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | Very high | Higher on consequence of error than 92% of occupations compared | 65% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very high
- Conflict situations: very low
- 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: 11.73%
- Contact with others about half the time: 0%
- Contact with others most of the time: 7.35%
- Constant contact with others: 80.91%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 1.38%
- Fairly important: 34.86%
- Important: 25.49%
- Very important: 20.32%
- Extremely important: 17.96%
n = 16, Incumbent 08/2026
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 1.3%
- Very important: 11.73%
- Extremely important: 86.97%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 19.09%
- Very little freedom: 34.04%
- Limited freedom: 14.28%
- Some freedom: 30.05%
- A lot of freedom: 2.54%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 2.54%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 2.59%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 22.31%
- Every day: 72.56%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Conflict situations
- Never: 10.97%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 67.41%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 19.09%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0%
- Every day: 2.54%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 30.82%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 47.18%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 15.57%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 2.59%
- Every day: 3.84%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 1.3%
- Fairly serious: 13.03%
- Serious: 19.09%
- Very serious: 1.3%
- Extremely serious: 65.29%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
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O*NET-SOC 47-2181.00 · SOC 47-2181 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8