I agree. I had no real idea what pipefitters were making, but the wages did sound low- I do know those guys are paid well, at least by those who do want the job done right.
I worked in construction years ago, before illegals flooded the business, thank goodness. The company my daughter works for is a real upstanding company and they do dangerous work on some sites, yet they have one of the best safety records nation wide. They are not afraid to pay good wages to get good help and they do not hire illegals. Of course when they advertise jobs they can get workers. That's what made me skeptical of this story.
Just got off the phone and what they are hiring is structual fitters starting at $15 an hour, thats about right for structual.