Certified welder that can not find a job

[CAVEMANN]

I went in to a CIRCLE K one night to grab a drink for the ride home, the kid behind the counter was freaked out to the max, piercings, and a set of gages in his ears like nothing I had ever seen, They looked like round eyeglass lenses or magnifying glass lenses, I wanted to ask him if they wouldn't be more useful in front of his eyeballs, but left it alone.Often these things can pose safety hazards to them. Point is, these kids do all this stuff to their bodies, yes it's their right to look like a freak, but it's also an employer's right to send em down the road, if ya wanna look like a freak then be self employed or deal with the repercussions.

[kolot]

First, if you have put in hours of weld training and hold valid certs you do have welding experience and should be proud of that and know you are still above many who have 0 skill or training. Now as you have found mainstream companies want seasoned experienced guys. What you may need to do is seek welding employment in places where seasoned welders don't want to work. For instance, You are in a busy area, Houston, I'm sure with all the building and industry there you must have Sanitation companies, garbage trucks, dumpster companies. Well these things take a tremendous beating daily and have to be repaired all the time, constantly. It's not glorious work, but you will have to work on thin and thick materials, painted, rusted, as well as clean new material for patches and also you will have to hone your skills straightening and squaring things that are really out of shape. This is dirty work and these companies , in my experience, have a hard time getting and keeping help.
Other companies you may try would be fence and guard rail fabricators or anyone who deals with galvanized materials, again not a big draw for experienced welders. If you can weld galvanized , you can weld anything. My point, if you cant get into the popular jobs, go for the unpopular jobs to get a foot in the door.
I'm not telling you to settle on this for life, I am saying from what you stated you are willing to take the **** to break in. What you want to do is get any welding job, If nothing else you now have continued access to welding equipment and material, come in a little early and practice new things, learn how to torch cut so you don't have to grind for an hour, practice at lunch, I DID, practice after work till they throw you out. If your mig welding, find a reason to use the stick welder, then find a reason to use different rods than they give you normally. If they give you a torch, learn how to use it, then tell them it works but a plasma cutter is much faster. Avoid the cry babies and listen to the guys who can produce. Old timer I started with gave me some good advice when I was 18, I will pass it on to you and anybody here who hasn't heard it, "Steal With Your Eyes" can't be arrested for it. Pay attention, watch what others do. If your don't know , don't fake it, ask questions.
Good Luck, Post back when you land your job. Welcome to a dirty hard trade. In my case I can't go far in my area without driving over a highway bridge I didn't weld on, feels good, brings back memories , pride.