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Hiring guide · Virginia
How to Hire a Roofer in Virginia
Recruit for the roof system, then assess installation and safety skills.
About this Guide
Hire roofers who prepare surfaces, install coverings and finish watertight details. This guide connects Virginia employers with apprenticeship, college and roofing training contacts. It also separates employee recruitment from contractor authorization, helping define supervision, access and installation duties for each project before assigning roof work.
Who's available right now
Virginia · this weekVerified roofers are on the market in Virginia this week
Candidate availability moves week to week. What does not move is the screening: the certifications below are what decide whether someone can be badged onto your site at all.
Understanding different hiring levels
The levels are separated by what the state allows a person to do unsupervised, not by how good they are. Hiring the wrong level is the most common and most expensive mistake on a trade requisition.
ACheapest to hireApprentice / helper0–2 yearsWorking toward their hours
Productive under supervision and cheap, but they cannot be left on a task the state licenses, and they need someone qualified with them.
- ✓Material handling and site preparation
- ✓Assist a qualified hand on installation
- ✓Housekeeping and tool staging
- ✕Cannot work unsupervised on licensed work
- ✕Cannot sign off their own work at inspection
JWhat most requisitions needJourneyman / qualified4–8 yearsHours complete, exam passed
Works unsupervised and can carry a helper. This is the level almost every requisition is actually describing.
- ✓Runs work without supervision
- ✓Builds from drawings
- ✓Carries one to three helpers
- ✓Handles inspection on their own work
- ✕Usually cannot pull permits in their own name
- ✕Cannot act as the licence-holder of record
MFor scope and sign-offMaster / lead8+ yearsTime served at journey level
Runs crews across sites, owns compliance outcomes, and where the trade allows, pulls permits and qualifies the work.
- ✓Runs crews across more than one site
- ✓Owns compliance and inspection outcomes
- ✓Estimates and scopes packages
- ✕Cannot trade as a business without a contractor licence, insurance and usually a bond
What a roofer costs in Virginia
Budget $23.28 an hour for a qualified roofer in Virginia, from $18.37 at entry level to $31.93 at the top. Add a quarter to a third on top for payroll taxes, insurance and equipment, and price overtime at time and a half.
See the full roofer salary guide →Legal & compliance checklist
Virginia licenses roofing businesses through contractor classes and scope, including ROC. Employees need task instruction and safe access. VOSH covers most workplaces, with federal exceptions. Classify workers and arrange required insurance.
Licence & verificationMust haveVerify against the issuing board, not the résumé.0 / 3
Safety & site accessMust haveWithout these they cannot be badged onto most sites.0 / 3
Employment & insuranceMust haveGetting the status wrong is the expensive mistake here.0 / 3
Practical & schedulingSite-drivenDriven by the site rather than by law, but they still stop a start date.0 / 3
Where to find them in Virginia
Contact Local 30's training office, PVCC Workforce Services and NRCA's workforce team about roofing recruitment and training.
Roofers Local 30
Piedmont Virginia Community College
National Roofing Contractors Association
Screen them properly
Certificates get a candidate past the first filter. These are the questions that separate the ones who can do the work from the ones who have the paperwork, and they change by level.
Interview questions that actually filter
Red flags on the résumé
Certifications listed with no issuing body or date
A licence described as 'in progress'
No supervisor anyone can call
Three or four employers inside a year
Long gaps with no explanation offered
Cards that lapsed and were never renewed
How long the hire takes
A realistic schedule for a certified roofer, from writing the requisition to a badged start. The screening steps are where time is actually lost.
Scope and post the role
Shortlist and verify cards
Interview and reference
Offer and drug screen
Site orientation and badging
Rates by sector
Budget Virginia vacancies using employee offers, with these national figures as construction-sector context.
Building Exterior Contractors
Roofing specialists need recruits matched to their installation systems. Assess flashing work and repair experience against the firm's actual project mix.
Residential Building Construction
Housebuilding schedules require coordination between roof installation and other trades. Define shingle work, material handling and daily supervision before recruiting helpers.
Nonresidential Building Construction
Commercial projects need roofers who follow installation sequences across larger crews. Assess membrane details and coordinate access with the general contractor.
Questions employers ask
Does OSHA 10 cover our roofing training duties?▾
How many roofing apprentices can work per journeyworker?▾
Does Virginia require a personal license for experienced installers?▾
Hire a Roofer in Virginia
Post a role and reach OSHA-certified candidates in your area.
Current BLS Virginia employee wages for Roofers, SOC 47-2181; May 2025 wages exclude premium pay and benefits, self-employment income and contractor quotations.
Last updated October 26, 2026. Rates are market estimates, not guarantees.