Commercial Roofing Foreman
We place this role between $70,000 and $105,000 a year at mid experience, before overtime, bonus and on-call.
What the job actually is.
Runs the crew on a commercial roof: tear-off sequencing, deck inspection, insulation and cover board layout, membrane installation, flashings and terminations, and the daily call on whether the weather lets the work go on. Owns safety on a surface where the fall hazard is the job site itself.
What this role pays.
That band is mid experience, built from our own engagement history. Experience and region move it - the salary calculator applies both.
The federal occupation this role reports under is First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (SOC 47-1011), May 2025. Nationally it reports a median of $79,920 , with the middle of the market between $53,280 and $128,260. BLS counts this job inside that occupation rather than publishing it separately, so the figures cover a slightly wider group than this exact title.
Where it pays most.
First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers across the metros we cover, May 2025. BLS publishes a median for 100 of them and withholds the rest, where the local sample was too small to be reliable.
| Metro | Median | Employed there |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose | $129,700 | 4,770 |
| Seattle | $121,130 | 11,040 |
| San Francisco | $120,810 | 9,810 |
| Portland | $112,480 | 5,880 |
| Chicago | $111,260 | 13,420 |
| New York | $103,990 | 28,220 |
| Minneapolis | $103,290 | 8,310 |
| Boston | $99,890 | 13,110 |
| McAllen | $60,370 | 800 |
| Little Rock | $61,060 | 1,720 |
| Huntsville | $62,650 | 1,330 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. The last three rows are the lowest-paying metros in the same set. Headcount is metro-wide across every industry, not this trade alone.
Credentials that move an offer.
- TPO / EPDM / PVC
Licensing is a state question, not a national one. The Commercial Roofing hiring page carries the state-by-state position, and every market page names the authority for that state.
What separates a strong candidate.
Everyone who applies for this seat will claim the experience. These are the things that distinguish the people who have it, and the questions that find out.
What to look for
- Names the systems worked rather than saying "commercial roofing" - TPO, EPDM, modified bitumen, built-up, standing seam
- Treats detail work - curbs, penetrations, parapets, drains - as the part that decides whether the roof leaks
- Can describe a dry-in plan for a partial tear-off with rain forecast
Questions that find out
- Tear-off is open and a storm is two hours out. What is your sequence? A strong answer Stops opening new area the moment the forecast turns and works out how much can be made watertight in the time available, then dries in from the low point and the drains outward. Has the tie-in material and the temporary water cut-offs on the roof already rather than sending someone for them. Pulls the crew off tear-off and onto dry-in, protects the interior underneath, and tells the building contact before the water arrives rather than after. Walks it afterwards in the rain to find what leaked.
- Walk me through flashing a curb-mounted unit on a TPO roof. A strong answer Describes the sequence rather than naming products: substrate prepared and dry, insulation and cover board cut tight to the curb, the base secured, then the flashing run up the curb to the required height in one piece where possible, with corners detailed as a formed or prefabricated piece rather than a patchwork. Terminates mechanically with a bar and sealant under the counter-flashing, not relying on sealant alone. Probes every seam when it has cooled and says what height the flashing needs to reach.
- The deck under the old system is worse than the bid assumed. Who do you call and in what order? A strong answer Stops, photographs it with something in frame for scale and location, and does not keep tearing off to see how far it goes beyond what they can dry in. Calls their project manager first so the change is priced and authorised, and expects the owner or general contractor to be told the same day. Knows deteriorated deck is a safety issue before it is a cost issue and marks it off. Has a view on whether it is a repair or a structural question that needs an engineer.
- How do you plan a tear-off so the building is dry every night? A strong answer Sizes the daily opening to what the crew can actually complete and dry in, allowing for the hour it takes to close rather than working to the end of the shift. Works from the drains and the high point so water has somewhere to go, keeps the tie-in detail at a location that can be cut back into cleanly tomorrow, and never leaves an open seam at a drain or a wall. Checks the forecast each morning and shrinks the day's area rather than gambling.
- What is your approach to roof loading and staging material? A strong answer Treats the deck as a structure with a limit rather than a floor: spreads the load, stages over bearing points and never in one stack in a bay, and asks the question when the load is heavy or the deck is old. Stages close to the work so the crew is not carrying all day, but not where it blocks the escape route or the drains. Keeps only what the day needs on the roof, secures it against wind, and knows what a pallet of their material actually weighs.
- How do you set up a safe perimeter on a low-slope roof with no parapet? A strong answer Picks a system and sets it up before anyone works near the edge, rather than deciding at the edge: warning line with a monitor for some work, guardrail where the work stays at the edge, personal fall arrest with a real anchor where neither fits. Can say what counts as a usable anchor on a roof and what does not. Keeps the crew out of the zone between the warning line and the edge unless they are working there, and controls the ground below for falling material.
- How do you handle hot work and the fire watch that goes with it? A strong answer Gets the permit, clears or protects what is combustible, and keeps the extinguisher and the watch in place during the work and for the period afterwards that matters, because roof fires are usually found an hour later rather than at the time. Checks what is immediately below the deck, since insulation and old felts smoulder out of sight. Says who the watch is and that it is not the person doing the work, and would rather use a cold detail where one exists.
- How do you protect the building interior during the work? A strong answer Walks the space underneath before starting, with the tenant or facility contact, and covers or moves what matters - stock, equipment, ceilings, electrical gear. Expects dust and debris to come through the deck at every fastener and joint and plans for it rather than apologising for it. Agrees access and notice with the occupant, keeps someone reachable while the roof is open, and knows that one soaked server room costs more than the roof.
- What is your approach to flashing at a wall termination? A strong answer Takes the membrane up the wall to the height required rather than the height that is convenient, terminates mechanically into solid substrate with a bar and sealant, and gets counter-flashing or a reglet over it so water cannot get behind the termination. Knows the difference between terminating into masonry, into metal panel and into a wall they are not allowed to touch, and raises the last one rather than inventing a detail. Checks that the wall above is actually watertight.
- How do you handle a crew working in heat? A strong answer Treats it as a planning problem rather than a toughness problem: starts early, shifts the heavy work to the cooler hours, keeps water and shade on the roof rather than at the truck, and builds in breaks before people ask. Watches the new people and the ones who will not stop. Can describe the early signs and what they actually do when they see them, including stopping the job. Knows the roof surface runs far hotter than the air temperature.
- What do you check before you call a section complete? A strong answer Probes every seam rather than spot-checking, walks the perimeter and every penetration, checks the terminations and the drains, and looks for the things that fail later: unsupported flashing, loose fasteners, wrinkles at corners, debris welded under the membrane. Water-tests or at least floods the drains where they can. Takes photographs of the details that will be covered. Says they check it themselves before the inspector or the manufacturer does.
- How do you handle a roof drain or scupper that does not drain the way the design assumed? A strong answer Measures rather than argues: finds where water actually stands after rain, checks whether the drain is low, blocked, or simply in the wrong place for the deck's real slope. Raises it as a design question rather than building tapered insulation by eye, because standing water voids warranties and overloads the deck. Suggests the practical fixes - sump, tapered crickets, an added drain or overflow - and says which need an engineer or a plumber rather than a roofer.
- What do you do when the new assembly will not meet the manufacturer's attachment pattern on the deck you have? A strong answer Stops and gets it resolved in writing rather than fastening into whatever holds. Pull-tests the deck when there is any doubt, reports what they find, and expects the manufacturer's technical department and the project manager to agree the revised pattern or a different attachment method. Knows that an attachment pattern varies by zone - field, perimeter, corner - and that the corners are where failures start. Will not install an assembly they know is not warrantable.
- How do you run a crew when half of them have never worked this membrane? A strong answer Pairs the inexperienced with the experienced on the details rather than putting them all on field sheet, welds and probes test seams at the start of each day with the new people watching and doing, and keeps the critical details - corners, penetrations, terminations - with the people who can do them. Checks their work before it cools rather than at the end of the week. Says what they do with somebody who is not picking it up, and does not let the schedule decide that.
- What is your approach to adhesive and seam work in cold or damp conditions? A strong answer Knows the materials have temperature and moisture limits and treats them as limits rather than guidance: checks the substrate is dry, not just the air, watches for dew in the morning and in the late afternoon, adjusts welder speed and temperature and re-tests the seam when conditions change through the day. Warms or stores material properly rather than pulling it off a cold truck. Will stop and say so rather than install an adhesive bond that will not hold.
- How do you keep the roof secure overnight - material, equipment and access? A strong answer Assumes wind before theft: sheets and insulation weighted or strapped, nothing loose at the perimeter, and the roof walked at the end of the day specifically for what could blow off. Secures the ladder or hatch access so the public cannot get up and the crew can, and locks the compressors and welders or takes them down. Tells the building contact how to reach someone overnight. Knows a blown sheet of insulation into a car park is the incident that ends a job.
The mistake this seat invites
Hiring on square footage installed rather than on detail work and dry-in judgement. Roofs fail at penetrations and terminations, not in the field of the membrane.
Where the role goes next
Roofing foremen move to superintendent or project manager, and manufacturer certifications travel with them. Candidates ask this in the first conversation, and an employer who cannot answer it loses the people who had other options.
Interview kit for this role
- All interview questions for this role in the question bank.
- Printable interview scorecard built from these questions and signals.
- The Commercial Roofing hiring kit - every role in the trade, with credentials and offer risks.
- Offer calculator starting from this role's pay band.
What the search actually takes.
Across 9 closed commercial roofing searches in 2026 year to date, our median was 21 days from first contact with the candidate to hire. That is not a time-to-fill benchmark - our clock starts when we reach the candidate, not when the requisition opened. The full distribution is in the Hiring Index.
Searches we have closed in this seat
5 of them were for this exact seat rather than the trade in general. Each is written up in full on our placements page: what the opening was, what made it hard, and what the person we placed brought.
- Sheet Metal Foreman - Indianapolis, IN - 5 days from first contact to hire.
- Roofing Foreman - Indianapolis, IN - 21 days from first contact to hire.
- Commercial Sheet Metal Roofing Foreman - Indianapolis, IN - 21 days from first contact to hire.
- Roofing Foreman - Indianapolis, IN - 80 days from first contact to hire.
- Commercial Sheet Metal Roofing Foreman - Indianapolis, IN - 70 days from first contact to hire.
What we have open in Commercial Roofing right now.
9 live commercial roofing searches on our board as of November 12, 2026. These are roles contractors have asked us to fill, not a sample set.
- Roofer Helper - Akron, Ohio
- Roofer Helper - Tiffin, Ohio
- Roofer Helper - Worthington, Ohio
- Skilled Roofer - Akron, Ohio
- Skilled Roofer - Tiffin, Ohio
Keep reading.
- 2026 Commercial Roofing Salary Guide - the full benchmark by role.
- Commercial Roofing recruiting - how we run this trade.
- Salary calculator - the band by experience and region.
- Commercial Roofing hiring in Houston - one market in detail.
- Hiring Index - how long our searches actually take.
Other Commercial Roofing roles we recruit
All 56 roles we recruit - every trade, every seat.
