Career: Painters and Paperhangers
Paint and wall coverings make surfaces attractive, fashionable, and bright. These treatments are not only stylish, but also protective. Paints and other sealers protect outside surfaces from rain, snow and ice, and sunlight.
Painters and paperhangers perform some of the same tasks and both jobs require some of the same skills, including an eye for color, good hand-eye coordination, and neatness. In addition, painters and paperhangers must make a lot of decisions in choosing and applying the right paints and paper, vinyl, or fabric wall coverings for the job.
Painters and paperhangers apply paints and wallpaper and other coverings to inside and outside surfaces.
Did You Know?
- Faux (false) finishes are hot in home remodeling today. Painters use special techniques and odd tools (such as sea sponges and feathers) to make ordinary surfaces look like marble, stucco, or wood.
Are You Ready To...?
- Work on your feet
- Trim off excess paper and wipe off excess adhesive
- Work with smelly paints, pastes, and chemicals
- Mix paints and match colors
- Remove old paint or paper from surfaces
- Clean and prepare surfaces for painting or papering
- Use brushes, rollers, and compressed-air sprayers to apply paint
- Brush or roll adhesive onto the back of wallpaper or covering
- Hang wallpaper strips straight and so that patterns match
- Smooth the strips to remove bubbles and wrinkles
It Helps to Be...
Neat and good with your hands; you’ll need a delicate touch to do great paint and paper work.
Make High School Count
- Learn communication skills in English. You’ll be reading blueprints and safety warnings and following written instructions. You’ll also need to know how to ask the right questions.
- Sign up for business courses. They’ll come in handy if, like so many in this trade, you ever decide to strike out on your own.
- Help out with the sets of the school play.
- Intern with the set designer or scenic artist of a community theater company over the summer and pick up some extra skills.
- Work with a paint or wallpaper crew over the summer.
- Pick up important skills in art classes.
- Build good calculation and layout skills in math. You’ll need them when it’s time to estimate costs and materials and to measure and plan the best use of wallpaper.
Did You Know?
- Two in five painters and paperhangers are self-employed, compared with one in five of all construction workers.
Outlook
Government economists expect employment of painters to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2016, while paperhangers will experience a rapid decline in job growth.
It will probably be easy to find work as a painter because many people leave this job every year for work with better pay or conditions. Paperhangers, however, will not find many job openings.
Keep in mind, too, that the construction industry rises and falls with the economy. You could find yourself out of work in periods of slow growth.
Compensation
The average yearly salary for painters in 2007 was $35,230, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Paperhangers, on average, earned $38,820.
Keep in mind, however, that apprentices start work at forty to fifty percent of the salary earned by a fully trained, or journey-level, worker. You can expect to receive raises throughout your training though, often every six months.
