Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers
What Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers Do
Paint, coat, or decorate articles, such as furniture, glass, plateware, pottery, jewelry, toys, books, or leather.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 3.5%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 2 of 5Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Job training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Production and Processingimportance 3.1/5
- English Languageimportance 3.0/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 2.8/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 2.5/5
- Designimportance 2.4/5
- Chemistryimportance 2.4/5
- Administration and Managementimportance 2.3/5
- Public Safety and Securityimportance 2.2/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.8/5
- Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls4.4/5
- Exposed to Contaminants4.0/5
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.0/5
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals3.9/5
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate3.9/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Dental Hygienists93% skill match
- Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers93% skill match
- Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers92% skill match
- Painters, Construction and Maintenance92% skill match
- Cutters and Trimmers, Hand91% skill match
- Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers91% skill match
- Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters91% skill match
- Paperhangers91% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 2.9/5
- Coordinationimportance 2.9/5
- Time Managementimportance 2.6/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 2.5/5
- Service Orientationimportance 2.4/5
- Instructingimportance 2.1/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 2.1/5
- Operations Monitoringimportance 2.1/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Cautiousness
- Perseverance
- Innovation
- Achievement Orientation
- Self-Control
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- RealisticHigh
- ArtisticMedium
- ConventionalMedium
- SocialLow
- InvestigativeLow
- EnterprisingLow
Specific Interests
A more detailed breakdown of this occupation’s interest profile, per O*NET.
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where painting, coating, and decorating workers make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Elkhart-Goshen, IN8.54× national avg
- 2Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY4.55× national avg
- 3Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN3.37× national avg
- 4Tulsa, OK2.86× national avg
- 5Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL2.24× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Painters, Construction and MaintenanceCareer Change
- Laundry and Dry-Cleaning WorkersLateral Move
- Cutters and Trimmers, HandLateral Move
- PaperhangersCareer Change
See the full career path from Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers →