Production · Holland code RAC
Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers
Paint, coat, or decorate articles, such as furniture, glass, plateware, pottery, jewelry, toys, books, or leather.
Also called: Decorator, Glazer, Painter, Pottery Decorator, Decaler, Glass Decorator, In Mold Coater, Silk-Screen Operator.
O*NET 51-9123.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $41,600
- Middle half earn $37,030 to $50,360. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- Less than a High School Diploma
- 59% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Apply coatings, such as paint, ink, or lacquer, to protect or decorate workpiece surfaces, using spray guns, pens, or brushes.
- Examine finished surfaces of workpieces to verify conformance to specifications and retouch any defective areas.
- Select and mix ingredients to prepare coating substances according to specifications, using paddles or mechanical mixers.
- Place coated workpieces in ovens or dryers for specified times to dry or harden finishes.
- Clean and maintain tools and equipment, using solvents, brushes, and rags.
- Read job orders and inspect workpieces to determine work procedures and materials required.
- Clean surfaces of workpieces in preparation for coating, using cleaning fluids, solvents, brushes, scrapers, steam, sandpaper, or cloth.
- Conceal blemishes in workpieces, such as nicks and dents, using fillers such as putty.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Active Listening2.9 / 5
- Monitoring2.9 / 5
- Reading Comprehension2.8 / 5
- Speaking2.8 / 5
- Critical Thinking2.8 / 5
- Writing2.3 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Production and Processing3.1 / 5
- English Language3.0 / 5
- Customer and Personal Service2.8 / 5
- Education and Training2.5 / 5
- Design2.4 / 5
- Chemistry2.4 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic99
- Investigative6
- Artistic40
- Social10
- Enterprising0
- Conventional40
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- decorative painter · DE Glas- und Porzellanmaler/Glas- und Porzellanmalerin · FR peintre décorateur/peintre décoratrice
- glass painter · DE Glasmaler/Glasmalerin · FR peintre sur verre
- porcelain painter · DE Manufakturporzellanmaler/Manufakturporzellanmalerin · FR peintre sur porcelaine
- wood painter · DE Holzbemaler/Holzbemalerin · FR peintre sur bois
- furniture finisher · DE Oberflächenbearbeiter/Oberflächenbearbeiterin · FR finisseur de meubles/finisseuse de meubles
- leather goods finishing operator · DE Lederwarenveredler/Lederwarenveredlerin · FR opérateur finition articles cuir et matériaux souples/opératrice finition articles cuir et matériaux souples
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Painters and decorators (5323)86,200 employed
- Furniture makers and other craft woodworkers (5442)36,100 employed
- Footwear and leather working trades (5412)7,700 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Craft and related trades workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €40,086 |
| Germany | €38,638 |
| Austria | €38,194 |
| Sweden | €37,856 |
| Netherlands | €37,077 |
| Ireland | €36,098 |
| France | €27,145 |
| Italy | €26,488 |
| Spain | €22,817 |
| Portugal | €11,142 |
| Poland | €10,099 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.97. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (51-9123).
Related careers
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