Career profile for Painting Decorator

What does a Painting Decorator do?

Painting Decorators paint, coat, or decorate articles, such as furniture, glass, plateware, pottery, jewelry, toys, books, or leather.

What kind of tasks does a Painting Decorator perform regularly?

Painting Decorators are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

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.
Clean and maintain tools and equipment, using solvents, brushes, and rags.
Read job orders and inspect workpieces to determine work procedures and materials required.

The above responsibilities are specific to Painting Decorators. More generally, Painting Decorators are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events		Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Handling and Moving Objects		Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events

Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.

Handling and Moving Objects

Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

What is a Painting Decorator salary?

The median salary for a Painting Decorator is $34,780, and the average salary is $37,540. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Painting Decorator salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Painting Decorators earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Painting Decorators earn less than $23,760 per year, 25% earn less than $28,030, 75% earn less than $44,090, and 90% earn less than $55,380.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Painting Decorators is expected to change by 6.5%, and there should be roughly 1,300 open positions for Painting Decorators every year.

Median annual salary: $34,780
Typical salary range: $23,760 - $55,380
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 6.5%

What personality traits are common among Painting Decorators?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Painting Decorator are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Painting Decorators typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Painting Decorator tend to value Support, Achievement, and Working Conditions.

Most importantly, Painting Decorators moderately value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Painting Decorators very slightly value Achievement. Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

Lastly, Painting Decorators very slightly value Working Conditions. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Painting Decorators must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, dependability, and cooperation.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Painting Decorators, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Achievement/Effort		Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Persistence		Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Persistence

Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.

What education and training do Painting Decorators need?

Working as a Painting Decorator may require a high school diploma or GED certificate.

Painting Decorators need anywhere from a few days to a few months of training. Usually, an experienced worker could show you how to do the job.

Educational degrees among Painting Decorators

20.5% did not complete high school or secondary school
48.0% completed high school or secondary school
20.0% completed some college coursework
6.7% earned a Associate's degree
3.9% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.8% earned a Master's degree
0.1% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Painting Decorators

Painting Decorators may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as production and processing, customer and personal service, or education and training knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Painting Decorators might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Production and Processing		Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Education and Training		Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Design		Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Chemistry		Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

Production and Processing

Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Education and Training

Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Design

Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Chemistry

Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

Important Abilities needed by Painting Decorators

Painting Decorators must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Painting Decorators need abilities such as near vision, arm-hand steadiness, and visual color discrimination in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Painting Decorators, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Arm-Hand Steadiness		The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Visual Color Discrimination		The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
Manual Dexterity		The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Near Vision

The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Arm-Hand Steadiness

The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

Visual Color Discrimination

The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.

Manual Dexterity

The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Critical Skills needed by Painting Decorators

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Painting Decorators frequently use skills like active listening, monitoring, and social perceptiveness to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Painting Decorators, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Monitoring		Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Social Perceptiveness		Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Coordination		Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Reading Comprehension		Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Monitoring

Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Social Perceptiveness

Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Coordination

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Painting Decorator

Painting Decorator

Table of Contents

Would Painting Decorator be a good fit for you?