How to hire a maintenance painter

How to hire a maintenance painter, step by step

Here's a step-by-step maintenance painter hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a maintenance painter job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new maintenance painter
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The maintenance painter hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A maintenance painter's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, maintenance painters from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents maintenance painter salaries for various positions.

   Type of Maintenance Painter	Description	Hourly rate
   Maintenance Painter	Painters apply paint, stain, and coatings to walls and ceilings, buildings, bridges, and other structures.	$13-26
   Painter Apprentice	Painter Apprentices work for an organization either full time or part-time while undertaking formal training on the job. Their duties include working out needed materials quantity through job specifications, drawings, or surface measurements, and erecting structures to protect the area from paint such as ladders, scaffoldings, and drop sheets... Show more	$13-22
   Painter Helper	A painter helper is a specialist who assists the principal painter with the preparation of a room, building, car, or other objects. You will be responsible for the preliminary work before the actual painting, such as preparing the work area, scraping off old paint, buffing and sanding surfaces, and applying filler and taping... Show more	$10-23

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Ladders
   • Plumbing
   • Sheetrock
   • Coats
   • Hand Tools
   • Scaffolding
   • HVAC
   • Exterior Surfaces
   • Drywall Repair
   • Caulking
   • Perform Routine Maintenance
   • Spray Guns
   • Routine Maintenance
   • Snow Removal

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage painting crews in both commercial and industrial environments from swing stage to high boom work.
   • General maintenance and lawn care such as spraying & pulling weeds, fertilization, mowing, etc.
   • Dig up old plants, mow the lawn, plant new flowers and make the yard look nice overall.
   • Paint make ready, Sheetrock repair texture.
   • Repair damage using compound and new Sheetrock.
   • Apply exterior caulking to building joints and seams.

   More maintenance painter duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the maintenance painter job description is a good way to get more applicants. A maintenance painter salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a maintenance painter in Arkansas may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level maintenance painter. Additionally, a maintenance painter with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average maintenance painter salary

   $39,937yearly

   $19.20 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level maintenance painter salary

   $28,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 11, 2025

   Average maintenance painter salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New Jersey	$53,099	$26
   2	Massachusetts	$50,541	$24
   3	New York	$49,895	$24
   4	Pennsylvania	$47,596	$23
   5	Connecticut	$47,083	$23
   6	California	$46,862	$23
   7	Washington	$43,588	$21
   8	Ohio	$41,767	$20
   9	Virginia	$38,412	$18
   10	Indiana	$38,183	$18
   11	Montana	$38,071	$18
   12	Oregon	$36,718	$18
   13	Georgia	$36,071	$17
   14	Arizona	$33,885	$16
   15	Florida	$32,434	$16
   16	Arkansas	$32,285	$16
   17	Texas	$32,072	$15
   18	North Carolina	$31,715	$15
   19	New Mexico	$30,177	$15

   Average maintenance painter salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Mission Regional Medical Center	$62,804	$30.19	12
   2	Jacobs Engineering Group	$58,268	$28.01
   3	Prime Healthcare	$55,866	$26.86	9
   4	NexTier Oilfield Solutions	$48,856	$23.49
   5	CITRUS VALLEY PHYSICIANS GROUP	$48,020	$23.09
   6	Emanate Health	$44,102	$21.20
   7	Conway Medical Center	$43,915	$21.11
   8	Hyatt Hotels	$43,307	$20.82	15
   9	SUNY Brockport	$42,282	$20.33
   10	Atec, Inc.	$41,635	$20.02	2
   11	R&J Construction	$40,386	$19.42
   12	Dartmouth-Hitchcock	$40,023	$19.24
   13	Zachry Group	$39,928	$19.20	4
   14	Sky Frame & Art, Inc	$39,255	$18.87
   15	Brock Group	$39,249	$18.87
   16	Jacobs Enterprises	$39,243	$18.87	11
   17	ABM Industries	$39,004	$18.75	96
   18	Prestige Maintenance USA	$38,950	$18.73
   19	Highgate Hotels	$38,720	$18.62	5
   20	LAUNCH Technical Workforce Solutions	$38,697	$18.60

4. Writing a maintenance painter job description

   A maintenance painter job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a maintenance painter job description:

   Maintenance painter job description example

   Responsible for ark welding repairs of trailers or other equipment. Assist the fleet mechanic with repairs of fleet vehicles, when necessary. Paint of building including walls and equipment. The projected time will be 33% of each position with the determination made by management as to the urgency.
   Skills Required: Knowledgeable of welding practices, mechanical skills and familiar with painting of different objects including but not limited to walls and tankers. Must be able to read and understand data sheets. Must be able to communicate with co-workers. Requires Ability to Lift up to 50 LBS Willingness to work in an Industrial/Chemical Setting. Willingness to be a team player. Willingness to Work Safely Every Day. Training Provided Education:
   High school diploma or equivalent preferred. Physical Demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this Job, the employee is regularly required to stand. The employee is frequently required to walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel and reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl and talk or hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Work Environment: The performance of this position may require exposure to the
   manufacturing areas where under certain areas require the use of personal protective
   equipment such as safety glasses, respirator, or other issued PPE.
   Exposure to various weather conditions from hot to cold. Duties and Responsibilities: Responsible for ark welding of tankers, and other equipment as specified by management. Assist fleet diesel mechanic as needed Responsible for ark welding of different equipment. Responsible but not limited to the painting of walls, trailers, or other as needed. Coordinate the repairs and completion with the supervisor or plant manager. Perform other duties as directed by management. Company DescriptionCompany Overview:
   
   Established in 1954, Allied is Florida’s largest manufacturer of sodium hypochlorite supplying water treatment chemicals throughout the Southeastern United States, Caribbean, and Latin America. The company's success is a result of dedicated employees who take pride in their jobs. We are interested in highly motivated people who appreciate a company whose priorities are based on superior customer service, integrity, quality products, teamwork, safety and achievement. At Allied Universal, we feel the talent of our employees allows us to provide exceptional service to our customers.
   
   Visit us at www.AlliedUniversal.com
   E-Verify and Equal Opportunity Employer
   Drug-free Workplace
   
   ***We are not affiliated with Allied Universal Security!***

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find maintenance painters for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any maintenance painters they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level maintenance painters with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your maintenance painter job on Zippia to find and recruit maintenance painter candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit maintenance painters, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new maintenance painter

   Once you've found the maintenance painter candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new maintenance painter. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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