What does a painter helper do?
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. Paint helpers are essential for the efficient and timely completion of a painting project. They are primarily in the automotive, home, or construction industries, where most painting work is done.
Painter helper responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real painter helper resumes:
- Manage painting crews in both commercial and industrial environments from swing stage to high boom work.
- Apply exterior caulking to building joints and seams, tape around windows and fixtures prior to painting walls.
- Sand vehicle surfaces between coats of paint and primer in order to remove flaws and enhance adhesion for subsequent coats.
- Apply paint and stencils to product per spec using high volume/low pressure sprayer.
- Learned how to operate and maintain HVLP and pressure pot spray equipment during summer vacations.
- Help painters, sandblasters set up maintain sand pods full keep a safe working area.
- Assist painters in the loading and unloading of materials and with creation and application of stencils.
- Mix small to large batches of paint, primers, binders and clear coats and package to appropriate containers.
- Assist lead painter with paint prep, including masking, sanding, buffing, scuffing, and applying primer.
- Assist painters, masking, stripping, buffing, apply pro-seal, apply primer, and learned how to apply topcoat.
- Paint steam and water treatment piping using scaffolding, safety harnesses, and follow refinery safety protocols
- Manage painting crews in both commercial and industrial environments from swing stage to high boom work.
Painter helper skills and personality traits
We calculated that 13% of Painter Helpers are proficient in Safety Rules, OSHA, and Painting Equipment. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Detail oriented, and Color vision.
We break down the percentage of Painter Helpers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Safety Rules, 13%
Experienced working safely in Refineries through following of safety rules and using PPE.
- OSHA, 10%
Cleaned and maintained the warehouse in compliance with OSHA safety standards.
- Painting Equipment, 9%
Helped with cleaning job site and all our painting equipment at the end of each day and end of the job.
- Hazardous Waste, 7%
Dispose of excess water-based paint in proper hazardous waste containers with vented containers per instructions on disposal site storage area.
- Hazardous Materials, 6%
Perform housekeeping duties involving hazardous materials and general cleanup
- Surface Preparation, 5%
Learned proper surface preparation on piping, valves, tanks, pumps, and motors in Formosa Chemical Plant.
Common skills that a painter helper uses to do their job include "safety rules," "osha," and "painting equipment." You can find details on the most important painter helper responsibilities below.
Detail oriented. Many painter helper duties rely on detail oriented. "painters must be precise when creating or painting edges for overall quality of appearance.," so a painter helper will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways painter helper responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "job duties include: detail, prep, paint, help in the body shop with frame machine. "
Physical strength. For certain painter helper responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "physical strength." The day-to-day duties of a painter helper rely on this skill, as "painters must be able to lift at least 50 pounds and move heavy items during the course of a job." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what painter helpers do: "performed interior and exterior painting and other job related physical labor. "
The three companies that hire the most painter helpers are:
- Penske Automotive Group8 painter helpers jobs
- Workbox Staffing4 painter helpers jobs
- Aerotek3 painter helpers jobs
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Compare different painter helpers
Painter helper vs. Interior decorator, painting
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between painter helpers and interior decorator, painting. For instance, painter helper responsibilities require skills such as "safety rules," "osha," "painting equipment," and "hazardous waste." Whereas a interior decorator, painting is skilled in "faux finishes," "decorative finishes," "drywall installation," and "plastering." This is part of what separates the two careers.
On average, interior decorators, painting reach similar levels of education than painter helpers. Interior decorators, painting are 3.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Painter helper vs. Powder coating painter
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, painter helper responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "safety rules," "osha," "hazardous waste," and "hazardous materials." Meanwhile, a powder coating painter has duties that require skills in areas such as "coat painting," "mask," "color changes," and "quality standards." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, powder coating painters earn a higher salary than painter helpers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, powder coating painters earn the most pay in the automotive industry with an average salary of $38,696. Whereas painter helpers have higher pay in the energy industry, with an average salary of $35,002.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Powder coating painters tend to reach similar levels of education than painter helpers. In fact, they're 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Painter helper vs. Auto customize painter
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, painter helpers are more likely to have skills like "safety rules," "osha," "hazardous waste," and "hazardous materials." But a auto customize painter is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "customer issues," "customer care," and "outbound calls."
When it comes to education, auto customize painters tend to earn similar degree levels compared to painter helpers. In fact, they're 2.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Painter helper vs. Traffic line painter
Types of painter helper
Updated January 8, 2025
