How to become a painter or related worker
Official title: Painters and related workers
Also called: Building painter, Paperhanger
Painters and related workers prepare surfaces of buildings and other structures for painting, apply protective and decorative coats of paint or similar materials, or cover interior walls and ceilings of buildings with wallpaper or other finishes.
Main tasks
- Cleaning and preparing walls and other surfaces of buildings for painting or wallpapering
- Selecting and preparing paints to required colours by mixing pigments and additives
- Applying or spraying paint, varnish and similar materials to surfaces, fixtures and fittings of buildings
- Measuring and hanging wallpaper or other fabrics on interior walls and ceilings
- Applying paints, varnishes and stains to surfaces using brushes, rollers and sprays
Ways in
- Apprenticeship: Painter/Decorator/Sign Writer. Painter/Decorator/Sign Writer (髹漆工／裝飾工／漆寫工) is a designated trade under the Apprenticeship Ordinance (Cap. 47); the period of apprenticeship is 3 years (Cap. 47C). Apprentices sign a registered contract with an employer.
- Licence or registration: Registering body: Construction Industry Council. Law: Construction Workers Registration Ordinance (建造業工人註冊條例), Cap. 583. Summary by Peernovo; check the body's current rules.
Pay · Outlook · AI and this job
- Median pay: HK$21,000 a month
- About 387,500 people in 2025, and about 403,200 projected by 2028. (+4.1%)
- Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.
Related jobs
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Questions people ask
How do I become a painter or related worker?
Ways in include: Painter/Decorator/Sign Writer.
Do you need a degree to become a painter or related worker?
Usually not. Only 4% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Ways in include: Painter/Decorator/Sign Writer.
Will AI change the work of a painter or related worker?
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.
Sources
- Census and Statistics Department (2021 Population Census): 2021 Population Census, Interactive Data Dissemination Service: working population by occupation (38 groups) and sex, age, education, income; median income and field of education (9 groups) (2021 Population Census), retrieved 4 October 2026
- Census and Statistics Department (General Household Survey): Median monthly employment earnings by occupation (9 groups), excluding foreign domestic helpers (Table 210-06317A); employed persons by occupation, age and sex (210-06307A) and by industry (210-06308A) (2025 annual (series to 2026-07)), retrieved 4 October 2026
- Labour and Welfare Bureau; tables published by C&SD: Mid-term Update of Manpower Projection to 2028: supplementary statistical tables (5 occupation groups, 17 selected industries) (2025 to 2028 (published 2026-09)), retrieved 4 October 2026
- Census and Statistics Department: Average daily wages of workers engaged in public sector construction projects, 39 trades (Table 220-20001) (Monthly, 2021 series, 2026-07), retrieved 4 October 2026
- International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Updated 4 October 2026