Woodworker Careers Information
Do you enjoy working with your hands? Do you like having something tangible to show for the work you have done? Woodworkers create and build the furniture, cabinetry, and musical instruments we use everyday.
Traditionally, woodworkers have been craftsmen who see a project through from beginning to end, from the design to the finished product. While such craftsmen still exist, many woodworkers today use fully automated equipment to accomplish one specific step in the larger building process. A woodworker may also describe a person who works at a sawmill, cutting from logs the boards that will be used in wood based construction.
Woodworker Careers Path
Woodworkers typically need a high school diploma, with skill in the subjects of math and science being desirable. Specific woodworking training in a vocational or trade school is a plus. Because of the increasing use of computers to make precise cuts, skill with computers and a willingness to be trained on the job is a must. An apprenticeship with a master craftsman is likely to be required for anyone wishing to obtain a similar skill level.
Woodworker Careers Compatible Personality Traits
Good with hands, like putting things together, can see a project through from beginning to end, eye for detail, creative, able to follow plans, good with hand tools and computerized machines, good with numbers.
Woodworker Careers Salary Expectations
The average yearly income for woodworkers is $22,580. By specialty per year:
- Cabinetmakers and bench carpenters: $27,010, with middle 50% between $21,350 and $34,290.
- Sawing machine workers: $24,280, with middle 50% between $19,620 and $29,930.
- Woodworking machinists: $23,940, with middle 50% between $19,460 and $29,480.
- Furniture finishers: $25,010.
Woodworker Careers Job Outlook
As more work is accomplished overseas and woodworking processes become more automated, employment for woodworkers overall will grow at a slower rate than other professions. However, as current woodworkers retire, more positions will become available for newer workers. Those with specialized skills, especially those who can create precise designs using computers, will be the most likely to find employment.
Slightly off the Footpath
Artist
General Contractor
Set Design
Architect
Civil Engineer
Machinist
Tool and Die Maker
Source: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos237.htm
