Carpentry Career Highlights

• Nearly one-third of all carpenters—the largest of the construction trades—are self-employed.
• For those with the most training and best skills, job opportunities should be excellent.
• It generally takes between 3 and 4 years of both on-the-job training and formal instruction to become a skilled carpenter.

Carpenters are involved in many different types of construction activity, from the building of highways and bridges, to the installation of kitchen cabinets. They construct, erect, install, and repair structures and fixtures made from wood and other materials, and, depending on the type of work and the employer, carpenters may specialize in one or two activities or may be required to know how to perform many different tasks. Carpenters may be required to learn about all aspects of building a house—framing walls and partitions, putting in doors and windows, building stairs, installing cabinets and molding, and many other tasks, when working for small home builders. Conversely, large construction contractors or specialty contractors may require their carpenters to handle only a few regular tasks, such as framing walls, constructing wooden forms for pouring concrete, or erecting scaffolding. Sometimes carpenters build tunnel bracing, or brattices, in underground passageways and mines to control the circulation of air through the passageways and to worksites.

Each carpentry task varies, but most involve the same basic steps. Using blueprints or instructions from supervisors, carpenters first do the layout—measuring, marking, and arranging materials—in compliance with local building codes. Then they join the materials with nails, screws, staples, or adhesives. The final step requires that carpenters check the accuracy of their work with levels, rules, plumb bobs, framing squares, or electronic versions of these tools, and make any necessary adjustments.. Prefabricated components, such as stairs, are designed for easy and fast installation and normally can be installed in a single operation.

Carpenters who remodel homes and other structures need a broad range of carpentry skills in order to perform any of the many different tasks these jobs may require. These carpenters often can switch from residential building to commercial construction or remodeling work, depending on which offers the best work opportunities, since they are so skilled.

Some carpenters working perform a variety of installation and maintenance work, such as replacing panes of glass, ceiling tiles, and doors, as well as repairing desks, cabinets, and other furniture. Carpenters install partitions, doors, and windows; change locks; and repair broken furniture.

As is true of other building trades, carpentry work can be strenuous. Prolonged standing, climbing, bending, and kneeling frequently are necessary. Carpenters working with sharp or rough materials, using sharp tools and power equipment, and working in situations where they might slip or fall are at risk of injury. Many carpenters work indoors; however, those that work outdoors are subject to variable weather conditions.

Carpenters may change employers each time they finish a construction job, or alternate between working for a contractor and working as contractors themselves on small jobs. It depends on where the work is available.

Carpenters learn their trade through both formal and informal training programs; to become a skilled carpenter can take between 3 and 4 years of both classroom and on-the-job training. There are different ways to obtain this training; however, the more formalized the process, the more skilled you will become, and the more in demand for jobs. For many, carpentry training begins in high school, with classes in English, algebra, geometry, physics, mechanical drawing, blueprint reading, and general shop. After high school, there are several different avenues that one can take to obtain training. One way is to obtain a job with a contractor who is willing to provide on-the-job training. Entry-level carpentry workers generally start as helpers, assisting more experienced carpenters. At the same time, the carpenter's helper may decide to attend a trade or vocational school, or community college to obtain further trade-related training.

Some employers offer employees formal apprenticeships, especially large nonresidential construction contractors with union membership. These apprenticeship programs combine on-the-job training with related classroom instruction. Apprenticeship candidates usually must be at least 18 years old and meet local employment requirements. Apprenticeship programs are generally completed in 3 to 4 years, but vary with the apprentice's skill. Apprenticeship programs are limited, however, so only a few carpenters learn their trade through these programs, usually only those working for commercial and industrial building contractors.

On the job, apprentices learn beginning structural design and start becoming familiar with common carpentry jobs, such as layout, form building, rough framing, and outside and inside finishing work. They learn to use the tools, machines, equipment, and materials of the trade, and receive classroom instruction in safety, first aid, blueprint reading, freehand sketching, basic mathematics, and various carpentry techniques.

Some candidates aiming for carpentry careers obtain their classroom training before looking for a job. A number of public and private vocational-technical schools and training academies affiliated with the unions and contractors offer training to become a carpenter. Employers often favor those students and many times start them at a higher level than those without the formal training.

Some skills needed to become a successful carpenter include manual dexterity, eye-hand coordination, physical fitness, and a good sense of balance. An ability to solve arithmetic problems quickly and accurately also is necessary. Also, a good work history or military service is helpful.

Carpenters commonly have more opportunities than most other construction workers to become general construction supervisors since carpenters are involved with the entire construction process. For those aspiring to advance their careers, it is increasingly important to be able to communicate in both English and Spanish in order to explain instructions and safety precautions to workers who have a limited understanding of English; Spanish-speaking workers comprise a major part of the construction workforce in many areas of the country. Carpenters may advance to carpentry supervisor or general construction supervisor positions; while others may go on to become independent contractors. Both supervisors and contractors need good communication skills to deal with clients, subcontractor, and laborers; must be able to identify and estimate the quantity of materials needed to complete a job, and accurately estimate how long a job will take to complete and at what cost.

Carpenters are employed throughout the country in nearly every community and make up the largest building trades occupation. In 2004, they held about 1.3 million jobs. Approximately one-third worked in building construction and about one-fifth worked for special trade contractors. The majority of the rest of the wage and salary workers worked for manufacturing firms, government agencies, retail establishments and a wide variety of other industries. Nearly one-third of all carpenters were self-employed in 2004.

Job prospects for carpenters are expected to be excellent over the 2004-14 period, especially for those carpenters with the most skills. Employment of carpenters is projected to increase about as fast as average for all occupations through 2014, with turnover also creating a large number of openings each year. According to contractors finding skilled carpenters to fill many of their openings is difficult, possibly due in part to the fact that many jobseekers prefer to avoid construction jobs, preferring work that is less strenuous with more comfortable working conditions. Additionally, those with limited skills take jobs as carpenters but eventually leave the occupation because they dislike the work or cannot find steady employment.

As construction activity increases in response to demand for new housing, office and retail space, and for modernizing and expanding schools and industrial plants, the need for carpenters is expected to grow. A stronger home remodeling market will also create an increased demand for carpenters.

Demand for carpenters, however, will be offset by expected productivity gains from the increasing use of prefabricated components and improved fasteners and tools. Prefabricated wall panels, roof assemblies and stairs and prehung doors and windows can be installed very quickly, and will a minimum of skills. Rather than having to be built on the worksite, prefabricated walls, partitions, and stairs can be fitted into place in one operation; beams—and, in some cases, entire roof assemblies—are lifted into place using a crane. As prefabricated components become more standardized, building contractors will use them more often. Also, carpenters more becoming more efficient due to improved adhesives, which are reducing the time needed to join materials, and lightweight, cordless, and pneumatic tools—such as nailers and drills. New and improved tools, equipment, techniques, and materials have considerably increased carpenter versatility.

Skilled carpenters will have better opportunities for steady work than carpenters who can handle only a few relatively simple, routine tasks. Carpenters often experience periods of unemployment due to the short-term nature of many construction projects, winter slowdowns in northern areas, and the cyclical nature of the construction industry. With economic downturns, the number of job openings for carpenters declines. Building activity is contingent on many factors that vary with the state of the economy—interest rates, availability of mortgage funds, government spending, and business investment.

Job openings for carpenters vary by geographic area. Construction activity mimics the movement of people and businesses and reflects local economic conditions. Metropolitan areas with the largest growth in population also provide the best job opportunities for carpenters and apprenticeship opportunities.

In May 2004, median hourly earnings of carpenters were $16.78; the middle 50 percent earned between $12.91 and $22.62; the lowest 10 percent earned less than $10.36, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $28.65. Median hourly earnings in the industries employing the most carpenters in May 2004 were as follows:

Earnings are reduced on occasion, when carpenters lose work time in bad weather and during recessions when jobs are unavailable.

Carpenters are skilled construction workers. Other skilled construction occupations include brickmasons, blockmasons, and stonemasons; cement masons, concrete finishers, segmental pavers, and terrazzo workers; electricians; pipe layers; plumbers, pipe fitters, and steamfitters; and plasterers and stucco masons.

For more information about carpentry apprenticeships or other work opportunities in the trade, contact local carpentry contractors, locals of carpentry unions, local joint union-contractor apprenticeship committees, or the nearest office of the State employment service or apprenticeship agency. Information on the registered apprenticeship system with links to State apprenticeship programs on the U.S. Department of Labor's website: http://www.doleta.gov/atels_bat

For more information on training prospects and carpentry in general: