Painting Careers for Women

With the skyrocketing cost of college, more and more young Americans are looking at the trades for career exploration. While this discussion often focuses on young men, there are also abundant opportunities for women to get involved in trade careers.

Painting is one professional trade that Lauro Painting highly encourages women to explore. A Painting Contractors Association (PCA) article highlighted several women who lead successful painting companies, and it’s clear that this is a great industry for anyone who wants to enter the building trades. If you know a young lady in high school (or older) who is trying to find the right career fit, mention that Lauro Painting is hiring!

How Do Young Women Train for a Job as a Painting Contractor?

Although some trades require special education and certification following high school graduation, many are perfect for on the job training. Painting is the second type, which makes it a great entry level job for high school graduates. That being said, painting is not unskilled labor. Professional painting results in a finished product that someone is going to look at every single day for a long time. Everyone who wants to be successful in this industry has to be prepared to meet a high standard for quality work.

One of the best ways to learn more about the painting industry is to find out which local companies offer summer employment to high school students. As summer jobs go, painting is a lot more labor intensive than serving ice cream at the local shop. However, it also teaches invaluable skills that are applicable in other jobs and one’s own personal life. Even if someone chooses a totally different career path, they’ll always be able to perfectly paint a room in their home!

Nick at Lauro Painting has worked with MCIU Career Connections to encourage and educate high school students about jobs in the building trades industry. Young women who aren’t sure that college is the right choice for them should take advantage of this program. In it, they will get to explore career pathways that they haven’t considered yet. Even if painting is not the long-term solution, it exposes young people to several other trades in the residential and commercial sectors.

Painting as Hands On Experience for Other Professions

Painting is a lifelong career for many who get involved in this trade. Our job is to make houses and businesses look really good, and we are proud of the contributions we make to improving our neighborhoods and towns. If it’s not the long-term plan, painting gives a young professional great stepping-stone experience for other career paths.

Although no one would call a job in painting an internship, it will provide that type of experience if a young woman is planning for a design or building based career. The job training in our field involves learning:

• How the various tools work
• What it takes to prepare surfaces, and in what order various tasks need to be done
• The names and effects produced by different sheens and materials
• How colors are formulated and how to coordinate them in a project
• Application techniques
• Caring for surfaces, tools, products, and client spaces
• How to communicate with colleagues, customers, and other professionals on site
• Project and time management

Because we are often working among other tradespeople on any given project, it’s important for any building trade professional to understand the painting process and how it fits within the full scope. Women who are pursuing design careers will also benefit greatly from experience in painting. Designers and developers who speak our language and understand our craft always have an edge when it comes to implementing their plans.

What Benefits Do Women Painters Bring to the Industry?

At Lauro Painting, we do not discriminate in our employment practices. We have both men and women painters on staff, and we find that every individual brings value to our work. What many people like about the painting profession is that every day offers something new. We get to work in a different room, home, town, or business all the time. Because we are always working on a new project, we get the satisfaction of seeing a job well done over and over again. Painting is one of those jobs where we get to stand back and look directly at the results of our work. It’s pretty cool!

Something that women tend to excel at in painting careers is applying special attention to detail. The women on our team are particularly conscientious about looking closely at surfaces in between coats of paint to make sure there are no flaws or debris. While all painting mistakes are fixable, even the minor ones can add half a day to our project. Women apply a careful look to prevent that from happening, and their project managers always appreciate it.

If you are a young woman exploring career options, or you know a young woman who seems like a good fit for the trades, use our online Contact Form to get in touch. We’re happy to offer guidance and advice to young people, and possibly offer an employment opportunity, as they explore their career options.