Career Profile: Carpenters

Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 948,500 people employed as carpenters in the United States. The median annual salary is $48,260. Entry level employees earn approximately $31,880 per year and senior employees earn approximately $80,940 per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Maintain records, document actions, and present written progress reports.
• Build or repair cabinets, doors, frameworks, floors, or other wooden fixtures used in buildings, using woodworking machines, carpenter's hand tools, or power tools.
• Erect scaffolding or ladders for assembling structures above ground level.
• Anchor and brace forms and other structures in place, using nails, bolts, anchor rods, steel cables, planks, wedges, and timbers.
• Inspect ceiling or floor tile, wall coverings, siding, glass, or woodwork to detect broken or damaged structures.
• Assemble and fasten materials to make frameworks or props, using hand tools and wood screws, nails, dowel pins, or glue.
• Bore boltholes in timber, masonry or concrete walls, using power drill.
• Maintain job records and schedule work crew.
• Remove damaged or defective parts or sections of structures and repair or replace, using hand tools.
• Install rough door and window frames, subflooring, fixtures, or temporary supports in structures undergoing construction or repair.
• Finish surfaces of woodwork or wallboard in houses or buildings, using paint, hand tools, or paneling.
• Arrange for subcontractors to deal with special areas, such as heating or electrical wiring work.
• Prepare cost estimates for clients or employers.
• Construct forms or chutes for pouring concrete.
• Build sleds from logs and timbers for use in hauling camp buildings and machinery through wooded areas.
• Work with or remove hazardous material.
• Dig or direct digging of post holes and set poles to support structures.
• Examine structural timbers and supports to detect decay, and replace timbers as required, using hand tools, nuts, and bolts.
• Apply shock-absorbing, sound-deadening, or decorative paneling to ceilings or walls.
• Cover subfloors with building paper to keep out moisture and lay hardwood, parquet, or wood-strip-block floors by nailing floors to subfloor or cementing them to mastic or asphalt base.
• Fill cracks or other defects in plaster or plasterboard and sand patch, using patching plaster, trowel, and sanding tool.
• Perform minor plumbing, welding, or concrete mixing work.
• Follow established safety rules and regulations and maintain a safe and clean environment.
• Study specifications in blueprints, sketches, or building plans to prepare project layout and determine dimensions and materials required.
• Measure and mark cutting lines on materials, using a ruler, pencil, chalk, and marking gauge.
• Shape or cut materials to specified measurements, using hand tools, machines, or power saws.
• Install structures or fixtures, such as windows, frames, floorings, trim, or hardware, using carpenters' hand or power tools.
• Verify trueness of structure, using plumb bob and level.
• Select and order lumber or other required materials.

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