Headline risk
12%
Low RiskCoating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders
AI displacement pressure score for United States AI Work Index, combining global AI task overlap with local wages, employment trends, and demand signals.
Why This Score
Share of job tasks that overlap with current AI capabilities
Median annual wage
Projected employment change over 10 years
Typical preparation needed for this occupation
Occupation profile
Set up, operate, or tend spraying or rolling machines to coat or paint any of a wide variety of products, including glassware, cloth, ceramics, metal, plastic, paper, or wood, with lacquer, silver, copper, rubber, varnish, glaze, enamel, oil, or rust-proofing materials. Includes painters of transportation vehicles such as painters in auto body repair facilities.
Task evidence
100% weighted task match · 2% effective coverage
Scores combine AI task overlap, human advantages, and local demand. How it works
United States Now
Median Wage
USD 47,590
Employment 2024
165.5K
Projected Change (2024–34)
0.7%
Openings (2024–34)
15.8K
Wage distribution
Demand outlook
Overall employment of painting and coating workers is projected to show little or no change from 2024 to 2034.
Role Profile
Tasks
- 1. Dispose of hazardous waste in an appropriate manner. AI use: 0%
- 2. Clean equipment and work areas. AI use: 0%
- 3. Hold or position spray guns to direct spray onto articles. AI use: 0%
- 4. Monitor painting operations to identify flaws, such as blisters or streaks, and correct their causes. AI use: 0%
- 5. Spray prepared surfaces with specified amounts of primers and decorative or finish coatings. AI use: 0%
- 6. Turn dials, handwheels, valves, or switches to regulate conveyor speeds, machine temperature, air pressure and circulation, and the flow or spray of coatings or paints. AI use: 0%
Technologies
Requirements
Work context
Worker profile
Median age 40.6 · 55K employed
Under 25: 4% · 25–54: 80% · 55+: 16%
Related
No direct US role match is available yet for this occupation.
Source coverage
11/11 source families · O*NET 30.2 / OEWS 2024 / ORS 2025 / OOH 2025-08-28 / Projections 2024-34 / CPS 2025 / Anthropic task penetration
Data quality
Employment data available
Narrative & sources
Painting and coating workers apply finishes, often using machines, to a range of products.
Most painting and coating workers are employed full time. They frequently stand for long periods in specially ventilated areas.
Painting and coating workers typically need a high school diploma or equivalent to enter the occupation. New workers usually train on the job for several months.
The median annual wage for coating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders was $47,590 in May 2024.
Overall employment of painting and coating workers is projected to show little or no change from 2024 to 2034.
Important context
This score measures structural AI displacement pressure, not actual job losses. Local wages and demand data are specific to United States AI Work Index; the underlying AI task overlap analysis is consistent across all countries.