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(Painter and Decorator, Decorator, Commercial Painter and Decorator, Industrial Painter)
Construction & Trades
Salary
€28,000 - €55,000/yr
Level
Operational
Outlook
Growing
Sector
Construction & Trades
As a Construction Painter you apply paint, varnish, wallpaper, and other decorative finishes to the interior and exterior of buildings and structures across Ireland. Your daily work involves preparing surfaces by cleaning, sanding, filling, and priming before applying coats of paint using brushes, rollers, or sprayers. You work with a range of materials, from standard latex-based paints to specialist protective coatings, and must follow strict safety procedures when working at heights or handling hazardous chemicals. You collaborate with other trades on construction sites, taking direction from site managers, architects, and clients to ensure finishes meet the required standard. Work can range from new residential developments and commercial fit-outs to refurbishment projects on older buildings.
Listen: a day as a Construction Painter
Your alarm goes off at 6:30 a.m. You are working on a new residential development on the outskirts of Athlone, so you need to be on site by 7:30 a.m. You pull on your white overalls, load your van with brushes, rollers, a spray gun, and assorted tins of primer and topcoat, and head out into the morning. Traffic near the site is already building. At the site hut you sign in, collect your safety induction sheet, and attend a ten-minute toolbox talk with the site foreman. He reminds everyone about working-at-height regulations and the requirement to use the correct harness when on scaffolding above two metres. You make a note on your daily risk-assessment form before heading to the first-floor apartments you are prepping today.
There are no specific Leaving Certificate subject requirements to enter this trade, though subjects such as Art, Construction Studies, and Mathematics are useful. The primary route into construction painting in Ireland is the SOLAS Painting and Decorating apprenticeship, a 'earn and learn' programme typically lasting four years, leading to a NFQ Level 6 Advanced Certificate Craft. Apprentices alternate between on-the-job training with an approved employer and off-the-job training in an Education and Training Board (ETB) centre. Some workers enter the trade directly through employment with painting contractors and build skills informally before pursuing formal recognition. A QQI Level 5 Certificate in Construction Skills or a related FET course can also provide a useful foundation before or alongside employment.
Most Construction Painters begin as apprentices or general operatives with a painting contractor, developing practical skills on live sites under the supervision of qualified tradespeople. On completing the SOLAS apprenticeship and gaining craft certification, you can work as a qualified Painter and Decorator, taking on more complex and independent work. With experience, you may progress to a working foreman or site supervisor role, overseeing a crew and managing materials and schedules. Experienced painters often set up their own painting and decorating business, tendering for residential and commercial contracts across Ireland.
AI and automation have limited direct impact on the hands-on, site-based work of a Construction Painter, as surface preparation and finish application require physical dexterity and judgement that robotic systems cannot yet reliably replicate in complex, real-world environments. Digital tools are, however, increasingly used for project estimation, colour matching, and scheduling, so familiarity with basic software is becoming more useful. AI-assisted paint spraying systems may assist with large, repetitive surfaces in controlled industrial settings, but the bulk of construction painting work involves varied conditions where skilled human judgement remains essential. Overall, the core craft skills of a Construction Painter are expected to remain in demand for the foreseeable future.
→ Construction Painter (Current role)
Organisations in Ireland that employ people in this occupation.
Nationwide
Painters apply finishes on major commercial and residential construction projects.
Nationwide
Painters and decorators work across large-scale civil and building contracts.
Dublin and Nationwide
Painters apply protective and decorative coatings on commercial builds.
Nationwide
Painters maintain and decorate state buildings, heritage sites, and offices.
Dublin
Painters carry out interior and exterior maintenance on council properties.
Nationwide
In-house painters maintain and redecorate prison buildings and facilities.
Dublin
Specialist decorating firm completing commercial and residential painting contracts.
Dublin and Nationwide
Painters apply protective coatings on mechanical and engineering fit-out projects.
Nationwide
Painters apply protective and decorative finishes to rail infrastructure assets.
Dublin and Nationwide
Painters complete interior and exterior finishes on new residential developments.
Nationwide
Painters deliver decorative finishes across large-scale housing construction schemes.
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