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Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index

A factual, source-backed comparison of Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons and Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”

Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Median pay · BLS OEWS
$38,140
$39,270
Employment · BLS OEWS
7,220
43,640
AI exposure (percentile) · task overlap, not automation
4th pct
14th pct

At a glance

Dimension Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Median pay $38,140 $39,270
Employment 7,220 43,640
Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection About average (+2.3%) About average (+4.9%)
Annual openings · BLS projection 800 4,900
Typical education · O*NET Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
AI exposure · published exposure studies Low · 4th pct Low · 14th pct
Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk 2nd pct · 9% of tasks 2nd pct · 9% of tasks
Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index — —
Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman No No

Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.

Skills

Shared: Arm-Hand Steadiness, Manual Dexterity, Static Strength, Trunk Strength, Extent Flexibility, Building and Construction, Multilimb Coordination, English Language, Coordination, Oral Comprehension, Oral Expression, Finger Dexterity, Stamina, Near Vision, Speech Recognition, Active Listening, Information Ordering, Speech Clarity, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Problem Sensitivity, Deductive Reasoning, Category Flexibility, Visualization, Inductive Reasoning, Selective Attention, Control Precision, Depth Perception.

Specific to Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons

  • Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Gross Body Coordination
  • Speaking
  • Dynamic Strength
  • Far Vision
  • Time Management
  • Speed of Limb Movement
  • Visual Color Discrimination

Specific to Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Mechanical
  • Mathematics
  • Administration and Management
  • Design
  • Judgment and Decision Making
  • Engineering and Technology
  • Education and Training

Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).

Tools & technology

Shared: Spreadsheet software , Office suite software .

Specific to Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons

Specific to Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

Full profiles

This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons or Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.

More comparisons

Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/helpers-painters-paperhangers-plasterers-and-stucco-masons-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/helpers-painters-paperhangers-plasterers-and-stucco-masons-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters

BibTeX 
@misc{singulariki-helpers-painters-paperhangers-plasterers-and-stucco-masons-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters,
  title  = {Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/compare/helpers-painters-paperhangers-plasterers-and-stucco-masons-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.