Upholsterers
Career Overview
Upholsterers:
- Cover furniture, fixtures and similar items with fabric, leather or other upholstery materials
- Work for furniture, aircraft, motor vehicle and other manufacturing companies, furniture retail outlets and repair shops
- May be self-employed
Job Titles
Duties
Upholsterers perform some or all of the following duties:
- Discuss upholstery fabric, colour, and style with customers and provide cost estimate for upholstering furniture or other items
- Lay out, measure and cut upholstery materials according to sketches or design specifications
- Replace worn-out webbing, springs and other furniture parts using hand and power tools
- Operate sewing machines or sew upholstery materials by hand to seam cushions and join sections of covering materials
- Install padding and underlays and fasten covering materials to furniture frames
- Tack, glue or sew ornamental trim, braids or buttons on upholstered items
- Lay out, cut, fabricate and install upholstery in aircrafts, motor vehicles, railway cars, boats and ships
- May repair furniture frames and refinish wood surfaces
- May make upholstery patterns from sketches, customer descriptions or blueprints
- May install, make, maintain and repair interior components of aircraft, such as seats, coverings, drapes, cargo nets, flooring, closets, bins and panels
Earnings
Earnings is income that workers receive in exchange for their labour. Depending on the type of employment, earnings can be in the form of wages (hourly), salaries (fixed monthly or annual) or self-employed earnings.
Work Environment
# Workers Employed
380% Employed Full Time
50%Key aspects of the work in this occupation:
- Work takes place in a controlled indoor environment
- Working with equipment, machinery or power/hand tools may be a source of injury
- There may be airborne particles such as textile dust in the workplace
Career Pathways
Progression to supervisory positions is possible with experience.
Related Careers
Occupational Interests
It’s important to understand what kinds of occupations align with your interests.
For more about occupational interests visit Skills for the Future Workforce > Characteristics.
Here are the top occupational interest(s) for this career profile:
Education, Training and Skills
Completion of secondary school is usually required.
Completion of college or other specialized courses or an apprenticeship program in furniture upholstering and repair or Several years of on-the-job training, including working as an upholsterer helper are usually required.
For more information please see SkilledTradesBC's website at https://skilledtradesbc.ca.
Workers who are certified for an occupation by a regulator elsewhere in Canada can apply for the same certification from the regulator in B.C. Under the terms of the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), most applicants who are transferring their credentials from elsewhere in Canada will not be required to complete additional training or testing. However, the B.C. regulator may ask applicants to provide further information such as a letter of good standing, references, or criminal record check.
For those who trained outside of Canada and never received certification from any Canadian jurisdiction, a full assessment is likely needed. Most occupational regulators have a process for assessment and recognize internationally trained applicants.
For information about labour mobility in Canada, visit www.workersmobility.ca.
View a list of Professional Regulatory Authorities in B.C.
Education programs in B.C.
Skills
Every job calls for a certain set of skills. Knowing those skills is the first step in finding a good career fit.
Here, you will find the 10 most relevant workplace skills. Some are more important to achieving success in a certain career than others. These skills may come naturally to you or you may need to gain them through education, training and experience.
See the list of work-related skills below, ranked in order of importance for this career. Check out the list and see if this career matches your skills—take that first step!
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Being able to solve novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings.
Keeping track of and assessing your performance, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
Understanding how new information could be used to solve current and future problems in making decisions.
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Talking to others to share information effectively.
Watching gauges, dials or other indicators to make sure that a machine is working properly.
Labour Market Statistics
Discover data, facts and information that have been gathered and analyzed. Learn about the characteristics of the economy and labour market in B.C.
Employment
Find out about employment types and trends by region and industry.
Employment
380Employment by Region
| Region | Employment | % Employment of this Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Cariboo | 15 | 3.9% |
| Kootenay | 10 | 2.6% |
| Mainland/Southwest | 210 | 54.5% |
| North Coast and Nechako | 10 | 2.6% |
| Northeast | 0 | 0.0% |
| Thompson-Okanagan | 55 | 14.3% |
| Vancouver Island/Coast | 75 | 19.5% |
Labour Market Outlook
The B.C. Labour Market Outlook is a 10-year forecast of the expected supply and demand for labour in the province. It’s usually updated every year. The purpose is to provide British Columbians with the knowledge to make informed decisions on careers, skills training, education and hiring.
Forecasted Job Openings (2024-2034)
150Forecasted Job Openings
Forecasted Employment Growth Rate
Composition of Job Openings
Job Openings by Region (2024-2034)
| Region | Job Openings | Avg. Annual Employment Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Cariboo | Not available | Not available |
| Kootenay | Not available | Not available |
| Mainland/Southwest | 100 | 1.4% |
| North Coast and Nechako | Not available | Not available |
| Northeast | Not available | Not available |
| Thompson-Okanagan | 20 | 1.8% |
| Vancouver Island/Coast | 30 | 0.7% |
Industry Highlights
Learn about the opportunities in B.C.'s major industries, including employment trends, earning potential, locations of work and more.
Forecasted Job Openings by Industry
| Industry | Job Openings (2024-2034) |
|---|---|
| Repair, Personal and Non-Profit Services | 100 |
| Manufacturing | 20 |
| Transportation and Warehousing | 20 |
| Retail Trade | 10 |
Resources
Resource information is currently not available.
