Jobs in woodworking

[John T Barker]

I am coming to a change in my employment in 2 to 3 months and I am trying to decide what to do with myself. My first job related to this field was as a carpenter for a major university for a little over a year. From there I got the best job one could have as a woodworker; I was working for one of the best 18th century reproduction shops around. When the economy went south I was let go and worked on my own for a few years making and selling furniture/woodwork. To help make ends meet I worked for Woodcraft Industries as a salesman and instructor. I left there to get back in to shop work for a small woodworking business which I was let go from when the owner realized he had no way to continue to pay me. In desperation for "steady" work I went in to retail furniture sales, first finished and then unfinished.

My purpose in this thread? I need to find work and am wondering what direction to go in. I find woodworking a bit unstable and the demands physically are probably more than I can handle. That being said it is a field I know well and enjoy many aspects of. I am currently reading What Color is My Parachute and the author encourages people to choose careers based on what they know and enjoy and I would like to follow his advice. Let's face it, retail sucks, everyone knows this. I'd like to leave it and never experience it again, if that is possible. I'm hoping that there might be jobs out there that I might not be thinking of that I could do that would make use of what I know. When I went in to retail furniture I had been very close to landing a job as a wood shop manager at a local university as it seems that accredited architecture schools must maintain an on campus wood shop.

MY QUESTION

What jobs do you know of in woodworking or related to woodworking in some way? Anything where someone cuts wood, shows someone how to cut wood or just talks about cutting wood. Please help me with this in any way you can.

Thank you.

[Jeff Ramsey]

John, I don't live too far from you and were I you, I'd consider flying out to Vegas for AWFS with resumes in hand (or at least get an exhibitors list and contact the ones that seem like a fit). http://awfsfair.org/ You say you aren't interested in retail, but what about retail for woodworking machinery? Have you done handwork? What about one of the better hand tool makers, like Lie-Neilsen? Some of the Philadelphia area colleges (two and four year), and tech schools have wood shops. What about this: http://www.philadelphiawoodworks.com/employment/

Or this: http://www.philadelphiafurnitureworkshop.com/

Good luck to you!

[Ellen Benkin]

I am in Maine very near Lie Nielsen and I believe they are hiring sales people. Check their website.

[Jim Andrew]

In my area of Kansas, if you want to work with wood, about all the choices are construction or cabinet shops. Suppose you could look at positions for instructors in community college, or even woodshop teachers in high school. Last year, the state legislature passed a law that schools could hire professionals instead of certified teachers, so woodshop should qualify. College instructors do not need a teaching certificate. The local vo-tech used to hire a guy who had been a foreman on a construction crew for years. He really wasn't great as far as a craftsman, but was very good as a instructor.

[Matt Day]

I didn't see this addressed by the OP, but are you open to moving? That will probably affect some suggestions.

[Edward Oleen]

It is probably beneath your skill set, but now-a-days finish carpenters seem to be in demand, for some reason, and by the people you'd least expect. I had a plumber in to get an estimate on a job, and he went bananas when he saw my wood-shop. He turned to me and demanded to know if I was a finish-carpenter - he needed one, apparently.

I didn't like the guy - he wanted to do what HE wanted to do, not what I wanted done, so I said "No - I was a cabinet maker", which was the closest trade I figured he knew about.

However: that got me thinking: finish carpentry doesn't involve much heavy lifting, as far as I can see. Putting in moldings and trim and stuff like that may be a two-man job at times, but is a damn sight easier and less dangerous than "normal" carpentry.

Just a suggestion you might want to think about.

[Mark Blatter]

In Utah, housing is booming. Used houses are on the market for about four weeks or less. My wife and I were thinking about moving to a different style of house so she spent four weeks looking. Every house that came on the market, in our price range, was gone before we could even get in to see it. Our realtor called one day and said there were two couples in his office that wanted to look at our house, and we didn't even have it on the market. We said no, because we knew we could end up on the street with no place to live.

Anyway, my point is that cabinet shops around here are hiring all the time. Also, as mentioned by others, finish carpenters are in demand too. Once my neighbors found out I did cabinetry on the side, I have more work than I have time for and it has been all word of mouth.

Don't know how long it will last, but for now there are many jobs for skilled workers.

[Mike Ontko]

Residential remodeling and restoration work could be one possiblity where skills in either finish carpentry, cabinetmaking, or both would be a handy asset. You might look around to see if there are any general contractors or remodelers/flippers in your area that are doing this kind of work and whether they would have a need to subcontract your skills.

[John T Barker]

John, I don't live too far from you and were I you, I'd consider flying out to Vegas for AWFS with resumes in hand (or at least get an exhibitors list and contact the ones that seem like a fit). http://awfsfair.org/ You say you aren't interested in retail, but what about retail for woodworking machinery? Have you done handwork? What about one of the better hand tool makers, like Lie-Neilsen? Some of the Philadelphia area colleges (two and four year), and tech schools have wood shops. What about this: http://www.philadelphiawoodworks.com/employment/

Or this: http://www.philadelphiafurnitureworkshop.com/

Good luck to you!

Jeff- Thanks. I actually interviewed at the first one and came away with the weirdest reaction/impression. Didn't get the job, not sure I would have wanted it. C'est la vie. Rodriguez's shop would be great but I fear his level is a bit high for me. I also don't like the idea of a commute to center city...Chester county carry permit is not legal there.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Please folks, keep your recommendations generic ideas and not specific. We have a history and policy of not allowing job advertisements at SMC.

[Richard McComas]

I know of a web site where professional cabinet makers, furniture makers, finishers hang out and thet have a job board on that site that may be a good place to check out. But, I don't know if I'm allowed to name that web site.

[Larry Edgerton]

Sell insurance to woodworkers.

It is unstable, woodworking that is. Every time the economy gets a sniffle we get the cold.

Great hobby, wish it was for me.

[jack duren]

If I had to start over I would get into heating and cooling. Start low and work hard to get into the service end of the trade. A good trade.

I know many who were good at woodworking of some kind but got into better reliable trades...

[Gerry Grzadzinski]

While it's not high end woodrworking, there are plenty of good paying jobs in shops doing custom commercial cabinet work. OF the course the more you know, and the more skilled you are, the more you make.
I've been in this industry for about 20 years, and it's been pretty steady most of the time with the exception of the big recession. It's' always difficult to find good employees.
A lot of our work is hospital remodels and new construction, which is work that is always going to be there.

[Yonak Hawkins]

John, if you want to work for yourself, in your own shop, you aren't so high brow that you won't do repetitive piecework, and you don't expect to make a killing, you might do what I found a niche for : manufacturing of consumables and component parts. They're easy to find. Just look around. Everything that's made out of wood has to be made by somebody. Oftentimes these kinds of things are made in China but, if you find the right product and the right market you can out-maneuver the Chinese with quality, response time, flexibility and locally-made.

Even though I'm not making fine furniture for a living (I save my "fun stuff", my furniture-making for the weekends, like lots of other people), I'm working with wood, setting my own hours and my commute is 16 steps down to my shop. I've been doing this for 14 years and it's worked out great for me. Good luck with whatever you choose to pursue.