Tapers
Seal joints between plasterboard or other wallboard to prepare wall surface for painting or papering.
A wage reference for United States.
Published wage percentiles describe a distribution within the source occupation group. They provide context for a career decision; employer packages and job offers have their own terms.
This wage group may include multiple detailed occupations. The figures are for the source group, which may be broader than Tapers. They are not an exact-title, employer, experience or seniority match.
May 2025 · USD · United States. Annual and hourly figures are shown only when the source publishes them; neither is calculated from the other.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage data, distributed through the O*NET® OnLine service.
Annual wage thresholds
USD per year
Hourly wage thresholds
USD per hour
| Percentile | Annual wage (USD/year) | Hourly wage (USD/hour) |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $43,670 | $21.00 |
| 25th | $52,730 | $25.35 |
| 50th · Median | $68,270 | $32.82 |
| 75th | $88,540 | $42.57 |
| 90th | $107,110 | $51.50 |
“≥” means at least the published amount; “≤” means at most that amount. These are bounds, not exact values. “Not published” means the source did not provide that figure. Occupational wages follow the source definition and do not establish an employer’s base salary, equity or total compensation.
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Compare an entered wage with the published thresholds for United States. Your entry stays on this page.
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What this career involves.
Occupation definitions describe common work. Responsibilities and requirements vary by employer and specific job.
Selected title examples
Typical tasks
- Press paper tape over joints to embed tape into sealing compound and to seal joints.
- Spread and smooth cementing material over tape, using trowels or floating machines to blend joints with wall surfaces.
- Spread sealing compound between boards or panels or over cracks, holes, nail heads, or screw heads, using trowels, broadknives, or spatulas.
- Work on high ceilings, using scaffolding or other tools, such as stilts.
- Seal joints between plasterboard or other wallboard to prepare wall surfaces for painting or papering.
- Apply additional coats to fill in holes and make surfaces smooth.
Expand more tasks (10)
- Countersink nails or screws below surfaces of walls before applying sealing compounds, using hammers or screwdrivers.
- Mix sealing compounds by hand or with portable electric mixers.
- Sand or patch nicks or cracks in plasterboard or wallboard.
- Select the correct sealing compound or tape.
- Install metal molding at wall corners to secure wallboard.
- Use mechanical applicators that spread compounds and embed tape in one operation.
- Check adhesives to ensure that they will work and will remain durable.
- Sand rough spots of dried cement between applications of compounds.
- Remove extra compound after surfaces have been covered sufficiently.
- Apply texturizing compounds or primers to walls or ceilings before final finishing, using trowels, brushes, rollers, or spray guns.
Skills used in this work
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Active Listening
- 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.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Expand more skills (29)
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Equipment Selection
- Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
- Management of Material Resources
- Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
- Operations Analysis
- Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
- Technology Design
- Generating or adapting equipment and technology to serve user needs.
- Programming
- Writing computer programs for various purposes.
- Science
- Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
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