← All 785 jobsFile 51-7021
Furniture Finishers
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 3.5% fewer of these jobs by 2035.
- Rank
- #543 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -3.5% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $44,540 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 15,900 in the US, with about 1,500 openings a year
The work, 15 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
Still yours: Apply protective solutions or coatings17%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Shape materials to create products15%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Repair workpieces or products12%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Disassemble equipment9%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Operate cutting or grinding equipment6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Apply materials to fill gaps or imperfections5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Select materials or equipment for operations or projects5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 529 Copilot conversations and completed it 94% of the time.
AI helps with this: Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,462 conversations, and it got them there 90% of the time.
AI helps with this: Prepare mixtures or solutions5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 714 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
AI helps with this: Confer with clients to determine needs or order specifications4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 502 conversations, and it got them there 54% of the time.
AI does this: Advise others on business or operational matters3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 290 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI helps with this: Read documents or materials to inform work processes3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 51 conversations, and it got them there 88% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Operate industrial processing or production equipment3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Design structures or facilities2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 97 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
Even shrinking, it should still see about 1,500 openings a year as people retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 33% of the workOphthalmic Laboratory Technicians0% AI does, against 8% here+2.2% by 2035 · $39,460 · High school diploma
- Shares 23% of the workAutomotive Glass Installers and Repairers0% AI does, against 8% here+5.7% by 2035 · $47,630 · High school diploma
- Shares 21% of the workPesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation0% AI does, against 8% here+3.9% by 2035 · $46,340 · High school diploma
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.08, higher than 25% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 51-7021 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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