Employment prospects for well-qualified Upholsterers are fair as there is a shortage of workers who are able to both build quality custom furniture and perform repair work. Applicants who are experienced only in production- line upholstery may have difficulty entering the custom field without retraining. Marginally qualified workers will experience difficulty in obtaining jobs. The best opportunities are in larger custom shops, most of which produce custom furniture to order as well as perform repair work. Many of these shops do contract work for department and furniture stores that have stopped doing their own upholstery work in-house.
Fringe benefits vary from shop to shop.
Union wages are paid either as a guaranteed hourly rate or on a piece-work basis. Union workers are generally covered by employer-paid health insurance and pension plans, and are given a two week vacation and nine paid holidays per year. The standard workweek is 40 hours. The most common way to enter the upholstering trade is to start as a helper in an upholstery shop. Under the direction of experienced workers, helpers learn the upholstering process by doing one or two simple tasks such as removing old fabric, padding, or springs.