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Brickmason

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AVG. SALARY

$51,720

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EDUCATION

High school (GED) +

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JOB OUTLOOK

Decreasing

What They Do

Brickmasons and Blockmasons Career Video

About This Career

Lays and binds building materials, such as brick, structural tile, concrete block, cinder block, glass block, and terra-cotta block, with mortar and other substances, to construct or repair walls, partitions, arches, sewers, and other structures.

This career is part of the Architecture and Construction cluster Construction pathway.

A person in this career:

  • Measures distance from reference points and marks guidelines to lay out work, using plumb bobs and levels.
  • Construct corners by fastening in plumb position a corner pole or building a corner pyramid of bricks, and filling in between the corners using a line from corner to corner to guide each course, or layer, of brick.
  • Applies and smooths mortar or other mixture over work surface.
  • Calculates angles and courses and determines vertical and horizontal alignment of courses.
  • Breaks or cuts bricks, tiles, or blocks to size, using trowel edge, hammer, or power saw.
  • Interprets blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required.
  • Removes excess mortar with trowels and hand tools, and finishes mortar joints with jointing tools, for a sealed, uniform appearance.
  • Fastens or fuses brick or other building material to structure with wire clamps, anchor holes, torch, or cement.
  • Cleans working surface to remove scale, dust, soot, or chips of brick and mortar, using broom, wire brush, or scraper.
  • Mixes specified amounts of sand, clay, dirt, or mortar powder with water to form refractory mixtures.

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

People who do this job report that:

  • You would often handle loads up to 20 lbs., sometimes up to 50 lbs. You might do a lot of lifting, carrying, pushing or pulling.
  • Work in this occupation involves bending or twisting your body more than one-third of the time
  • Work in this occupation requires climbing things such as ladders, scaffold, and poles more than one-third of the time
  • Work in this occupation involves use of protective items such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hearing protection, a hard hat, or personal flotation devices
  • Exposure to pollutants, gases, dust, fumes, odors, poor ventilation, etc.
  • Conditions are very hot (above 90 F) or very cold (under 32 F)
  • Work in this occupation involves using your hands to hold, control, and feel objects more than one-third of the time
  • Exposed to hazardous equipment such as saws, machinery, or vehicular traffic more than once a month
  • Sound and noise levels are loud and distracting
  • Work in this occupation requires being outside most of the time
  • Work in this occupation involves making repetitive motions more than one-third of the time
  • Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time
  • Work at heights above 8 feet more than once a month on structures such as ladders, poles, scaffolding, and catwalks

Working in this career involves (physical activities):

  • Maintaining a body position that prevents falling when in an unstable position
  • Moving the arms, legs and torso together when the whole body is in motion
  • Using muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching
  • Seeing clearly at a distance
  • Seeing clearly up close
  • Exerting oneself physically over long periods of time without getting out of breath
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying objects
  • Using abdominal and lower back muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring

Work Hours and Travel

  • Regular working hours and limited travel

Specialty and Similar Careers

Careers that are more detailed or close to this career:

  • Brick Mason
  • Block Layer
  • Block Mason
  • Brick and Block Mason
  • Bricklayer — Lays bricks, concrete blocks, stone and other similar materials to construct or repair walls, arches, chimneys, fireplaces and other structures in accordance with blueprints and specifications.
  • Concrete Finisher — Smoothes and finishes surfaces of poured concrete, such as floors, walks, sidewalks, roads or curbs using a variety of hand and power tools.
  • Mason
  • Tender
  • Blockmason
  • Masonry Installer

Contact

  • Email Support

  • 1-800-GO-TO-XAP (1-800-468-6927)
    From outside the U.S., please call +1 (424) 750-3900

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