Bricklayer
What the work is
Lays bricks, pre-cut stone and other types of building blocks in mortar to construct and repair walls, partitions, arches, segmental paving and other structures.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Studies plans and specifications to determine materials required, dimensions and installation procedures
- Erects and dismantles restricted height scaffolding
- Seals foundations with damp-resistant materials and spreads layers of mortar to serve as base and binder for building blocks
- Cuts building blocks using machines and hand tools, and shapes blocks to fit irregular spaces
- Sets out blockwork and lays building blocks in rows, designs and shapes
- Embeds building blocks in mortar ensuring construction is level, plumb and aligned, and removes excess mortar
- Installs lintels and flashings to openings
- Repairs and maintains bricks, cement blocks and related structures
- May prepare base and bedding courses, and lay segmental paving
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a masonry crew building brick walls on new homes and repairing old stone and brick on heritage buildings. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A long wall rises course by course and every line stays dead straight
- Matching old bricks so well that nobody can tell where the repair is
- A stone benchtop is cut to a hair's breadth and slides into place
Hard days
- Laying bricks in the heat of summer, with the mortar setting before you can use it
- A cold, wet morning when the wall has to wait and so does the deadline
- A heavy stone slab that must be carried into a tiny kitchen
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 371131, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.