Bricklayer
Bricklayers lay bricks, blocks and stone to build and repair walls, arches and other masonry structures on construction sites.
- Median salary
- $120,500
3.5%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 16,700
0.6%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +9.8%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 42/wk
+2h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- In shortage
national
Most bricklayers work outdoors on residential and commercial sites, either as employees in a crew or as subcontractors who quote the job and get paid by output. The trade sits alongside carpentry and concreting, but masonry is the material and the finish: what a bricklayer builds is visible and permanent from the day it goes up, and it carries the load as well as the look. Most people in the trade hold a Certificate III gained through an apprenticeship.
How much do bricklayers earn?
The median full-time salary for a bricklayer is $120,500 per annum, before tax, up $25,600 since 2018.
Bricklaying pay depends on the employer's award or enterprise agreement, and site allowances, penalty rates and travel allowances can add to the base rate on large commercial jobs. Subcontractors are paid by output, usually per thousand bricks laid, so their earnings follow how fast the work runs and whether the weather holds. A licensed contractor quoting directly for residential work carries different costs from an employee on wages, and rates vary by state.
What does a bricklayer do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Setting out the first course to the plan, then checking level, plumb and square as the wall rises rather than trusting the eye
- Mixing mortar to suit the day's conditions, because heat, wind and humidity all change how it sits on the trowel
- Cutting and fitting bricks and blocks around openings, corners and awkward angles the drawings don't fully resolve
- Working outdoors through heat, cold and rain, with the pace set by the builder's program rather than by the clock
- Striking the joints and cleaning down at the end of the day, so the wall is finished rather than just laid
What skills do bricklayers need?
Employers look for reading plans and specifications, hand and power tool work, worksite safety management, backed by spirit level fluency and strong attention to detail.
Specialist skills
- Reading plans and specifications
- Hand and power tool work
- Worksite safety management
- Building codes and standards
- Quoting and estimating
Software and tools
- spirit level
- trowel
- brick saw
- measuring tape
- scaffolding
General skills
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
Is the job growing?
About 16,700 people work as bricklayers in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 9.8% over the decade to 2035. That's modest growth: demand is steady rather than booming.
How do you become a bricklayer?
Here's the path most bricklayers take, step by step.
- 1Get a White Card
General construction induction training takes about a day and is required before you set foot on most sites, including as an apprentice, so it is usually the first thing to organise.
- 2Start a Certificate III in Bricklaying and Blocklaying
This is the trade qualification, delivered through an Australian Apprenticeship that usually runs three to four years and is paid from day one. You combine work on site with block release at TAFE or another registered training organisation.
- 3Finish the apprenticeship and work as a qualified bricklayer
The first years after qualifying are about speed and finish, learning to lay fast enough to earn on output work without letting level or jointing slip. Some mature-age entrants have relevant site experience recognised through recognition of prior learning and finish sooner.
- 4Get licensed if you want to contract directly
A trade contractor or builder licence is needed to quote and contract for residential work above a threshold, and requirements differ by state, with applications handled by bodies such as NSW Fair Trading, the QBCC in Queensland or the Victorian Building Authority.
- 5Build toward your own crew or business
Once you can quote accurately, manage insurance and keep a small crew working, subcontracting or running your own bricklaying business is the usual way earnings grow, though it adds invoicing, scheduling and chasing payment to the week.
Study routes we have checked
Qualifications that are a recognised way into this role, and what else you need.
- Certificate III in Bricklaying and Blocklaying
A recognised route into this role
Complete the bricklaying trade training, relevant workplace or apprenticeship arrangements, construction induction and applicable local licensing requirements. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
Ready to apply as a bricklayer?
Whether you're working toward becoming a bricklayer or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a bricklayer move to?
Moving into Construction Manager typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $74,600 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction Manager Bricklayers progress to construction management, overseeing projects and using their site experience to manage budgets and schedules.Known move | +$74,600 | 32% | reskill |
| Concreter Bricklayers move into concreting, applying similar formwork and finishing skills to slabs and footings.Known move | −$5,600 | 67% | minimal |
| Carpenter Bricklayers move into carpentry, carrying structural and setting out skills into framing and finishing work.Known move | −$29,000 | 80% | reskill |
| Site Supervisor Bricklayers move into site supervision, using their trade knowledge to coordinate crews and trades on building sites.Known move | −$34,700 | 32% | reskill |
| Stonemason Bricklayers with stonework experience move into stonemasonry, applying similar setting out and mortar skills to natural and manufactured stone.Known move | −$47,700 | 62% | reskill |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a bricklayer?
The typical bricklayer is 38 years old; 99% are men, 75% work full-time, and full-timers average 42 hours a week.
- 38
- Median age
- 1%
- Female share
- 75%
- Full-time
- +2h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a bricklayer?
Bricklaying is physical, outdoor and repetitive in the way any craft is: hours of the same motion, then a wall that wasn't there in the morning. The pace comes from the builder's program and the weather, and a bricklayer's income depends on keeping up with both. People who stay in the trade tend to like working with their hands and seeing the result at knock-off, and to accept that their body is part of the tools.
What people like
- You can see what you did. A wall, and eventually a house, stands there at the end of the day, and the evidence accumulates over a career in a way that a lot of work doesn't produce.
- The trade travels well. The skills go wherever buildings are going up, the qualification is recognised around Australia, and experienced bricklayers can take it overseas.
- You can work for yourself. Many bricklayers move from wages into subcontracting or running their own crew, which is often where earnings grow, though it means quoting, insuring and chasing payment.
- The rhythm suits some people. Once the line is set, the work is steady and absorbing, with plenty of banter on a good crew and a clear finish to each day.
What people find hard
- The weather runs the day. Rain stops mortar work and extreme heat slows everyone down, and a subcontractor isn't paid for the days the wall doesn't go up.
- It wears on the body. Lifting blocks, bending to courses and carrying a trowel all day adds up, and knee, back and shoulder problems are common in people who stay in the trade for decades.
- Pace and thin margins. Builders push the program, and on output work income depends on laying consistently fast without letting level or jointing slip.
- The repetition. Laying the same block in the same position for hours isn't for everyone, even though the site, the plan and the crew change from job to job.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ bricklayers?
Construction employs the largest share of bricklayers.
Top employing industries
- 1Construction
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Certificate III/IV | 63.2% | |
|---|---|---|
| Year 12 or below | 28.9% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 2.6% | |
| Bachelor degree | 1.3% | |
| Postgraduate | 0.3% |
Will AI replace bricklayers?
Bricklaying is one of the least exposed trades. The wall has to be set out, laid and finished on site, in weather, around the geometry of a particular building, and no machine does that reliably enough yet to replace a crew. Technology has reached the cutting and the paperwork more than the laying.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Laying bricks and blocks to the lineSemi-automated rigs have been trialled on long straight runs, but crews on Australian sites still lay by hand around openings, corners and reinforcement.45%low
- Setting out, levelling and plumbing the workReading the plan, running a line and checking with a spirit level depend on the ground and the wall in front of you, which change with every job.25%low
- Cutting and shaping masonryBrick saws and measured cutting schedules remove some guesswork, though most cutting still happens on site to fit what has actually been built.15%moderate
- Quoting jobs and ordering materialsEstimating and takeoff software can now produce brick and mortar quantities in minutes from a drawing, which is the part of a subcontractor's week most changed by technology.15%high
Common questions about becoming a bricklayer
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do bricklayers earn?
Bricklayers on full-time wages have a median pay of $120,500 per annum, before tax. What moves that figure is the employer's award or enterprise agreement, site allowances on larger commercial jobs, and for subcontractors whether the work is paid by output rather than by the hour.
How do you become a bricklayer?
The usual route is a Certificate III in Bricklaying and Blocklaying (CPC33020) through a paid Australian Apprenticeship, which takes about three to four years. You need a White Card before starting on site, and mature-age entrants with relevant experience can sometimes have it recognised to shorten the apprenticeship.
Are bricklayers in demand?
Bricklayers are currently in shortage nationally, and employment is projected to grow 9.8% over the decade to 2035. Masonry work follows the building cycle, so how steady the work feels depends on what is being built in your area and whether you are willing to travel between sites.
Will AI replace bricklayers?
Very little of the job is exposed. Semi-automated bricklaying rigs exist but are used in narrow situations and haven't replaced crews on Australian sites, because setting out, cutting in around openings and finishing joints are still done by hand. Software is more likely to change the quoting and scheduling side of running a bricklaying business.
What can a bricklayer move into?
Experienced bricklayers often move into site supervision, where median pay is $34,700 less and the work shifts from laying to coordinating trades, or into construction management, where pay is $74,600 more. Others cross into concreting ($5,600 less) or carpentry ($29,000 less), which share setting out and structural skills. Many also stay in the trade and subcontract or run their own crew, which is often where earnings grow.
Can you start bricklaying with no experience?
Yes, apprenticeships are designed for people with no trade background, and you're paid while you learn. Employers usually look for a driver's licence and your own transport, since sites move and start times are early.
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