Masonry & Concrete Recruiting
Bricklayers, concrete finishers, restoration masons, and the estimators and PMs who run the jobs. It is a small, specialized labor pool. We build the standing pipeline that keeps it staffed instead of leaving you to find one qualified hire at a time.
How do you hire masons and concrete finishers in 2026?
Hiring masons and concrete finishers in 2026 means recruiting inside a genuinely small, specialized labor pool.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks brickmasons and blockmasons, stonemasons, and cement masons and concrete finishers as three separate, comparatively small occupations, and none of them are growing quickly. Unlike bigger trades, this hiring rarely happens through open job-board search; most of it runs on referral networks and existing trade relationships, which is exactly why a standing, pre-vetted pipeline outperforms posting-and-praying every time a seat opens. My Trade Talent builds and maintains that pipeline on a flat monthly retainer, continuously sourcing bricklayers, concrete finishers, restoration masons, estimators, and masonry/concrete PMs across 100+ US markets so open seats fill with vetted people, not guesses.
Three small occupations, none of them growing fast.
Masonry and concrete is a narrower, more specialized labor market than most trades we recruit for. BLS tracks brickmasons, cement masons and stonemasons separately, and each is small.
This is a niche market. We are not going to oversell it.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts about 206,170 Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers (SOC 47-2051), at a median annual wage of $57,020, and about 52,550 Brickmasons and Blockmasons (SOC 47-2021), at a median of $62,120 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The median age of brickmasons, blockmasons and stonemasons is 42.5 (BLS CPS, 2025), close to the US workforce as a whole.
None of these occupations is growing fast, and restoration and tuckpointing work (historic masonry repair) is its own specialty within that already-small pool. It is even harder to staff because it requires masons who can match existing mortar, brick, and stone rather than just set new material to a modern spec.
Workforce age · BLS 2025
This trade is about the same age as the American workforce as a whole, 0.4 years older at the median. The people who supervise it are another 3.9 years further on. That gap is where hiring gets hard: you can find people to do the work, and you cannot quickly find someone who has been doing it long enough to run a crew.
Promoting from inside takes as long as it takes. If you need someone who can run work now, you are hiring from a pool of people who already have jobs, which is a different job than posting a listing.
Cement masons and concrete finishers are markedly younger at 39.2 — this trade is two labor markets, not one.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, Table 11b (2025 annual averages). See all 20 trades compared →
The 10 most-recruited Masonry & Concrete roles.
These are the positions we maintain active pipelines for in masonry and concrete. Several of these roles are grouped under broader BLS occupational codes since the trade does not have a dedicated code for every specialty. We note that explicitly rather than force a number that does not exist.
Each linked position above opens that role on its own: what it pays, the credentials that move an offer, and the metros paying most for it. All 56 roles we recruit →
What Masonry & Concrete roles pay nationally.
BLS puts the national median for brickmasons and blockmasons at $62,120 a year, $44,820 at the tenth percentile and $100,010 at the ninetieth, across 52,550 people employed. Bricklayer / Mason and Restoration Mason sit inside one BLS occupation, so one figure covers all of them - the gap between the tenth and the ninetieth percentile is where that difference shows up. Metro-level medians for these occupations are on each market page below.
| Roles | National median | 10th-90th percentile | Employed nationally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bricklayer / Mason · Restoration MasonBrickmasons and Blockmasons (47-2021) | $62,120 | $44,820 - $100,010 | 52,550 |
| Concrete FinisherCement Masons and Concrete Finishers (47-2051) | $57,020 | $39,190 - $85,480 | 206,170 |
| Concrete Form Setter / CarpenterCarpenters (47-2031) | $60,580 | $40,410 - $99,910 | 670,090 |
| Masonry ForemanFirst-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (47-1011) | $79,920 | $53,280 - $128,260 | 812,210 |
| Concrete Pump OperatorOperating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators (47-2073) | $59,850 | $42,190 - $101,090 | 478,090 |
| EstimatorCost Estimators (13-1051) | $78,740 | $48,530 - $130,820 | 224,220 |
| Project ManagerConstruction Managers (11-9021) | $114,990 | $69,690 - $189,440 | 380,360 |
| Precast Concrete TechnicianMolders, Shapers, and Casters (51-9195) | $46,170 | $35,850 - $61,530 | 33,190 |
| Concrete Testing TechnicianCivil Engineering Technologists and Technicians (17-3022) | $64,950 | $44,220 - $98,980 | 68,520 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national, cross-industry, all ownerships. Where several of the roles above share one BLS occupation the row names them together, because BLS publishes one figure for the occupation rather than one per job title.
Masonry & Concrete hiring intel, by metro.
Each of these market pages covers current wages by role, real hiring conditions, and what it takes to win the hire in that specific metro.
Three resources to hire smarter in Masonry & Concrete.
Each one is built specifically for masonry and concrete contractors, not generic recruiting advice. All free. Written by people who do this work every day.
A focused guide on hiring, vetting, and retaining masons and concrete finishers in a small, referral-driven labor pool. Role-specific recruiting playbooks and a candid look at what works.
Download Definitive Guide to Masonry & Concrete →
Compensation benchmarks for all 10 Masonry & Concrete positions across 9 U.S. Census Divisions. Built from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics data plus our own placement records.
Download 2026 Masonry & Concrete Salary Guide →
A simple, practical framework for interviewing masonry and concrete candidates. Three structured steps to evaluate technical fit, motivational fit, and culture fit, without wasting your time or theirs.
Download 3-Step Interview Guide for Masonry & Concrete →Those three are this trade's. Every other trade we recruit has its own set, and they are all on the whitepapers page.
What credentials matter, and what kills offers.
Most searches in this trade fail after the offer rather than before it. These are the credentials that actually gate the work, and the things that most often end a hire between the handshake and the first morning. Every credential below links to the body that issues it. What varies by state is the licensing rule, which is set out on each market page.
The credentials that gate the job
- ACI Concrete Flatwork Finisher, with Associate below it and Advanced Finisher aboveAmerican Concrete Institute (ACI)
The national flatwork credential specifiers name. Finisher requires 1,500 hours of actual on-the-job finishing experience, roughly a year full time, plus a performance exam covering placing, consolidating, finishing, edging, jointing, curing and initial protection. Valid five years. Note the renaming: Associate was Technician and Finisher was Tradesman, so older resumes carry the old names.
- ACI Concrete Field Testing Technician, Grade IAmerican Concrete Institute (ACI)
What allows someone to sign off field acceptance testing on most commercial pours, covering seven ASTM methods including slump, air content, density and field specimens. Written and performance exams, valid five years, with recertification by retaking both.
- NCCER masonry curriculum and journey-level Mason assessmentNational Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER)
The main portable non-union masonry credential, a three-level curriculum NCCER states complies with US Department of Labor apprenticeship standards, plus a journey-level assessment. Credentials are employer-verifiable and travel between metros, which matters in a trade that follows the work.
- Silica competent person designation under OSHA 29 CFR 1926.1153Designated by the employer under the OSHA respirable crystalline silica construction standard
Every cutting, grinding, mixing and tuckpointing crew needs a written exposure control plan and a designated competent person able to identify hazards, authorised to correct them and inspecting frequently. Being that named person is a distinct and pay-relevant role.
What most often kills an offer
- Silica medical surveillance arrives weeks after the start date
Surveillance becomes mandatory once someone must wear a respirator 30 or more days a year, with the initial exam inside 30 days of assignment and including a chest X-ray, a pulmonary function test and TB screening. Candidates accept a cutting role and then face tests they did not expect, which produces both withdrawals and genuine restrictions after the crew is staffed.
- The 1,500 hours cannot be documented
ACI Concrete Flatwork Finisher needs 1,500 hours of finishing experience evidenced, plus the performance exam. Finishers who worked cash, as 1099s, or for contractors since gone under often cannot prove the hours. If the job was sold on spec language requiring certified finishers, a capable candidate is unusable on that job.
- Weather decides the paycheque
BLS notes masons work mostly outdoors and that inclement weather affects their schedules. Candidates arriving from indoor or year-round hourly work accept, then leave when the first rain-out or cold snap cuts a week. It is the most common trade-specific reason a masonry offer is accepted and then abandoned inside two months.
- The telehandler card does not transfer
Powered industrial truck certification is issued by the employing organisation, and previous training counts only where the new employer can demonstrate it applies to their equipment and site. A mason tender hired partly for lift capability cannot be used that way on day one.
Researched from each issuing body and from federal and state agency sources. Licensing and certification rules change; the links above are the authority, not this page.
Hiring questions for Masonry & Concrete
How much do masons and concrete finishers make?
There is no single "masonry" wage figure because the Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks these as separate occupations. Brickmasons and blockmasons carry a national median of roughly $62,120 a year (about $29.87/hour); cement masons and concrete finishers run lower, around $57,020 a year (about $27.41/hour); stonemasons sit similarly around $57,390 a year (about $27.59/hour). These figures reflect current BLS-sourced wage data via O*NET OnLine. All three move a lot by metro and by specialty; restoration and tuckpointing masons in particular tend to command more than the general median because that work is harder to staff.
What certifications should I look for when hiring a concrete finisher or mason?
For concrete testing and quality-control roles, look for an ACI (American Concrete Institute) Field Testing Technician credential: it is the standard most state DOTs and specs require for anyone testing fresh concrete on a job site. For masons and finishers themselves, there is not a single universal license the way there is in some trades; look instead at documented years in the specific work (flatwork vs. vertical brick vs. restoration are different skill sets) and ask for references you can actually call.
Why is masonry and concrete hiring different from other trades?
It is a smaller, more specialized labor pool: BLS counts about 52,550 brickmasons and blockmasons nationally, and restoration masons who can match existing mortar and stone are a small fraction of that. Hiring happens through referral networks and existing trade relationships far more than open job postings, which is exactly why a maintained pipeline of vetted candidates outperforms reactive posting in this trade specifically.
What is a restoration mason, and do I need one?
A restoration mason specializes in tuckpointing and historic masonry repair: matching existing mortar composition, brick or stone color, and joint profile rather than setting new material to a modern spec. You need one specifically any time the scope involves an existing building rather than new construction; a general bricklayer without restoration experience can do real damage to a historic facade by using the wrong mortar mix or technique.
Should I use a staffing agency or hire directly for masonry and concrete roles?
It depends on how consistently you have open seats and how niche the role is. Generalist contingency agencies often do not have a deep bench in a trade this specialized. A recruiting partner that maintains a standing, vetted pipeline specific to masonry and concrete (rather than sourcing reactively per req) tends to fill faster and with better-fit candidates, especially for harder-to-staff specialties like restoration or precast.
What should I ask a mason or concrete finisher in an interview?
Ask about specific project types they have finished, not just years of experience: flatwork, vertical brick, block, and restoration all draw on different muscle memory. For finishers, ask how they handle a pour in weather outside the ideal range (too hot, too cold, or too wet) since that is where inexperience shows up fastest. For any restoration or tuckpointing candidate, ask them to describe how they matched mortar on a past project. A real answer includes testing and adjusting the mix, not just "I made it look the same."
How long does it take to fill a masonry or concrete role?
My Trade Talent has closed 1 masonry and concrete search in 2026 year to date, too few to publish a median for this trade on its own. Across all 88 searches we closed in 2026 year to date, every trade together, the median is 21 calendar days from our first contact with the candidate to the hire, and the middle half took 12 to 31 days. Our clock starts when we first contact the candidate, not when the requisition is approved, so it is not the same measure as an industry time-to-fill survey. The trade figure appears on our Hiring Index once we have closed enough searches for it to mean something.
However you want to pay for Masonry & Concrete hiring.
Which one wins depends almost entirely on how often you hire. Both are ours — we do not sell a per-placement percentage. The full breakdown is on the pricing page.
Budget it monthly
$1,500per month, credited in full
You pay monthly while we run the search, and every month you have paid comes off the placement commission dollar for dollar. Same total as a percentage fee, spread across the search. No minimum commitment.
Fits if you have one or two seats to fill.
How pay as you go works →Stop paying per head
From $4,000per month, no placement fees
One monthly rate, hire as many masonry & concrete people as you want from your submittals, no per-placement fee at any volume. $4,000 is the 12-month rate; on the six-month minimum it is $4,250, because a pipeline takes time to be worth anything.
Fits if you are hiring continuously.
Why we charge flat →For reference, contingency recruiters commonly charge 20–30% of first-year salary per hire — a range, not a quote from any competitor. We do not price that way. See how the two models compare →
We closed 1 masonry & concrete search this year.
Not a capability claim - the actual seats, what made each one hard, and how long it took. Here is one, and every one links to its write-up.
- Traveling Concrete SuperintendentA traveling field leader for large retail and commercial concrete work, in the field three days after the hire.
We have closed 1 Masonry & Concrete search in 2026 year to date - too few to publish a median without overstating what we know. The count, the range and every other trade are in the Hiring Index. Figures are calendar days from our first contact with the candidate to the hire.
Every hire from zero is a tax on your team.
Every week a seat sits open, the rest of your crew is covering for it. Every contingency fee you pay is money that didn't go toward growth. There's a better model. Let's build your pipeline.
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