Bricklayer / Mason
Federal figures put this role between $44,820 and $100,010 a year, with a national median of $62,120.
What the job actually is.
Lays brick, block and stone to line and level: layout and coursing, mortar selection and mixing, reinforcement and ties, flashing and weeps in a cavity wall, and the joint finish that will be looked at for the building's life. Works off scaffold for most of it.
What this role pays.
We have not closed enough masonry & concrete searches to publish a band of our own for this seat, so the figures above are the federal 10th to 90th percentile spread rather than a My Trade Talent band. They are national and not adjusted for experience or region.
The federal occupation for this role is Brickmasons and Blockmasons (SOC 47-2021), May 2025. Nationally it reports a median of $62,120 , with the middle of the market between $44,820 and $100,010.
Where it pays most.
Brickmasons and Blockmasons across the metros we cover, May 2025. BLS publishes a median for 84 of them and withholds the rest, where the local sample was too small to be reliable.
| Metro | Median | Employed there |
|---|---|---|
| Minneapolis | $97,960 | 820 |
| Seattle | $97,830 | 310 |
| Boston | $96,960 | 1,060 |
| Milwaukee | $96,010 | 280 |
| New York | $92,300 | 3,010 |
| Chicago | $89,980 | 2,140 |
| Hartford | $87,520 | 270 |
| Providence | $86,990 | 450 |
| Albuquerque | $43,910 | 180 |
| Myrtle Beach | $47,220 | 50 |
| Winston-Salem | $47,910 | 140 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. The last three rows are the lowest-paying metros in the same set. Headcount is metro-wide across every industry, not this trade alone.
Credentials that move an offer.
No single credential reliably moves an offer in this seat. Employers screen on demonstrated commercial experience instead, which makes the resume harder to read and the reference check worth more.
Licensing is a state question, not a national one. The Masonry & Concrete hiring page carries the state-by-state position, and every market page names the authority for that state.
What separates a strong candidate.
Everyone who applies for this seat will claim the experience. These are the things that distinguish the people who have it, and the questions that find out.
What to look for
- Coursing and layout described as the part that cannot be fixed later
- Knows mortar types and where each is required rather than using one everywhere
- Understands flashing, weeps and air gaps as the wall's drainage system
Questions that find out
- How do you set out a wall so the coursing lands correctly at the openings? A strong answer Sets out dry before laying anything: rod or story pole made from the actual units and the specified joint, checked against the opening heads and sills, the floor levels and anything the wall has to meet. Adjusts the bed joint within tolerance across several courses rather than making one fat joint at the top. Checks the openings are where the drawings say before building to them, because they often are not.
- Which mortar type for a structural CMU wall, and why not the one you use on veneer? A strong answer Knows mortar is chosen for strength, bond and flexibility together, and that the strongest mortar is not the best choice everywhere: a structural wall carrying load needs the compressive strength the engineer specified, while a veneer benefits from a softer mortar with better workability and bond that will not crack the units. Says the specification decides, and that using a high-strength mortar on soft brick causes the brick to fail rather than the joint.
- Walk me through flashing and weeps at the base of a cavity wall. A strong answer Describes the system as a drainage path, not a layer: flashing turned up the backup and sealed or terminated properly, lapped and sealed at the joints, with end dams at the ends and at every interruption, a drainage material or clear cavity above it, and weeps at the specified spacing sitting on top of the flashing with nothing blocking them. Says the end dam and the mortar droppings are what most wet walls come down to.
- How do you set up leads and keep a long wall true? A strong answer Builds the leads first, plumb and level and to the rod, then runs the line between them and keeps every course to the line rather than to the course below. Checks the leads with a level and from the end for a wind. Re-checks plumb as the lead rises and does not build more than a few courses without checking. Says a wall is only as true as its leads and that chasing it out of the middle never works.
- What is your approach to mixing and matching mortar on a repair? A strong answer Matches the existing rather than using what is on the truck: looks at colour, texture, aggregate and, on an older building, the strength, because a hard modern mortar in a soft old wall destroys the brick. Analyses or at least takes a sample of the existing mortar and tries samples on an inconspicuous area, letting them cure before judging the colour. Tools the joint to match the original profile, which matters as much as the colour.
- How do you keep a cavity clean of mortar droppings as you build? A strong answer Treats it as a daily discipline rather than a clean-out at the end: bevelling the bed joint away from the cavity, using a cavity board or batten lifted as the wall rises, and clearing the base before closing it up. Knows that droppings sitting on the flashing bridge the cavity and block the weeps, and that this is the single most common cause of a wet wall that nobody can find a leak in.
- What changes in your process in cold or hot weather? A strong answer Cold: materials and mixing water kept above the minimum, no frozen units or sand, protection and heat after laying for the period required, and knowing that mortar that freezes before it sets has no strength even if it looks fine. Hot: units wetted where appropriate, smaller batches, shaded materials, and protection from drying too fast which gives a weak bond and shrinkage cracks. Knows the temperature limits rather than judging by feel.
- How do you deal with a brick delivery that does not match the existing blend? A strong answer Stops before laying. Compares against the approved sample and the existing wall in daylight rather than under site lighting, checks whether it is a different run, and lays out a dry panel to see how it reads at a distance. Raises it with the supplier and the project manager the same day. Says that blending from multiple pallets is normal and necessary, and that a genuine mismatch is a rejection rather than something to spread out.
- What is your approach to reinforcing and grouting a CMU wall? A strong answer Places the bar where the drawing says with the specified cover and lap, holds it in position with positioners rather than hoping, and keeps the cells clean with cleanouts where the lift height requires them. Grouts in lifts the specification allows and consolidates properly, knowing unconsolidated grout leaves voids around the steel. Checks nothing has moved before grouting, because after the pour nobody can see it.
- What is your approach to a lintel or opening detail? A strong answer Checks the lintel is the specified size and material with the bearing the drawing requires at each end, set level and on a solid bearing, with the flashing and end dams carried over it and weeps above. Knows a steel lintel needs the right coating or protection and clearance for movement. Says the opening head is where water gets in and where cracking starts, and that the detail is worth getting right even when nobody will see it.
- How do you handle efflorescence a customer is complaining about? A strong answer Explains what it is - salts carried out by water moving through the wall - and that the real question is where the water is coming from, not how to scrub it off. Checks the obvious sources: blocked weeps, a bridged cavity, failed flashing, saturated ground, a leaking parapet or coping. Cleans it properly with the mildest effective method after fixing the source. Says cleaning without fixing the water means it comes back.
- What is your process for tuckpointing an older building? A strong answer Cuts out to the depth the joint needs, by hand or with care, rather than grinding and widening the joint and damaging the brick arrises - which is the damage you see on badly repointed buildings. Matches the mortar in strength, colour and texture, dampens the joint, fills in layers rather than one deep fill, and tools to match the original profile. Says the brick is harder to replace than the mortar, so the mortar must be the sacrificial part.
- How do you deal with a wall that is out of plumb from the foundation up? A strong answer Measures how far out before deciding anything and raises it rather than quietly correcting it in the masonry, because correcting a foundation error in the wall means the units overhang their bearing or the cavity width changes. Finds out what the tolerance allows and what the wall has to meet at the top. Gets the engineer or the general contractor to decide, in writing, and documents what they were told to do.
- What is your approach to control joints and where do they belong? A strong answer Knows control joints in CMU accommodate shrinkage and go where the drawings show them - near openings, at changes of height or thickness, at corners and at the spacing the specification sets - and that expansion joints in brick do the opposite job. Builds them as a genuine break with the right backer and sealant rather than filling them with mortar. Raises missing joints on a drawing rather than leaving them out.
- How do you protect new work from weather overnight? A strong answer Covers the top of every unfinished wall, overhanging both faces so rain cannot run into the cores and the cavity, and secures it against wind. Knows saturated new masonry is the cause of efflorescence and of mortar that never gains strength, and that an uncovered wall over a wet weekend can mean taking it down. In cold weather, adds the protection and heat the specification requires. Does it every day rather than when rain is forecast.
- What do you check before the scaffold comes down? A strong answer Walks every elevation while they can still reach it: joints struck and consistent, no holes or missing mortar, weeps clear and present, flashing and sealant complete, units clean and any staining dealt with, ties in place and the pattern correct, and the work plumb and true. Takes photographs of what will be hidden. Knows that everything found after the scaffold is down costs ten times as much to fix.
The mistake this seat invites
Hiring on units laid per day. Layout and water management decide whether the wall is right; speed only matters after that.
Where the role goes next
Masons move to lead, foreman and superintendent; restoration and stone work pay above production block. Candidates ask this in the first conversation, and an employer who cannot answer it loses the people who had other options.
Interview kit for this role
- All interview questions for this role in the question bank.
- Printable interview scorecard built from these questions and signals.
- The Masonry & Concrete hiring kit - every role in the trade, with credentials and offer risks.
- Offer calculator starting from this role's pay band.
What the search actually takes.
We have closed 1 masonry & concrete searches in 2026 year to date, which is below the 8 we require before publishing a median. We would rather print the count than a number the sample cannot carry. The Hiring Index shows what we do and do not have.
Keep reading.
- 2026 Masonry & Concrete Salary Guide - the full benchmark by role.
- Masonry & Concrete recruiting - how we run this trade.
- Salary calculator - the band by experience and region.
- Masonry & Concrete hiring in Houston - one market in detail.
- Hiring Index - how long our searches actually take.
Other Masonry & Concrete roles we recruit
All 56 roles we recruit - every trade, every seat.
