How to hire brickmasons and blockmasons

Job description template

Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.

[Job title] at [Company name]
[City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range]

About the role
[Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.]

What you will do
• Apply and smooth mortar or other mixture over work surface.
• Break or cut bricks, tiles, or blocks to size, using trowel edge, hammer, or power saw.
• Calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses.
• 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.
• Fasten or fuse brick or other building material to structure with wire clamps, anchor holes, torch, or cement.
• Interpret blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required.
• Measure distance from reference points and mark guidelines to lay out work, using plumb bobs and levels.
• Remove excess mortar with trowels and hand tools, and finish mortar joints with jointing tools, for a sealed, uniform appearance.

What you bring
• [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any]
• [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: High school diploma or equivalent]
• Strong critical thinking, active listening, monitoring and speaking skills
• Working knowledge of building and construction
• [Anything else you would really turn someone away for]

Pay and benefits
[Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $29.87 an hour ($62,120 a year).
[Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.]

How to apply
[Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]

Copy the template Check your finished job post

Interview questions for brickmasons and blockmasons

Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.

1. Tell me about a time you had to apply and smooth mortar or other mixture over work surface. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
2. Tell me about a time you had to break or cut bricks, tiles, or blocks to size, using trowel edge, hammer, or power saw. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
3. Tell me about a time you had to calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
4. Tell me about a time you had to 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. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
5. Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
6. Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
7. How do you keep track of your own work quality during a busy shift or week? Give an example of catching a problem early.
8. Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?

Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.

What brickmasons and blockmasons do

• Apply and smooth mortar or other mixture over work surface.
• Break or cut bricks, tiles, or blocks to size, using trowel edge, hammer, or power saw.
• Calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses.
• 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.
• Fasten or fuse brick or other building material to structure with wire clamps, anchor holes, torch, or cement.
• Interpret blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required.
• Measure distance from reference points and mark guidelines to lay out work, using plumb bobs and levels.
• Remove excess mortar with trowels and hand tools, and finish mortar joints with jointing tools, for a sealed, uniform appearance.

Skills that matter most

Critical ThinkingActive ListeningMonitoringSpeakingBuilding and Construction

Education, experience and outlook for brickmasons and blockmasons

• Typical education to start: High school diploma or equivalent (BLS)
• Related work experience most have: 1 to 2 years (O*NET)
• Training on the job: Apprenticeship (BLS)
• Job outlook: +1.1% over ten years, little or no change · about 4,100 openings a year (BLS)

What to pay brickmasons and blockmasons

Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:

See brickmasons and blockmasons pay in every state

Related hiring guides

• Helpers--Brickmasons, Blockmasons, Stonemasons, and Tile and Marble Setters
• Refractory Materials Repairers, Except Brickmasons
• Stonemasons
• Tile and Stone Setters
• Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers
• Terrazzo Workers and Finishers
• Carpenters
• Floor Layers, Except Carpet, Wood, and Hard Tiles
• Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall
• Construction Laborers

Job duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.