How to become a Bricklayer
Most bricklayers learn the trade on a scaffold, not in a classroom. You start by carrying block and mixing mud for someone who already knows the work, and you earn the trowel by showing up every morning. This guide covers the real ways in, the words contractors put in their postings, and how to describe your work so a foreman takes you seriously.
What the work actually asks of your body
Bricklaying is heavy, repetitive and outdoors. You'll lift block all day, bend over the wall, and stand on planks in wind, heat and early cold. The mortar doesn't wait for you, so the pace is set by the mix on your board, not by how you feel. Plenty of people quit in their first season because nobody told them how sore they'd be. If you can get through that stretch, your body adjusts and the job starts to feel like a craft instead of a punishment. The upside is real: you can stand back when you knock off and point at something you built, and that wall will be there long after you've moved on to the next site.
Four ways onto a masonry crew
Union apprenticeship
The Bricklayers union (BAC) runs apprenticeship programs through local training centers. You apply, sit an interview, and if you're accepted you work paid hours on real jobs while attending classes on layout, reading prints and safety. It's the most structured route and the one we'd point most people toward, because you come out with journeyman status that contractors recognize anywhere the local covers. Openings come in waves, so get your name on the list early and check back with the training coordinator.
Start as a mason tender
Mason tenders, sometimes called hod carriers or laborers, mix mortar, stock block on the scaffold, build and move planks, and keep the bricklayers supplied. It's hard work with no trowel in your hand at first. Good tenders get noticed, though, and a lot of foremen will let a sharp tender lay a few courses once the crew's section is topped out. Ask for that chance directly. This is how many non-union bricklayers got their start.
Open shop apprenticeship
Non-union contractors and trade associations such as ABC run their own apprenticeship programs, some registered with the state and some informal. The quality varies more than union programs do, so ask how many hours you'll spend laying versus tending, and whether the program ends in a credential. A good open shop program can move you along quickly if the company does steady commercial work.
Trade school or high school masonry program
Some community colleges and career and technical high schools teach masonry basics: mixing, laying to the line, tooling joints, building leads. SkillsUSA runs masonry competitions that local contractors watch. School won't replace time on a real wall, but it gets you through the first awkward weeks faster and gives you something to point to when a contractor asks what you know.
Words that show up in bricklayer postings
Contractors and staffing agencies often filter by the exact terms below, so if you've done the work, use the same words on your résumé and application instead of a vague phrase like general construction.
Licensing and certificates
Individual bricklayers usually don't need a state license to work on a crew, but masonry contractors who bid their own jobs often do, and rules vary by state and sometimes by city. Check with your state's contractor licensing board before you take side work under your own name. On the job site, many general contractors expect an OSHA safety card, and some commercial sites want scaffold training on top of that. The Mason Contractors Association of America offers certification programs for experienced masons, which matter more once you're aiming for foreman or estimator roles than when you're starting out.
Turning site work into a résumé line
Worked construction doing masonry and helping on job sites.
Laid 8-inch CMU and modular face brick on 3 commercial projects, averaging 450 block per day to the line, and built leads and corners for a 6-person crew.
What separates a hire from a maybe
Foremen hire for reliability first. A bricklayer who's slower but shows up at dawn every day beats a fast one who misses Mondays. After that, they look at whether you can keep your wall plumb, level and clean without someone checking every course. Bring your own trowel, level, jointers and line blocks to the first day, and keep them in good shape. It tells the crew you've done this before. If you're new, say so honestly and say what you have done, even if it's only tending. Crews can teach technique, but they can't teach showing up.
What Bricklayer postings ask for
Hiring the most
- Ctc1
Remote
0% of openings are fully remote.
Questions people ask
How long does it take to become a bricklayer?
An apprenticeship takes a few years of paid work and classes before you reach journeyman status. Coming up through tending can be quicker or slower depending on how often your foreman lets you lay and how steady the work is.
Do bricklayers work in winter?
It depends on where you live. In cold regions, crews tent and heat the work area or add cold-weather admixtures to the mortar, and some slow down or stop when it's too cold for the mortar to cure. Expect some seasonal gaps and plan your money around them.
Is bricklaying hard on your body over time?
Yes, and it's the thing people underestimate. Backs, knees, wrists and shoulders take the most wear. Lifting properly, using mast climbers and adjustable scaffold when the job has them, and stretching before you start all help. Some bricklayers move into foreman, estimating or inspection work later to get off the wall.
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