Six Hard Jobs That Are Good to Find
KATHERINE O’BRIEN, Staff Writer
For those who are skilled with their hands, have an eye for detail and don't mind working hard with materials such as stone, brick and concrete, the building trades are a solid career option.
These occupations are definitely geared to non-office worker types. The jobs can be dirty and dusty and you're on your feet all day, often working outside, at times in rain or hail. It's physically demanding work -- for long periods you could either be down low (bending and kneeling on the floor or in foundations) or up high (standing on a ladder or a scaffold). You're also constantly moving, reaching, lifting. In addition to having a strong back and arms, you need the patience for precision work, and, although you don't have to be a Michelangelo, a little artistic flair wouldn't hurt.
1. Bricklayer
In this work you build, install and repair walls, arches, fireplaces and chimneys. The foundation of this trade is cutting and trimming bricks, then laying them down. You have to read sketches and blueprints to calculate the amount of materials you'll need for the job and measure distances and mark guidelines to lay out work. As you can see, math skills are needed here. As well, a good bricklayer must know the properties of various bonding materials. For repair or restoration jobs you have to remove damaged brick or mortar and match existing brickwork – which can be a challenge if you're restoring a century home.
Bricklaying is a career choice that offers good pay -- the median rate for a bricklayer could go as high as $34 an hour, according to PayScale Canada. As with the other five trades, you can take an apprenticeship training program although it's not strictly necessary, and, you can also get Red Seal trade certification in bricklaying, which would allow you to work across Canada. You can train to become a bricklayer at the Ontario Masonry Training Centre.
For More Information:
- National Occupational Classification (NOC): Bricklayers Profile
- Mason Contractors Association of America
- Ontario Job Futures: Bricklayer Profile (PDF)
2. Stone Mason
Although stone masonry is considered a trade, some might call it a craft. As the What is a Stone Mason? article points out, the "art of masonry includes everything from carving headstones to creating decorative finials for buildings."
Stone masonry can be broken into several specialties, although it increases a mason's employability if he or she learns many different aspects of the trade. One specialized job is that of a letter cutter (PDF), where tradespersons shape and engrave large blocks for memorial tablets and bases. The most common masons are banker masons and stone setters. A banker mason cuts, textures and polishes stone while a setter lays the dressed stones. According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, stone setters lay out wall patterns or foundations; they then build a wall by alternating layers of mortar and courses of stone. Finishing touches include pointing or smoothing the mortar.
Some masons restore foundations and walls, heritage buildings and monuments. When restoring a historical building, masons often work from a set of drawings in which each stone has been numbered. Algonquin College offers a 45-week Masonry -- Heritage and Traditional Program at its Perth campus.
To be a stone mason you must be strong enough to work with heavy material and smart enough to understand math, algebra, geometry and technical drawings. Good hand-eye coordination and a respect for the artistic side of things, as well as an appreciation for level, straight, square and plumb are all qualities a mason should have.
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3. Cement (Concrete) Finisher
Aspiring cement finishers will also need to eat their Wheaties so they can shovel wet concrete with the best of them. In addition to moving this heavy material, cement finishers also smooth and finish concrete that has been poured into forms, rounding the edges and making joints or grooves to help control cracking. Cement finishers don't have to stick to smooth finishes; they can also apply colour and patterned or stamped finishes. Other duties include mounting door sills and anchoring bolts and steel plates into wet concrete as well as applying hardeners and sealers to cure the concrete's surface.
Alberta Occupational Profiles points out that machines are used to trowel large areas such as warehouses and arena floors, but hand trowelling is still required for hard to reach spots. Cement finishers also maintain and restore concrete foundations, floors, sidewalks, roads, patios and high-rise buildings.
Some cement finishers get so good that they are in demand as skilled craftspersons who work on decorative floors, patios, and walkways. According to the Working in Canada site, the average wage in this trade in Toronto is about $30 an hour.
4. Plasterer
Considered one of the oldest of the building trades, plastering is another trade that involves the spreading of wet material in a house or building. After cleaning and preparing the surface, a plasterer mixes and applies the plaster, levelling and smoothing several coats on walls, ceilings and building partitions to produce plain or decorative surfaces. After finishing corners and angles, the final step is curing (or letting dry) the freshly plastered surface.
Plasterers also apply plaster veneer over drywall or gypsum board and trowel or spray coats of stucco over exteriors of buildings to form weatherproof surfaces.
Some plasterers also work as drywall tapers (finishers) and installers. (Scroll down this Ontario Job Futures [PDF] profile for more on these trades.) Others work on the creative end of things, producing fancy wedding cake-like swirls or decorations on the surfaces of walls or ceilings. And, according to the U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook, some tradespersons do even more complex ornamental work, such as molding and installing intricate wall and ceiling designs such as cornice pieces.
It usually takes three or four years to complete an apprenticeship program. According to Working in Canada, the average wage in Toronto is $28 per hour and Ontario Job Futures sees the employment prospects for this trade as good until at least 2013.
Those with breathing problems take note: this is a dusty career choice.
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5. Painter
With painters it's off with the old and on with the new. These tradespersons prepare and clean surfaces by scraping, sanding or sandblasting walls, removing old wallpaper, repairing cracks and holes, sandpapering rough spots and applying sealer. Painters have to select the right paint or finish for the surface, taking into account durability, ease of handling and the client's needs. They mix and thin paint to get the desired colour and texture and then they apply it using brushes, rollers or spray equipment. Sometimes painters use decorative techniques such as sponging, rag rolling or stippling. Before they begin any of this, though, painters have to estimate the quantity of materials required by measuring surfaces or reviewing a work order.
As with the other trades profiled here there is some risk of injury, in this case from falling off ladders, scaffolds or swing stages and from working with hazardous chemicals such as paint thinners and movers. As well, painters often work with their arms raised over their heads, which can lead to muscle strain.
Painters can get Red Seal certification, and, according to Ontario Job Futures (PDF), employment prospects are good until at least 2013 and about 40 per cent of those in the field are self-employed.
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6. Tile, Marble or Terrazzo Setter
Tile, marble or terrazzo setters create elegant spaces by covering walls, floors or ceilings with tile, marble, granite or terrazzo (a kind of mosaic material). "Tile setting requires considerable planning, and tilesetters must be able to visualise the finished design as they work with the small components at close quarters," according to the Red Seal website.
Tile setters need to determine the best layout of tiles, and calculate weights, angles, and dimensions of walls and ceilings to figure out the amount of tile needed. They may have to reinforce surfaces before they start tiling and prepare and mark the surface and mix and apply adhesives. Removing and replacing cracked or damaged tiles is also part of the job.
Those who work with marble and granite, cut, polish and install these stones while a terrazzo setter scatters and rolls marble chips over a mortar base and polishes the surfaces by hand or machine.
According to PayScale Canada, the pay for a tile setter ranges between about $13.50 to $31 an hour. Apprenticeship programs for this Red Seal trade usually last between three and four years. Ontario Job Futures (PDF) notes that the employment prospects for tile setters are good at least for the next few years and nearly half are self-employed.
Like many of the trades profiled here you'd need to be able to read blueprints as you would be working from architectural plans and specifications.
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