Career profile for Stonemason

What does a Stonemason do?

Stonemasons build stone structures, such as piers, walls, and abutments.

In addition, Stonemasons lay walks, curbstones, or special types of masonry for vats, tanks, and floors.

What kind of tasks does a Stonemason perform regularly?

Stonemasons are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Lay out wall patterns or foundations, using straight edge, rule, or staked lines.
Shape, trim, face and cut marble or stone preparatory to setting, using power saws, cutting equipment, and hand tools.
Set vertical and horizontal alignment of structures, using plumb bob, gauge line, and level.
Mix mortar or grout and pour or spread mortar or grout on marble slabs, stone, or foundation.
Remove wedges, fill joints between stones, finish joints between stones, using a trowel, and smooth the mortar to an attractive finish, using a tuck pointer.
Set stone or marble in place, according to layout or pattern.
Clean excess mortar or grout from surface of marble, stone, or monument, using sponge, brush, water, or acid.
Lay brick to build shells of chimneys and smokestacks or to line or reline industrial furnaces, kilns, boilers and similar installations.
Replace broken or missing masonry units in walls or floors.
Smooth, polish, and bevel surfaces, using hand tools and power tools.
Drill holes in marble or ornamental stone and anchor brackets in holes.
Repair cracked or chipped areas of stone or marble, using blowtorch and mastic, and remove rough or defective spots from concrete, using power grinder or chisel and hammer.
Remove sections of monument from truck bed, and guide stone onto foundation, using skids, hoist, or truck crane.
Construct and install prefabricated masonry units.

The above responsibilities are specific to Stonemasons. More generally, Stonemasons are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Performing General Physical Activities		Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
Handling and Moving Objects		Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others		Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Training and Teaching Others		Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

Performing General Physical Activities

Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.

Handling and Moving Objects

Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others

Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.

Training and Teaching Others

Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

What is a Stonemason salary?

The median salary for a Stonemason is $43,650, and the average salary is $48,290. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Stonemason salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Stonemasons earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Stonemasons earn less than $28,310 per year, 25% earn less than $34,620, 75% earn less than $57,110, and 90% earn less than $75,690.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Stonemasons is expected to change by -1.4%, and there should be roughly 1,300 open positions for Stonemasons every year.

Median annual salary: $43,650
Typical salary range: $28,310 - $75,690
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): -1.4%

What personality traits are common among Stonemasons?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Stonemason are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Stonemasons typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Stonemason tend to value Support, Independence, and Achievement.

Most importantly, Stonemasons moderately value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Stonemasons moderately value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Lastly, Stonemasons moderately value Achievement. Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Stonemasons must consistently demonstrate qualities such as dependability, achievement/effort, and persistence.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Stonemasons, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Achievement/Effort		Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Persistence		Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Initiative		Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Leadership		Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Persistence

Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.

Initiative

Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Leadership

Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

What education and training do Stonemasons need?

Stonemasons often have training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Stonemasons usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Stonemasons

33.1% did not complete high school or secondary school
43.3% completed high school or secondary school
15.7% completed some college coursework
4.0% earned a Associate's degree
3.4% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.5% earned a Master's degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Stonemasons

Stonemasons may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as mathematics, building and construction, or public safety and security knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Stonemasons might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Mathematics		Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Building and Construction		Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Public Safety and Security		Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Design		Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Mechanical		Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

Mathematics

Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Building and Construction

Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Public Safety and Security

Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

Design

Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Mechanical

Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

Important Abilities needed by Stonemasons

Stonemasons must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Stonemasons need abilities such as static strength, trunk strength, and arm-hand steadiness in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Stonemasons, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Static Strength		The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
Trunk Strength		The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
Arm-Hand Steadiness		The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Problem Sensitivity		The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Manual Dexterity		The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

Static Strength

The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.

Trunk Strength

The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.

Arm-Hand Steadiness

The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

Problem Sensitivity

The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Manual Dexterity

The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

Critical Skills needed by Stonemasons

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Stonemasons frequently use skills like critical thinking, coordination, and time management to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Stonemasons, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Coordination		Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Time Management		Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Social Perceptiveness		Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Complex Problem Solving		Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Coordination

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Time Management

Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Social Perceptiveness

Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Complex Problem Solving

Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Stonemason

Stonemason

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