AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 47-2021.00
Will AI replace Brickmasons and Blockmasons?
Brickmasons and Blockmasons: AI can already handle 2 of 14 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a standard-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 14 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Brickmasons and Blockmasons, from most to least exposed. 2 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Interpret blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Examine brickwork or structure to determine need for repair. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Lay and align bricks, blocks, or tiles to build or repair structures or high temperature equipment, such as cupola, kilns, ovens, or furnaces. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Measure distance from reference points and mark guidelines to lay out work, using plumb bobs and levels. | Estimated | No tier | |
| 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. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Apply and smooth mortar or other mixture over work surface. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Break or cut bricks, tiles, or blocks to size, using trowel edge, hammer, or power saw. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Remove excess mortar with trowels and hand tools, and finish mortar joints with jointing tools, for a sealed, uniform appearance. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Fasten or fuse brick or other building material to structure with wire clamps, anchor holes, torch, or cement. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Clean working surface to remove scale, dust, soot, or chips of brick and mortar, using broom, wire brush, or scraper. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Mix specified amounts of sand, clay, dirt, or mortar powder with water to form refractory mixtures. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Remove burned or damaged brick or mortar, using sledgehammer, crowbar, chipping gun, or chisel. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Spray or spread refractory material over brickwork to protect against deterioration. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 14 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 14 of 14. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A standard-tier model or lower covers 28% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 28% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 72% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 52,550
- Median annual wage
- $62,120
- Middle half of earners
- $51,110 to $79,350
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +3.2%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Stonemasons 74% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure15
- Helpers--Brickmasons, Blockmasons, Stonemasons, and Tile and Marble Setters 72% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure18
- Refractory Materials Repairers, Except Brickmasons 65% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure15
- Tile and Stone Setters 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure20
- Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure16
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Brickmasons and Blockmasons and AI
Will AI replace Brickmasons and Blockmasons?
AI already handles 2 of the 14 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 26 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by +3.2% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Brickmasons and Blockmasons?
26 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 14 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 14 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Brickmasons and Blockmasons tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Calculate angles and courses and determine vertical and horizontal alignment of courses; Interpret blueprints and drawings to determine specifications and to calculate the materials required. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 28% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 72% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Brickmasons and Blockmasons, and what do they earn?
52,550 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $62,120 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +3.2% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Brickmasons and Blockmasons. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/brickmasons-and-blockmasons
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