Time lost because of inclement weather is paid at the ordinary hourly rate, up to 32 hours in any 4-week period, provided the award's inclement weather procedure is followed (cl 24.7).
A casual bricklayer must be paid for at least 4 hours each time they are engaged (cl 12.3).
Which award covers bricklayers
Bricklayers employed by builders and bricklaying contractors are covered by the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020 [MA000020]. Schedule A lists bricklayer as one of the broadbanded trades at Construction Worker Level 3 (CW3); a refractory bricklayer is graded higher, at CW5.
A bricklayer's minimum is the CW3 rate of $1119.10 a week plus two allowances the award pays for all purposes: the industry allowance ($67.15 a week on general building and civil work, $53.72 on single and dual occupancy homes) and the bricklayer's tool allowance of $29.26 a week (cl 21.1(a)). The bricklayer tool allowance is lower than a carpenter's, so a bricklayer's minimum is $11.96 a week below a carpenter's on the same site.
Most of the rates below are for weekly hire employees. A daily hire bricklayer, who is engaged to follow the work from job to job, is paid a higher hourly rate because the award loads the weekly amount by 52/50.4 to cover time between jobs (cl 19.3(a)).
A bricklayer who is genuinely self-employed and subcontracts on an ABN has no award minimum. An enterprise agreement, where one applies, replaces these rates.
Read the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020 [MA000020] on the Fair Work Commission’s site (consolidated to 1 July 2026), or see every classification on our MA000020 award rates page.
Bricklayer award pay rates 2026–27
These rates apply from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026. Part-time employees are paid the same hourly rates for the hours they work.
Bricklayer pay rates by sector, 2026–27 (weekly hire)
Weekly = the cl 19.1 classification rate + industry allowance + the $29.26 bricklayer tool allowance, all paid for all purposes. Hourly is that weekly amount over 38 hours; casual adds the 25% loading (cl 12.4).
| Classification | Hourly | Weekly (38 hrs) | Annual | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bricklayer (CW3) — residential buildingSingle or dual occupancy homes | $31.63 | $1,202.08 | $62,508 | $39.54 |
| Bricklayer (CW3) — general building and constructionCommercial, multi-unit and civil work | $31.99 | $1,215.51 | $63,207 | $39.99 |
| Refractory bricklayer (CW5) — general buildingRefractory brickwork | $33.84 | $1,286.01 | $66,873 | $42.30 |
Annual is the weekly rate × 52, before tax and before superannuation. Casual hourly includes the 25% casual loading.
Daily hire bricklayer rates, 2026–27
Clause 19.3(a): the weekly-hire sum above is multiplied by 52/50.4 and rounded to the cent (the weekly figure here), then divided by 38 for the hourly rate. There is no casual daily hire rate.
| Classification | Hourly | Weekly (38 hrs) | Annual | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily hire bricklayer — residential38 hours at the daily hire rate | $32.64 | $1,240.24 | $64,492 | — |
| Daily hire bricklayer — general building38 hours at the daily hire rate | $33.00 | $1,254.10 | $65,213 | — |
Annual is the weekly rate × 52, before tax and before superannuation. A dash means the award sets no casual rate for that classification.
Bricklayer penalty rates and overtime
| When you work | Full-time / part-time | Casual |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary hours (Monday–Friday, 7 am–6 pm) | 100% | 125% |
| Saturday (overtime) — first 2 hours | 150% | 175% |
| Saturday after 2 hours or after 12 noon; Sunday | 200% | 225% |
| Public holiday | 250% | 275% |
Percentages of the ordinary hourly rate, which already includes the industry allowance and any other all-purpose allowance. Ordinary hours run Monday to Friday (cl 16.1), so all weekend work is overtime (cl 29.12, 30.1). Casual rates are from cl 12.5 and 12.6.
Overtime
- Monday to Friday: 150% for the first 2 hours beyond ordinary hours, then 200% (cl 29.4(a)).
- Saturday: 150% for the first 2 hours, then 200%; all Saturday work after 12 noon is 200% (cl 30.1). Sunday: 200%. Public holiday: 250%.
- Minimum payments: 3 hours for Saturday overtime, 4 hours for Sunday and public holidays, and 3 hours for a recall (cl 29.5, 30.2).
- Casuals: 175% where the permanent rate is 150%, and 225% where it is 200% (cl 12.5).
Work out a shift with penalties or overtime using the overtime pay calculator.
Allowances
| Allowance | Amount | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Industry allowance | $67.15 per week (residential $53.72) | All purposes, paid to every employee (cl 22.1); included in the tables. |
| Bricklayer tool allowance | $29.26 per week | All purposes, for a bricklayer or refractory bricklayer (cl 21.1(a)); included in the tables. |
| Computing quantities allowance | $6.86 per day | If you are regularly required to compute or estimate quantities of materials for other employees' work, unless you are paid as a leading hand (cl 23.10(b)). |
| Multistorey allowance | $0.77 to $2.24 per hour | Paid to everyone on site while building or renovating a building of 5 or more storeys, rising with the floor level reached (cl 23.3(e)). |
| Living away from home | $102.92 per day | Or full reimbursement of reasonable accommodation and meal costs if that is more, when the job is too far from home to return each night (cl 25.3(a)). |
Bricklayer pay after tax
On the Bricklayer (CW3) — general building and construction rate of $1,215.51 a week, a full-time bricklayer earns $63,207 a year before tax.
| Gross annual pay | $63,207 |
|---|---|
| Income tax (after LITO) | −$9,430 |
| Medicare levy | −$1,264 |
| Take-home per year | $52,513 |
| Take-home per week | $1,010 |
2026–27 resident tax rates with the low income tax offset and the 2% Medicare levy; no HECS-HELP repayment and no Medicare levy surcharge. Superannuation is paid on top by your employer. For the full breakdown see take-home pay on $65,000 (the nearest step to $63,207), or put in your own hours with the weekly pay calculator.
What bricklayers actually earn
Jobs and Skills Australia puts median full-time earnings for Bricklayers and Stonemasons (ANZSCO 3311) at $2,317 a week ($53 an hour), against $1,852 a week for all occupations.
Median weekly pay of full-time, non-managerial adult employees before tax and salary sacrifice, from the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours (May 2025) as published by Jobs and Skills Australia. It reflects what employers actually pay, including people on enterprise agreements or above-award salaries, so it is a market figure, not a legal minimum.
What this page does not show
- Apprentice bricklayer rates, which are on the apprentice bricklayer page.
- Leading hand rates (cl 19.2), fares and travel allowances (cl 26) and the special rates for hot, wet or confined work.
- Enterprise agreement rates, which cover much of the commercial construction workforce.
Bricklayer pay questions
Pay rates for other jobs
How this page is sourced▼
Every minimum rate was read from the Fair Work Commission's consolidated text of the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020, consolidated to 1 July 2026, on 9 October 2026. Casual rates are the award's own published figures wherever it publishes them. Nothing is estimated.
The median comes from Jobs and Skills Australia’s occupation profile and is a market figure, not an entitlement. Take-home figures use the same tax engine as the rest of this site. Award rates change every 1 July, so re-check after the next Annual Wage Review.
Sources & References
- 1
- 2Pay guides for modern awards— Fair Work Ombudsman
- 3Annual Wage Review 2025–26 decision [2026] FWCFB 3500— Fair Work Commission
- 4
Last verified: 9 October 2026. Our content is based on the latest information from official Australian government sources.
Anita Bell
AuthorFounder & Senior Bookkeeper
Accountancy degree (2015); certified in Xero, QuickBooks Online, MYOB, Saasu, Zoho and Reckon One
Anita Bell earned her accountancy degree in 2015 and has worked as a senior bookkeeper with Prime Bookkeeping for over 5 years. This built her skills in Australian and New Zealand tax legislation and industry regulations. She is certified in Xero, QuickBooks Online, MYOB, Saasu, Zoho and Reckon One, and works with payroll and rostering software including Gusto, Deputy, Tsheets and KeyPay. She has strong experience in hospitality, building and construction, financial services, real estate, ecommerce, and medical and health services.
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