Bricklayer Shortage In The Uk -

[SarahBell]

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/dec/09/bricklayers-shortage-skilled-workers-uk-construction

Portuguese bricklayers paid £1,000 a week due to shortage of UK workers

Construction firms are turning down bidding opportunities because of a shortage of skilled workers, research suggests

-

[gf3]

I feel like we have had an elite who went to university and because of their high education thought they deserved the money that they got. Why aren't more people like us if the plebs were more like us the world would be a better place.

When it comes down to it, it's skills that people need not education. Hard for the elite to reallies that the reason they are rich is because they are a parasite and not what the add to the whole.

[tinker]

Education. Education. Education.

=

School till you are 23. In debt till your 70.

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

Why are we still using bricks in 2014? Oh, yes because the planners say we must.

Far better materials than brick out there these days.

[billybong]

It's difficult to know exactly what's going on as there's so much dodgy reporting in the newspapers seemingly intended to mislead but housebuilding has been at extremely low levels for several years now so builders will have laid off bricklayers etc. Just as they did massively in the 90s and of course the building workers then find alternative work/remuneration or retire early etc etc etc. It's predictable but the UK government and employers don't seem to plan ahead or care.

Then it isn't that much of a surprise that they have to pay high wages in winter to bricklayers from countries like Portugal to work in London considering the shambles that is the London house price and rental market. It's another part of everything that's wrong with the UK's economy.

What happened to the much publicised thousands of UK trainees at all the building skills colleges all around the country. What happened to all the tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands?) of building workers from Poland, Romania and Bulgaria etc etc that were supposed to fill any shortages.

Headlines like "£1000 a week for bricklayers" have been a regular feature of the building industry for many decades - but now it's overseas bricklayers being featured. How long it will last after the general election is another guess but given the club of the LibLabCon's track record and general incompetence on the economy plus the way they like to use massive debt etc to pretend that it's a booming economy as elections approach then it's more than likely to fizzle out soon afterwards.

Edited December 9, 2014 by billybong

[renting til I die]

Another pointless acticle. I remember a similar one a few years ago, also for about £1000 per week, so just shows that wages really haven't gone up at all! Like £1000 per week gross before tax is a lot of money?! Wouldn't even be able to get a mortgage on a shed where I live! (plus these poor lads will all be self-employed, so no chance of getting a mortgage in any case!)

Edited December 9, 2014 by renting til I die

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

https://jobsearch.direct.gov.uk/GetJob.aspx?JobID=8602896&JobTitle=CSCS+Bricklayer+£17.00+P%2fH&rad=20&rad_units=miles&pp=25&sort=rv.dt.di&vw=b&re=134&setype=2&tjt=brick+layer&where=ta9&q=&AVSDM=2014-10-31T07%3a25%3a00-05%3a00 Sphere Solutions Ltd CSCS Bricklayer £17.00 P/H Job description

Must have cscs card and previous bricklaying experience is essential.

Will be carrying out brick & blockwork on a new build construction project.

Contract is based in Bridgwater

Hours are 07.30am-17.00pm Monday-Friday and paying £17.00 P/H

Contract is ongoing work.

Call Simon on 01173250352

[dkujsbap]

Why could they not hire a load of apprentices and train them? Yes, they wouldn't be going as quickly as a "proper" brickie but there you go.

Oh wait, its because the young are feckless.

Oh wait, the real reason that they are holding off from bidding for work is because there is nobody left to sell their product to.

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

JSM Specialist Services Ltd Bricklayer Job description

Experienced Bricklayer with recognised qualifications required for one week to carry out block work on some footings.

Bricklayer must have CSCS card and PPE as well as own tools.

Bricklayer should be able to proved proof of qualifications and relevant references to such work.

Works due to commence 13.10.14 for one week.

Rate: £13.00 per hour

To be considered for this opportunity please call the office on 0208 428 4727 or email CV to info@jsmss.co.uk

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

TradeForce Services Bricklayer Job description

We require a Bricklayer for an immediate start in London, SW1.

Duties will involve installing padstones for steel supports.

Hourly rate is £16.00 per hour. To apply, please contact Graham on 01483 266656.

Rhino Recruitment Limited Bricklayer Job description

Latest Job Available :

Role – Bricklayer x 3

Location – Wandsworth

Rate – £17/hour

Length of contract – 12 weeks

Start Date – ASAP

Summary – Our client is looking for 3 experienced bricklayers to fulfil a 12 week placement in Wandsworth. Candidates must have a CSCS Card , Tools and their own PPE equipment.

Please call Nye on 07930 144109 to apply and confirm details. Alternatively log on to the Rhino Recruitment website to register your availability to work and upload a CV

[crashmonitor]

Why could they not hire a load of apprentices and train them? Yes, they wouldn't be going as quickly as a "proper" brickie but there you go.

Oh wait, its because the young are feckless.

Oh wait, the real reason that they are holding off from bidding for work is because there is nobody left to sell their product to.

Construction jobs do require quite a lot of training..bricklaying, plastering etc....fairly skilled. Let's face it if a layman tries it they make a right dog's dinner of it.

Far quicker routes to employement...., Lidl check our staff, baristas etc....... hang on they are all foreign too.

Reasons are obvious...a workforce that has gone to university and is trained for white collar employment only.

[canbuywontbuy]

I guess it's like the sandwich factory in Northampton that is shipping over hundreds of Hungarians and bypassing the locals - it's simply more convenient to hire and fire foreign workers than recruit locals who have a higher cost of living to put with. No matter what country you work in, if you are foreign to that country and the job you are doing is paying you multiples of what you'd earn back home, you go into "temporary accommodation" mode - you can put up with living in a mid-terrace with 10 of your compatriats. You can put up with (literally) renting a garden shed as a place to sleep. It doesn't matter if it's Slough or Abu Dhabi where you happen to be working, you live like a ghost and save 90% of what you earn for your project/family back home. You are living the financial dream. Foreign workers are not only cheaper, but if you make a deliberate attempt to hire from a specific country, an agent will send them over to you in coaches. Hiring locals is far messier - you hire them individually, they have rights, expectations, high cost of living etc - they're just a pain (from an employer's point of view). When you're done with the foreigners, you don't even have to lay them off directly - an agent takes care of all of that. They just turn up at your building site, and they leave when they're no longer needed.

[gf3]

https://jobsearch.direct.gov.uk/GetJob.aspx?JobID=8602896&JobTitle=CSCS+Bricklayer+£17.00+P%2fH&rad=20&rad_units=miles&pp=25&sort=rv.dt.di&vw=b&re=134&setype=2&tjt=brick+layer&where=ta9&q=&AVSDM=2014-10-31T07%3a25%3a00-05%3a00 Sphere Solutions Ltd CSCS Bricklayer £17.00 P/H Job description

Must have cscs card and previous bricklaying experience is essential.

Will be carrying out brick & blockwork on a new build construction project.

Contract is based in Bridgwater

Hours are 07.30am-17.00pm Monday-Friday and paying £17.00 P/H

Contract is ongoing work.

Call Simon on 01173250352

so £1000 a week based on 9hr a day 7 days a week is about right. I was just looking and a good brickie 600 bricks a day 60 bricks per meter squared. sounds cheap when you think of the value of the house he is building. I would happily pay £200 to have 10 square meters of brick work.

[deflation]

so £1000 a week based on 9hr a day 7 days a week is about right. I was just looking and a good brickie 600 bricks a day 60 bricks per meter squared. sounds cheap when you think of the value of the house he is building. I would happily pay £200 to have 10 square meters of brick work.

Those jobs are all 5 days per week. Still talking £800 p.w. gross! If those builders in London are self employed (if they really exist), they can of course work what hours they want (no working time directive for SE I think) but they're not supposed to be paid by the hour.

There was a lot of abuse of the National Insurance / tax rules in the building industry. Registering as SE and then turning up to work on the same site for years with the same firm. A lot of it has been stopped but I bet there's still lots of cash-in-hand bricklaying going on.

[longgone]

so £1000 a week based on 9hr a day 7 days a week is about right. I was just looking and a good brickie 600 bricks a day 60 bricks per meter squared. sounds cheap when you think of the value of the house he is building. I would happily pay £200 to have 10 square meters of brick work.

goes to show how much the shell of a house can be built for ,use the cheapest red bricks you can find put some fancy reconstituted stone lintels and cill`s add a few quions , and you have a nice looking house shell for not much money

[dkujsbap]

Construction jobs do require quite a lot of training..bricklaying, plastering etc....fairly skilled. Let's face it if a layman tries it they make a right dog's dinner of it.

Far quicker routes to employement...., Lidl check our staff, baristas etc....... hang on they are all foreign too.

Reasons are obvious...a workforce that has gone to university and is trained for white collar employment only.

Yep, don't disagree. It's a very hard skill to master, doing it to a high standard and efficiently.

White collar workforce is definitely a key issue but at the end of the day article said they weren't bidding on projects but we know the cost hasn't changed. So the guaranteed sale price must be what's making it unattractive as well.

[gf3]

Reasons are obvious...a workforce that has gone to university and is trained for white collar employment only.

I am hoping some one will rip in to you for that comment. other wise it's true.

I remember a thread on here where people were ripping in to tradesmen but weren't prepared to get their hands dirty and do the job themselves.

It was a bit of I am a white collar worker therefore I am superior too you.

[Guest_northshore_*]

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?/topic/197790-brickies-earning-l100kyr/

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?/topic/193311-brickies-secure-huge-pay-rises-on-back-of-new-homes-demand/

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?/topic/200888-bricklayers-boom-highlights-skills-timebomb-in-uk-construction-industry/

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?/topic/196254-brick-shortage/

Ever considered that articles reporting something similar again and again might be more of a convenient story than entirely true? Why portugese? What does the article actually say?

There's a job creation charge.

The construction industry is going gangbusters.

Margins must be high enough to pay double the normal rate.

Government-led efforts over the past four years have got Britain building.

Private sector and government are working hand in hand to maintain this momentum in starts.

And in this charging, gangbusters, profitable, Britain building, accelerating environment we also need to be subsidising homebuilders via state job creation schemes and £100pw apprenticeships. Right.

[davidg]

so £1000 a week based on 9hr a day 7 days a week is about right. I was just looking and a good brickie 600 bricks a day 60 bricks per meter squared. sounds cheap when you think of the value of the house he is building. I would happily pay £200 to have 10 square meters of brick work.

You should be able to lay 750 or even 800 bricks a day but you'll need a mate to mix cement mortar and bring you bricks. Having done bricklaying in my time it is hard work and you risk all sorts of minor injuries doing it. You are not even allowed to wolf-whistle women anymore, at least not in the UK.

Edited December 9, 2014 by davidg

[Stainless Sam]

Could I just correct the idea that this is a 5 day a week job?

Brickies invariably do 4.5 days, with Friday afternoons in the boozer. If it rains after 10am they'll be on their way before the doors open. Saturdays are reserved for private jobs or in the very worst cases, for overtime on the job they should have been pulling their tripe out for all week and it's now running behind.

It's a peripatetic career where all you need is a trowel, a piece of string, a bucket to carry them in and a spirit level to lean on while waiting for your morning pick-up. If you get rained off, tough luck, come back tomorrow. Building firms no longer bother with apprentices, let alone brickies on the books so it's hardly a surprise that they milk it when times are good.

[crashmonitor]

I am hoping some one will rip in to you for that comment. other wise it's true.

I remember a thread on here where people were ripping in to tradesmen but weren't prepared to get their hands dirty and do the job themselves.

It was a bit of I am a white collar worker therefore I am superior too you.

The odd thing is that we all have generic admin skills these days, yet that is what we send students to university for. Meanwhile bricklaying, plumbing, electrical work, car mechanics; most of us clueless, I certainly am.

[davidg]

I remember a thread on here where people were ripping in to tradesmen but weren't prepared to get their hands dirty and do the job themselves.

Yeah. A couple of months a go I got some trademen round to quote for new patio doors. Quotes were around 2,500euros/door (this is France) and then they didn't want to replace the existing windows but fit some clip on UPVC units on top of the existing frame which would have reduced the glass area by 20%. "Surely the existing doors are standard", I asked. "Nuffink is standard these days guv". I was told

Well it didn't seem likely that Martin Bouyges, a house builder who builds 50,000 houses a year including mine is going to use non standard windows. So I measured mine up and went to the local DIY store and found exactly the same window. I bought 3 and over a weekend in autumn removed the old windows and fitted the new. I won't pretend that it was easy to do, it wasn't. Cost 669 euros for the 3 units plus a weekend of my time. So yes, sometimes these trademen are having a complete and utter laugh. Mechanics are as bad.

A neighbour spotted my work and came to chat. She'd had the same experience with the local artisans but one confided in her that he didn't like "getting his hands dirty" which doing a proper job would entail. Spending half a day clipping a plastic kit window on for a couple of grand from people "who didn't know any different" was preferable.

Edited December 9, 2014 by davidg

[winkie]

~2000 € earned in a weekend...not a bad job.

[Northerner]

The odd thing is that we all have generic admin skills these days, yet that is what we send students to university for. Meanwhile bricklaying, plumbing, electrical work, car mechanics; most of us clueless, I certainly am.

You played with Lego didn't you?

[crashmonitor]

~2000 € earned in a weekend...not a bad job.

I never come down too hard on traders charges. No pension, no holiday pay, very high van running expenses, very high plant depreciation and the administration work just doesn't happen..accounts, reception, quotes that fail etc. etc. Traders don't make that much.

How much would you need to pay a public sector worker per hour to cover gold plated pensions, accounts support, equal opportunities support, admin support, offices and plant, holiday pay, sickness pay. It would be scary indeed.

Edited December 9, 2014 by crashmonitor