Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers
Construction and Extraction
Forms are checked and set to the right pitch and depth before the pour. Concrete is then spread, leveled, and smoothed with rakes, shovels, trowels, screeds, and floats; edges and expansion joints are molded, and a broom can leave a rough surface. Wind, heat, and cold change how the mix cures, so those conditions are watched throughout, while truck drivers are signaled into place and laborers are directed as the chute dumps the pour. Sites include floors, walks, roads, and curbs, often outdoors where weather affects the cure. It suits people who like physical site work and adjusting as a material sets.
Typical education: Less than a High School Diploma
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$57'020
Median Wage Market Position
$57'020
What you might do
- Spread and smooth poured concrete with trowels
- Set forms to the desired pitch and depth
- Watch how weather affects the concrete as it cures
- Shape edges and expansion joints with edging tools
- Signal drivers and aim the chute during pours
- Broom fresh concrete to leave a rough surface
Skills that matter
- Setting forms to the right pitch
- Spreading and troweling fresh concrete
- Monitoring wind and heat during the cure
- Directing laborers during the pour
- Signaling trucks and aiming the chute
- Molding edges and expansion joints
AI & the future of this role
Finishing concrete is time-sensitive outdoor work shaped by weather, pour schedules, and surface feel under the tools. Robotics may eventually assist large flat pours, yet skilled hand finishing and site coordination are likely to stay central.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details