Getting in
How to become a mason in Ontario
You become a mason in Ontario through an apprenticeship — paid, on-the-job training with in-school levels, finishing with the 401A (voluntary) Certificate of Qualification (voluntary for this trade, but it is the credential employers recognize). You earn from day one, typically starting around half of journeyperson rate and stepping up each level.
Masonry at a glance
- Licence to do the work
- Not required — 401A Brick & Stone Mason is voluntary
- Path in
- Apprenticeship about 3 years, or start as a mason tender and learn up
- Regulated by
- Municipality (permits); silica rules under O. Reg. 490/09
- Insurance baseline
- $2M CGL
- Union route
- IUBAC Local 2
The path, step by step
- 1
Line up a sponsor
An apprenticeship needs an employer or union training centre willing to register and train you. For this trade that usually means a masonry contractor, or IUBAC Local 2's training centre. Cold-calling shops with a resume and any safety tickets (WHMIS, Working at Heights) in hand still works — contractors are chronically short of apprentices.
- 2
Register the apprenticeship
You and your sponsor sign a training agreement through Ontario's apprenticeship system, and you register with Skilled Trades Ontario. Registration is what makes your hours count.
Start an apprenticeship — ontario.ca - 3
Do the hours and the school
Complete the on-the-job hours and in-school levels for the trade — about 3 years of hours plus in-school levels — or learn informally as a mason tender. The in-school blocks run at colleges and union training centres; you alternate between earning on site and learning in class.
- 4
Write the Certificate of Qualification exam
When your hours and schooling are done, you book and write the C of Q exam with Skilled Trades Ontario. We wrote a full operator-level guide to the last mile — closing out the logbook, booking, prep, and exam day.
Full guide: 401A Brick & Stone Mason - 5
Then: the heritage specialty
Restoration masonry (lime mortars, stone matching, repointing) is the high-margin niche — the 244H Restoration Mason credential and conservation training open heritage and institutional work.
Full guide: 244H Restoration Mason
Already an apprentice closing in on your ticket? Skip ahead. Our Last Mile guide covers closing out the logbook, booking the C of Q exam, what to expect on exam day, and the credentials that stack on top. 401A Brick & Stone Mason →
The real picture
Masonry is old-school, weather-bound, physically honest work — and the questions are honest too: is the body worth it long-term, new construction or restoration, union or not, and whether heritage restoration is the smarter, less-brutal money. Bricklaying rewards skill and stamina in equal measure, and the good ones plan for the day the stamina fades.
What you'll actually make
From day one to the top of the trade. Ontario figures, approximate and worth verifying against current rates.
Mason tender (labourer)
$20–26/hrYou mix mud and carry block before you ever touch a trowel.
Bricklayer / mason (401A)
$35–48/hrIUBAC union sits at the top with a pension.
Foreman
More + truckMasonry contractor
$100k–250k+Owner income, and seasonal — cold stops the trowel.
Which lane is right for you
New construction vs restoration
New construction masonry
Brick and block veneer and structural work on homes and commercial buildings — production-paced, scaffolding, and weather-bound.
Pay: Steady in season.
Best for: People who want volume and the straightforward path to a contracting business.
Restoration / heritage
Repointing with lime mortars, stone matching, Dutchman repairs, and conservation. Skilled, year-round-ish, and far less brutal than throwing block all day.
Pay: Higher margin, specialized.
Best for: Craftspeople who want premium, lower-volume, less body-punishing work.
Residential vs commercial
Residential
Smaller jobs, homeowner and builder clients, the easier own-a-business path.
Best for: Future owner-operators.
Commercial / ICI
High-rise block and brick, swing stages and scaffolding, union, bigger and higher-paid.
Best for: People who want the top of the wage scale and large projects.
Getting in
You start as a mason tender — mixing mud and humping block and brick to the wall — and that's how you learn the trade from the ground up; the trowel is earned, not handed over. The 401A apprenticeship is voluntary but formalizes the skill, and the IUBAC union route is the path to the best wages and a pension.
Where it leads (and the way out)
Off the wall: foreman, estimator, restoration specialist, building-envelope/masonry consultant, or owning a masonry company. The body (the lifting, the kneeling, the cold) and the seasonality push masons toward restoration, supervision, or ownership. Heritage restoration in particular is the move a lot of veteran masons make — higher skill, higher margin, easier on the back.
Where the real conversations are
The communities, official bodies, and wage data tradespeople actually use.
Go to the source
The official pages that govern this trade. Bookmark these, they are the final word on requirements and fees.