RitaPoole56 t1_irobvf1 wrote on October 9, 2022 at 7:58 PM

Reply to comment by Efficient-Thought-35 in Going from HS Teaching to working a B.I.W.? by Character_Stable_487

What “day” are you talking about?

In the early 80’s I started as a union apprentice brickmason. I worked at it for 7 years and left when the jobs dried up. I worked about 10 years for a non-profit and when their main source of funds stopped switched to teaching.

I made MORE as an apprentice mason than I did nearly 14 years later as a rookie teacher. Physically the toll on my body was not as bad as masonry, mentally of course teaching was MUCH harder and I worked way more hours past 40 essentially unpaid. As a mason I had a foreman and the owner of the company to keep happy. As a teacher EVERYONE seemed to be my boss: the superintendent, the school admin, parents, taxpayers and the school board and even 12-13 year olds at times! It was aggravating, exhausting, and frustrating but mentally stimulating!

Good luck in the shift to working with your hands in a trade. At the end of a job you can point to something tangible and with pride (hopefully) say “I did that”, a type of gratification that one RARELY gets as an educator. I hope the new career is satisfying!

IamSauerKraut t1_irp92d5 wrote on October 10, 2022 at 12:03 AM

Had a older cousin who was a brick mason nearly his entire adult until he reached 65. Always wished he had a better paying job but work was steady and he was built like a tank. My dad was built the same way. 20 years of chucking artillery in the army then a pipefitter/cord puller at BIW for another 20 until he retired.

RitaPoole56 t1_irpb4xr wrote on October 10, 2022 at 12:20 AM

Sadly most masons don’t physically last that long. For every one that makes it to 65 my guess is there’s a few hundred that were out well before that.

I was a bit older than most apprentices and had a degree so I appreciated working with the older more interesting guys. My favorite was a man in his early 60’s that I teamed up with on a job. We were laying nearly solid blocks in a prison so it was 2 men on a block. He told hilarious jokes and stories all day so I didn’t mind picking up the slack.

Sadly he also had a serious drinking problem that seemed to be an common occupational hazard, perhaps self medication for dealing with chronic pain? Between the drink and sleep apnea he was picked up at the same stoplight near his home 2 weekends in a row asleep at the wheel and over the limit. He had to rely on pals to “car pool” to jobs. Rough life!