Bricklayer / Mason

You will lay thermal block, hollow brick and structural masonry on residential sites across the Braga district, working from architect drawings and the site foreman's marks. Most days start around 8am and run to 5pm, Monday to Friday, with the occasional Saturday morning when a pour or a deadline demands it. Expect to mix and spread mortar by hand and with a mixer, check courses with a spirit level and string line, cut block with an angle grinder or block saw, and build out corners, lintels and door reveals. You will set out from the footings, raise walls in lifts, leave clean joints, and keep the work plumb and level as the storeys go up. Scaffold goes up as the build rises, so you will be working at height on boards and trestles. Some days are render prep and patching; most are straight bricklaying.

Two or more years laying block and brick on real sites

Confident with level, plumb line, trowel and angle grinder

Can read a basic floor plan and set out from drawings

Comfortable working at height on scaffold

Reliable timekeeping and able to keep up the daily pace

Basic English or Portuguese enough to follow site instructions

Shared accommodation arranged for the first months, close to the sites

Transport to and from the work site each day

Help with the paperwork and the move for workers coming from abroad

Weekly pay, on time, no delays

Proper PPE provided: hard hat, boots, gloves and high-vis

Start at 1320 euros net per month, paid weekly. Show steady work and good walls and you move up to 1520 euros within the first year. The next step is leading hand and then foreman on your own crew, with pay set above that range.

The sites are new-build housing and small apartment blocks in and around Braga, so the work is outdoors in all weather and you are on your feet all day. The crews are small and most of the lads have been on the tools for years, so you learn fast. Safety is taken seriously: scaffold is inspected, edges are protected, and nobody works at height without the right setup.