Throughout Australia School leavers are considering their career options, one of the most important decisions they will make in their lifetimes. While many will select a university course, there are a growing number of students who will choose a career where they can work in the open air where life is never boring.

Geoff Noble, General Manager Australian Brick and Blocklaying Training Foundation (ABBTF), explained that bricklaying is a trade where skills can be accumulated and payment can be received from day one while working in the open air.

"It is a career that can take you right to the top in the construction industry and we have many success stories on our new website. The stories reveal bricklayers who have established successful building companies and bricklaying businesses as well as highly regarded trainers in the construction industry and project managers.

"Bricklayers are proud of their work and they have the satisfaction of being able to see the results by looking at buildings they have worked on. It's a skill you can learn at your own pace through a combination of off the job and on the job training to acquire the necessary skills. It is an important qualification you can take with you around the world. All you have to do is pack your trowel," said Geoff Noble.

"We are seeing a new breed of bricklayer who is keen to get qualified to catapult them into a higher income bracket. They see bricklaying as a passport to being their own boss where they will run a team of bricklayers as a sub contractor.

Geoff Noble continued to explain that there is currently a shortage of skilled bricklayers in Australia, with less than 50% of the trade having a qualification. “The shortage will get worse with 47% of bricklayers over 40, so a young qualified bricklayer has the world at his feet with plenty of work and great rewards," he added.

ABBTF relaunched their upgraded website recently and it is and ideal information resource where visitors can find out everything they need to know about becoming a bricklayer.

There is also information on the TAFE campuses and other training organisations in the different States and there is also information about what a bricklayer does and how to get started in the trade.