Occupation

Plasterers and Stucco Masons

Human Advantage 62%

Significant human skills needed

AI Automation Risk Moderate Risk
3.7 / 10

Some tasks in this role may be augmented by AI, but human oversight and interpersonal skills remain important.

Apply interior or exterior plaster, cement, stucco, or similar materials. May also set ornamental plaster.

Also Known As: Applicator, Artisan, Artisan Plasterer, Decorative Plasterer, Dry Plasterer, Hard Surface Plasterer, Mason, Mason Plasterer +16 more

Video

Core Tasks

  1. Cover surfaces such as windows, doors, or sidewalks to protect from splashing.
  2. Clean job sites.
  3. Mix mortar and plaster to desired consistency or direct workers who perform mixing.
  4. Apply coats of plaster or stucco to walls, ceilings, or partitions of buildings, using trowels, brushes, or spray guns.
  5. Set up scaffolds.
  6. Determine materials needed to complete the job and place orders accordingly.
  7. Apply weatherproof, decorative coverings to exterior surfaces of buildings, such as by troweling or spraying on coats of stucco.
  8. Clean and prepare surfaces for applications of plaster, cement, stucco, or similar materials, such as by drywall taping.
  9. Create decorative textures in finish coat, using brushes or trowels, sand, pebbles, or stones.
  10. Apply insulation to building exteriors by installing prefabricated insulation systems over existing walls or by covering the outer wall with insulation board, reinforcing mesh, and a base coat.
  11. Rough the undercoat surface with a scratcher so the finish coat will adhere.

Supplemental Tasks (4)

  1. Cure freshly plastered surfaces.
  2. Install guide wires on exterior surfaces of buildings to indicate thickness of plaster or stucco and nail wire mesh, lath, or similar materials to the outside surface to hold stucco in place.
  3. Spray acoustic materials or texture finish over walls or ceilings.
  4. Mold or install ornamental plaster pieces, panels, or trim.

Education & Training

Job Zone 1 Job Zone One: Little or No Preparation Needed
Education: Some of these occupations may require a high school diploma or GED certificate.
Experience: Little or no previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, a person can become a waiter or waitress even if he/she has never worked before.
On-the-Job Training: Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few days to a few months of training. Usually, an experienced worker could show you how to do the job.

Education Level Distribution

Percentage of workers in this occupation with each education level.

Less than a High School Diploma
68%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)
28%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)
3%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)
1%

Technology & Tools

Hot Technologies

  • Linux
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Word
  • Oracle Database
  • Salesforce software

Software (20)

  • A-Systems JobView
  • Accounting software
  • Autodesk 3ds Max Design
  • Autodesk Maya
  • Construction Software Center EasyEst
  • Corel Paint Shop Pro
  • Corel Painter
  • Cost estimating software
  • Dassault Systemes CATIA
  • Embedded systems development software
  • IBM Maximo Asset Management
  • Microsoft operating system
  • Sage Construction Anywhere
  • Turtle Creek Software Goldenseal

Tools & Equipment (41)

  • Chalk lines
  • Claw hammers
  • Corner tools
  • Darbies
  • Featheredgers
  • Floats
  • Hand saws
  • Hand trowels
  • Heat guns
  • Inside step tools
  • Joint knives
  • Keyhole saws
  • Ladders
  • Lime brushes
  • Nail guns
  • Nose step tools
  • Notebook computers
  • Ornamental cut and shape tools
  • Outside step tools
  • Personal computers
  • Piston pumps
  • Plaster mixers
  • Plaster molds
  • Plaster spraying machines
  • Plasterers' hammers
  • Plumb bobs
  • Power drills
  • Power sanders
  • Power trowels
  • Precision levels
  • Rulers
  • Scaffolding
  • Scraping tools
  • Scratcher trowels
  • Screeds
  • Spray guns
  • Stilts
  • Straightedges
  • T-squares
  • Trimming knives
  • Utility knives

Where This Career Leads

Career progression organized by specialty track and experience level.

Skilled Trades Advanced Manufacturing

Zone 1
Plasterers and Stucco Masons You are here
Zone 2
Painters, Construction and Maintenance 95% match
Zone 3
Photonics Technicians 79% match

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Related Occupations

Compare skills gap with any of these related roles.

Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco MasonsClosely Related Drywall and Ceiling Tile InstallersClosely Related Helpers--Brickmasons, Blockmasons, Stonemasons, and Tile and Marble SettersClosely Related Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and WallClosely Related RoofersClosely Related Painters, Construction and Maintenance Tile and Stone Setters Brickmasons and Blockmasons
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Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers Floor Layers, Except Carpet, Wood, and Hard Tiles Terrazzo Workers and Finishers Carpenters Helpers--Roofers Insulation Workers, Mechanical Tapers Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic Glaziers Furniture Finishers Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers Helpers--Carpenters

Real Talk

Hear from real Plasterers and Stucco Masonss about their work:

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