Career Overview
This group includes workers who:
- Cast and finish concrete products
- Operate machines to extrude, mould, press and bake clay products
- Operate machines to form, cut and finish stone products
- Work for concrete, clay and stone products manufacturing companies
Job Titles
Duties
Concrete products forming and finishing workers:
- Build clay models and moulds by hand and with hand tools for use in casting concrete products
- Build and repair wooden forms used to mould concrete products
- Position reinforcing rods or wire mesh in moulds and fill moulds with concrete from suspended pouring buckets
- Start vibrating tables to settle concrete, or tamp concrete using electric vibrator
- Remove castings from mould with crane or forklift, and finish surfaces of castings using screed or trowel
- Cut cured concrete pipe sections with saw or chisel, and cement sections together to form odd shaped fittings
Concrete products machine operators:
- Set up, adjust and operate single-function machines to mix, drill, grind and cut concrete to specifications in the manufacture of concrete products
- Check products for quality control, repair flaws and perform ongoing machine adjustments and minor maintenance as necessary
- Move products using forklift, crane or hydraulic hoist
- Record manufacturing information such as quantity, size and type of goods produced.
- Clay products forming and finishing machine operators perform some or all of the following duties:
- Set up and operate automatic machines that mix ingredients, extrude tempered clay mixture and cut extruded clay into sections to make products such as bricks, drain tiles and porcelain insulators
- Run mechanical or hydraulic ram and hot-presses to form pottery and porcelain ware
- Prepare and mix slip and fill moulds with slip to form pottery and porcelain ware such as jugs, cups, sinks and toilet bowls
- Operate kiln to bake clay products to specified hardness
Clay products forming and finishing machine operators:
- Set up and operate automatic machines that mix ingredients, extrude tempered clay mixture and cut extruded clay into sections to make products such as bricks, drain tiles and porcelain insulators
- Run mechanical or hydraulic ram and hot-presses to form pottery and porcelain ware
- Prepare and mix slip and fill moulds with slip to form pottery and porcelain ware such as jugs, cups, sinks and toilet bowls
- Operate kiln to bake clay products to specified hardness
Stone forming and finishing workers:
- Run blade or wire saws to cut blocks of stone to specified dimensions
- Operate machines to grind and polish surfaces of stone blocks, slabs or other stone products to specific shape or design and to produce smooth finish
- Operate sandblasting equipment to cut inscriptions or decorative designs in stone monuments
- Finish stone products with spray paint and by mounting plaques or installing concrete bases
- Operate stone-dressing lathe to sharpen and dress grindstones that grind logs into pulp
- Run machine to drill holes in blocks or slabs of stone according to specifications
Earnings
Earnings is income that workers receive in exchange for their labour. Depending on the type of employment, earnings can be in the form of wages (hourly), salaries (fixed monthly or annual) or self-employed earnings.
Work Environment
# Workers Employed
520% Employed Full Time
62%Key aspects of the work in this occupation:
- Work takes place in a regular controlled indoor environment
- Work also takes place in an indoor environment, such as a furnace room where temperatures or humidity may vary considerably
- Workers may be exposed to chemicals or toxic products
- Working with equipment, instruments, machinery or power/hand tools may be source of injury
- The workplace may contain flying or airborne particles from stone or concrete work that may cause injury
- Workers may be exposed to fire, steam or hot surfaces that can be hazardous
- The general nature of the workplace may be hazardous
- Noise in the workplace may cause distraction or hearing loss
- Working with some equipment may cause a vibrating or back and forth motion of the body
Career Pathways
Progression to supervisory positions is possible with experience.
Movement is possible between workers within each of the concrete, clay and stone manufacturing sectors, but there is little or no mobility between these manufacturing sectors.
Related Careers
Occupational Interests
It’s important to understand what kinds of occupations align with your interests.
For more about occupational interests visit Skills for the Future Workforce > Characteristics.
Here are the top occupational interest(s) for this career profile:
Education, Training and Skills
- Some secondary school education may be required
- On-the-job training is provided
- Experience as a helper or labourer in concrete, clay or stone products manufacturing may be required
- Mould makers in this unit group who construct and repair wooden forms may require some carpentry or woodworking experience
Education programs in B.C.
The following program areas are related to this occupation:
- Academic/Basic Upgrading

Skills
Every job calls for a certain set of skills. Knowing those skills is the first step in finding a good career fit.
Here, you will find the 10 most relevant workplace skills. Some are more important to achieving success in a certain career than others. These skills may come naturally to you or you may need to gain them through education, training and experience.
See the list of work-related skills below, ranked in order of importance for this career. Check out the list and see if this career matches your skills—take that first step!
Watching gauges, dials or other indicators to make sure that a machine is working properly.
Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Conducting tests and inspections of products, services or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
Keeping track of and assessing your performance, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Talking to others to share information effectively.
Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
Labour Market Statistics
Discover data, facts and information that have been gathered and analyzed. Learn about the characteristics of the economy and labour market in B.C.
Employment
Find out about employment types and trends by region and industry.
Employment
520Employment by Region
Region | Employment | % Employment of this Occupation |
---|---|---|
Cariboo | 0 | 0.0% |
Kootenay | 10 | 1.9% |
Mainland/Southwest | 340 | 66.0% |
North Coast and Nechako | 10 | 1.9% |
Northeast | 0 | 0.0% |
Thompson-Okanagan | 65 | 12.6% |
Vancouver Island/Coast | 95 | 18.4% |
Labour Market Outlook
The B.C. Labour Market Outlook is a 10-year forecast of the expected supply and demand for labour in the province. It’s usually updated every year. The purpose is to provide British Columbians with the knowledge to make informed decisions on careers, skills training, education and hiring.
Forecasted Job Openings (2024-2034)
120Forecasted Job Openings
Forecasted Employment Growth Rate
Composition of Job Openings
Job Openings by Region (2024-2034)
Region | Job Openings | Avg. Annual Employment Growth |
---|---|---|
Cariboo | Not available | Not available |
Kootenay | Not available | Not available |
Mainland/Southwest | 120 | 1.3% |
North Coast and Nechako | Not available | Not available |
Northeast | Not available | Not available |
Thompson-Okanagan | 0 | 0.5% |
Vancouver Island/Coast | 0 | -1.8% |
Industry Highlights
Learn about the opportunities in B.C.'s major industries, including employment trends, earning potential, locations of work and more.
Forecasted Job Openings by Industry
Industry | Job Openings (2024-2034) |
---|---|
Manufacturing | 50 |
Construction | 50 |
Wholesale Trade | 10 |
Retail Trade | 10 |
Resources
Resource information is currently not available.