How to become a Civil Construction Worker
Civil construction workers compact, level and spread materials to form roads and footpaths, perform minor repairs to damaged surfaces, maintain bridges, and repair signs and guideposts. They also undertake general roadside maintenance such as grass cutting, weed control and litter collection.
Personal requirements for a Civil Construction Worker
- Enjoy practical and outdoor work
- Able to cope with the physical demands of the job
- Good hand-eye coordination
- Able to work as part of a team
Education & Training for a Civil Construction Worker
To become a civil construction worker you usually have to complete a traineeship. Entry requirements may vary, but employers generally require Year 10.
Additional information
All those who work in the construction industry must undergo safety induction training and be issued with a Construction Induction Card (CIC).
Duties & Tasks of a Civil Construction Worker
Civil construction workers:
- Clear scrub, strip grass and remove topsoil
- Assist with preparation for laying drains
- Spread gravel to form the road base
- Operate tank-truck distributors or hoses to spray tar, road oils and emulsions on the road before surfacing
- Operate paving machines or spread stone chips, gravel or asphalt onto road surfaces
- Erect and dismantle barricades and construction signs
- Direct traffic through the construction area
- Load and unload equipment and clean the worksite
- Calculate the quantities for ordering materials
- Comply with environmental and safety orders
- Landscape surrounding areas with trees and grass seed.
Tasks
- Cutting and trimming damaged surfaces using jack-hammers and softening edges of areas to be repaired with blowtorches
- Sweeping paving bases prior to laying asphalt and other surfaces
- Sprinkling and brushing hot and cold-mix asphalt over surfaces to be paved and repaired to bond asphalt toppings to bases
- Loading and unloading equipment, and cleaning work sites
- Shovelling asphalt mix into areas inaccessible to paving machines, and compacting mix using rakes and hand tampers
- May direct traffic
- Operating tank-truck distributors and hoses to spray tar and road oils and emulsions on graded surfaces prior to paving
- Erecting and dismantling barricades
- Tripping tail-gate levers to discharge hot-mix asphalt into paving machines, and spreading stone chips, gravel and cold-mix asphalt onto road surfaces
Working conditions for a Civil Construction Worker
Civil construction workers may work as members of a small roadwork team.
Employment Opportunities for a Civil Construction Worker
Civil construction workers are employed by civil contractors (infrastructure contractors), government roadwork authorities and local councils. With experience, and sometimes further training, it is possible to progress to more specialised tasks or supervisory positions.
Specializations
Civil construction workers may work in the following categories:
- Road construction
Civil Construction Worker
Civil construction workers compact, level and spread materials to form roads and footpaths, perform minor repairs to damaged surfaces, maintain bridges, and repair signs and guideposts. They also undertake general roadside maintenance such as grass cutting, weed control and litter collection.
Average age
41
Future Growth
Neutral
Gender Share
0% female
Average full-time
44 hours
Weekly Pay
$1,456
Skill level rating
Medium skill
Unemployment
Higher Unemployment
Full-Time Share
96%
Employment Size
7,000
Employment by state
ACT: 0.8%
NSW: 32.1%
NT: 1.0%
QLD: 23.6%
SA: 6.8%
TAS: 4.2%
VIC: 23.1%
WA: 8.3%
Age brackets
15-19: 3.1%
20-24: 9.8%
25-34: 22.8%
35-44: 20.7%
45-54: 23%
55-59: 10.8%
60-64: 7.3%
65 and Over: 2.6%
Education level
Advanced Diploma/Diploma: 2.9%
Bachelor degree: 1.6%
Below Year 10: 0%
Certificate III/IV: 31.9%
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate: 0.2%
Year 10 and below: 37.4%
Year 11: 9.4%
Year 12: 16.7%
Years 11 & 10: 34.8%
