Working in the work has always been hard, but with the difference that much more money was charged in the work. But with the real estate crisis, salaries began to go down to such an extent, that today few young people are interested in this profession, since it is hard and charged little. This is demonstrated by Adrián G. Martín’s last video, which has moved to a work to talk to those who raise the houses where we live.
“You pass cold, you pass heat, you leave your back … In the end we all ended up dusty,” summarizes one of the interviewees. Eight -hour days that involve loading between 50 and 100 bags of 25 kilos cement, chopping, lifting walls and working at height with the constant risk of suffering an accident. “It is a fairly dangerous job if you don’t know what you do and do not take precautions,” they add.
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“In Bolivia he earned 400 euros, here 1,300 … but the wear is the same”
Salaries are the great friction point. Although the figures in Spain far exceed those of other countries, the workers agree that they do not compensate for the effort or risks. “In Bolivia I earned about 400 euros, here between 1,300 and 1,400 … but I leave my back the same,” acknowledges Albino, one of the protagonists.
The salaries range in the work depends on the professional category. A pawn can collect between 900 and 1,000 euros per month, while a specialized pawn reaches around 1,100 euros. Second officers are around 1,200 or 1,300 euros, First and 1,600 officers, and the managers are around 1,600 or 1,700 euros per month.
The times of the golden age prior to the crisis remain, when some masons could win 3,000 or even 4,000 euros per month working in large works already based on long days. Today, with tight prices and increasingly expensive materials, that reality seems impossible to repeat.
A trade without generational relief
The other big problem is the future. “Many young Spaniards do not want to work on this. They prefer jobs where they win the same and do not destroy their backs,” says Albino. The consequence is clear: the majority of labor in construction comes from abroad.
Before, remember, learning was almost free: you started as a pawn, observing and practicing. “Today nobody wants to learn the trade if it is not charging as an officer. And businessmen do not compensate to train someone who does not yield.”
Impossible housing and shooting materials
The masons also indicate the contrast between their salaries and the current cost of a house. “Only the plot costs 200,000 euros, and a work like this goes between 400,000 and 500,000. With a normal salary it is impossible,” they point out.
The increase in materials aggravates the situation. “Before a tile cost 49 cents, now more than one euro. Iron, cement, wood … everything has risen. And when it goes up, it doesn’t go down anymore.”
In spite of everything, many continue to feel passion for what they do. “I like to see the final result and think that what I do will be there for many years,” they confess. But the warning is clear: if it is not valued and it is not facilitated that young people learn, the construction sector in Spain runs the risk of running out of expert hands.