Post job

Construction labour vs general helper

The differences between construction labours and general helpers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a general helper has an average salary of $35,793, which is higher than the $32,628 average annual salary of a construction labour.

The top three skills for a construction labour include hand tools, asphalt and demolition. The most important skills for a general helper are tape measure, pallets, and hand tools.

Construction labour vs general helper overview

Construction LabourGeneral Helper
Yearly salary$32,628$35,793
Hourly rate$15.69$17.21
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs48,91469,738
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 51%High School Diploma, 48%
Average age3939
Years of experience--

What does a construction labour do?

When it comes to Construction Labour, responsibilities will always revolve around physical work on construction sites. Most of the tasks will vary daily, depending on what kind of structure is required. Still, mostly it will involve following instructions and guidelines while working as a team, assembling and disassembling materials, cleaning certain areas and removing debris, building temporary structures such as scaffolding, lifting heavy objects, and even climbing high places. Furthermore, one must also operate construction devices such as mixers and grills.

What does a general helper do?

General helpers are skilled workers who help other workers by performing tasks that need less skill, such as holding materials or tools and cleaning work areas and equipment. These helpers are required to provide general labor support to all departments while performing a variety of job assignments. They must ensure that everyone in an organization is following safety rules and inspect areas for safety hazards. General helpers must also perform constant quality checks on the organization's establishments using its quality guidelines and operating procedures.

Construction labour vs general helper salary

Construction labours and general helpers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Construction LabourGeneral Helper
Average salary$32,628$35,793
Salary rangeBetween $24,000 And $43,000Between $29,000 And $43,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYChicago, IL
Highest paying stateHawaiiConnecticut
Best paying companyHill InternationalBarry-Wehmiller
Best paying industryConstructionMedia

Differences between construction labour and general helper education

There are a few differences between a construction labour and a general helper in terms of educational background:

Construction LabourGeneral Helper
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 51%High School Diploma, 48%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common college--

Construction labour vs general helper demographics

Here are the differences between construction labours' and general helpers' demographics:

Construction LabourGeneral Helper
Average age3939
Gender ratioMale, 93.6% Female, 6.4%Male, 77.4% Female, 22.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 26.0% Asian, 2.9% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 30.7% Asian, 2.5% White, 50.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage2%2%

Differences between construction labour and general helper duties and responsibilities

Construction labour example responsibilities.

  • Operate hand and power tools, air hammers, earth tampers, cement mixers, and small mechanical hoists.
  • Operate hand and power tools of all types: chain see, earth tampers, cement mixers, small mechanical hoists.
  • Clean and prepare construction sites to eliminate possible hazards using picks, shovels, pneumatic tampers, and rakes.
  • Work on bobcat and excavation equipment; drive heavy trucks - no CDL.
  • Clean and prepare sites, dig trenches and set braces to support the sides of excavations.
  • Clean grounds, using rakes, brooms and hoses.
  • Show more

General helper example responsibilities.

  • Operate grinders, saws, CNC machines, punch press, straighten metal parts, and package products for immediate shipment.
  • Require bundling of steel tubing.
  • Calculate requirements, using basic math.
  • Assist with reading and mathematics lessons as a small group leader.
  • Be sure to have proper PPE and equipment need in case of emergency.
  • Used hand tools such as rakes, hedge and brush trimmers and brooms.
  • Show more

Construction labour vs general helper skills

Common construction labour skills
  • Hand Tools, 13%
  • Asphalt, 6%
  • Demolition, 6%
  • Ladders, 5%
  • Scaffolding, 5%
  • OSHA, 4%
Common general helper skills
  • Tape Measure, 11%
  • Pallets, 8%
  • Hand Tools, 7%
  • Machine Operators, 6%
  • Math, 5%
  • Data Entry, 5%

Browse construction and extraction jobs