A tradie boss has revealed the well-above-average salary he offers his workers, as well as his struggle to find people who can stay in the job. Chris Wedge runs the Wedge Crete concreting business in Brisbane and was asked how much he earns.

While he kept quiet about the amount he pulled in each year, he explained that his concreters can earn a pretty penny if they work for him. He told jobs app GetAhead that there's plenty of work to go around if people are looking for a new gig.

"I pay my guys, $600 a day, plus GST, so they make pretty good money," he said.

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Earning $600 per day would see a Wedge Crete worker pull in $3,000 per week pre-tax, $12,000 per month, and $156,000 per year.

That's well above the average concreter wage in Australia of $80,000 to $100,000 per year, according to SEEK.

Despite the high-paying job, Wedge said it can be a struggle finding "reliable" workers who will stick around.

"They were on the piss and the booger sugar and certain things like that," he said.

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Booger sugar refers to cocaine — a drug found to be popular in the building and construction industry.

Wedge said he was open to taking on more people if they could prove themselves.

"The proof's in the pudding," he said. "Come out there, and if you've got the guts and you can do it, sweet.

"Just be a tradesman. If you're a tradesman, then you're good to go. Everyone's welcome to that sort of money."

His struggles are shared by many in the industry.

A Master Builders survey of its members last year revealed 85 per cent said they found it challenging to hire suitably qualified workers, and 66 per cent said workplace shortages was the industry's biggest issue.

Part of this was blamed on a lack of newer talent coming into the industry while older tradies retired.

Drug use rife in the building and construction industry

Previously considered a drug for top tier white collar workers, it's just as pervasive with tradies, as some are pulling in multiple six figures a year.

One apprentice, who wanted to remain anonymous, told Yahoo Finance it's rife at the moment.

"It's more common to find yourself speaking to someone who does coke on weekends than someone who doesn’t, particularly in the younger demographic," he said.