Agreed although its always been normal here face fill walls after the acid in cement has been neutralized.
They used to call it "Patching compound" and they face fill the walls with a 4 " putty knife! Takes forever..
These days we use a product called Mondo skimcoat. It has to be mixed with either white or grey cement and it bonds like .... to a blanket,extremely tough and of course sand-able.
Unlike ordinary skim coat it is not very porous.
If pure white cement is mixed with it,the walls are already white and very easy to paint.
I always get the masons to put it on with 12" float trowels... Quick and easy.
http://www.tuugo.ph/CompanyProducts/...o/022999415136