481: Jason Altmire—Trade Up
4/28/20261 hr 22 min
Former congressman Jason Altmire has spent years in Washington—and even more time outside it—making the case that America's biggest opportunity isn't behind a desk, but behind a welding mask, a set of tools, or the wheel of a big machine. Now leading Career Education Colleges and Universities, he's on a mission to close the skills gap and reconnect hard work with real opportunity.
In this episode, Mike and Jason dig into why millions of good jobs go unfilled, why the stigma around skilled labor refuses to die, and what it'll take to convince a new generation that "college for all" might not be the answer.
Along the way, they unpack the ideas behind Jason's book, Trade Up: Why the Future Belongs to Skilled Trades and How Career Education is Transforming the Workforce—and make a compelling case that the fastest way to achieve the American Dream might be to pursue a skilled trade.
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Clips
Showing 10 of 15Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMike Rowe· Host0:00
[bass music] What an interesting conversation you're about to listen to. This is mikeroweWORKS.
Chuck· Host0:09
Yep.
Mike Rowe· Host0:09
Uh, you're listening to the way I heard it. And, um, you know, I wasn't sure what to expect, Chuck- [laughs] ... because as a rule, we don't really have politicians on the podcast. Although this guy, uh, is technically no longer one, but- Former.
Chuck· Host0:21
Former ...
Mike Rowe· Host0:22
yeah, yeah. Yeah, he's a congressman out of Pennsylvania, a Democrat- Mm-hmm ... named, uh, Jason Altmire. But, um, well-regarded, really, by, um, well, as well-regarded as one can be in that- In- ... in, in that body ...
Chuck· Host0:35
in the center, yeah. He's a b- Blue Dog Democrat.
Mike Rowe· Host0:37
He's a Blue Dog Democrat.
Chuck· Host0:38
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Mike Rowe· Host0:39
Yeah. And, um, he wrote a book called Trade Up, and I skimmed through the PDF enough to realize I, I liked it enough to write a blurb. [laughs] You know what? And forgive me if that sounds somewhat lazy as a guy who runs a work ethic scholarship program. I do intend on reading the book, but it, it hasn't come out yet in real time. It's out now- Yes ... as you listen to this, but I didn't have a physical copy, and, um, I wanted to talk to the guy because everything that I saw in the book, I not only agreed with, I agreed with, with wild enthusiasm.
Chuck· Host1:16
Yeah. I mean, the subtitle is Why the Future Belongs to Skilled Trades and New Career Education is Transforming the Workforce. Now, if that's not in your wheelhouse, you don't have a wheelhouse.
Mike Rowe· Host1:28
Yeah. True enough. In his