(2011-05-13) Rowe Need Dirty Jobs Makers

Mike Rowe testified to a US Congress committee about the need for Maker-s who can keep doing skilled DirtyJobs. It occurred to me that I had become disconnected from a lot of things that used to fascinate me. I no longer thought about where my food came from, or how my electricity worked, or who fixed my pipes, or who made my clothes. There was no reason to. I had become less interested in how things got made, and more interested in how things got bought.... In general, we're surprised that high UnEmployment can exist at the same time as a skilled labor shortage. We shouldn't be. We've pretty much guaranteed it. In High School-s, the vocational arts (Vo-Tech) have all but vanished. We've elevated the importance of "higher education" to such a lofty perch that all other forms of knowledge are now labeled "alternative." Millions of parents and kids see ApprenticeShip-s and on-the-JobTraining opportunities as "vocational consolation prizes," best suited for those not cut out for a four-year degree. And still, we talk about millions of "shovel ready" jobs for a society that doesn't encourage people to pick up a shovel... My written testimony includes the details of several initiatives designed to close the skills gap, all of which I've had the privilege to participate in. Go Build Alabama, I Make America, and my own modest efforts through DirtyJobs and mikeroweWORKS. I'm especially proud to announce "DiscoverYourSkills," a broad-based initiative from DiscoveryCommunications that I believe can change perceptions in a meaningful way.