For every five skilled tradespeople who retire, only two enter to replace them. That math is why you can’t get a plumber to call back, why home repairs cost more, and why our roads, bridges, and power grids are starting to strain. In this practical, urgent talk, Steve Turner argues that reviving the trades isn’t nostalgia — it’s how America protects its economy, infrastructure, and national security.
Steve Turner is the founder and CEO of Bring Back the Trades, a New Hampshire-based nonprofit dedicated to restoring respect, opportunity, and awareness around America’s skilled trades workforce. With more than 36 years of experience as a small business owner in the auto and marine upholstery industry, Turner saw firsthand the shortage of skilled workers and the declining emphasis on vocational education in schools. The movement began with four words that woke him up at 3 a.m. — he put them on a hat, contractors and tradespeople around the country asked for their own, and the hat became a national scholarship campaign. Today, Bring Back the Trades funds scholarships and works to inspire the next generation to pursue meaningful, hands-on careers in industries essential to America’s future.
