Mike Rowe reveals which essential jobs AI can’t touch – and why Americans should pay attention

MikeRoweWorks Foundation CEO Mike Rowe said the one thing artifical intelligence isn’t coming for is trade-based jobs, 

Rowe, who hosts “How America Works” on FOX Business, told audience members during the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit on Tuesday that those jobs are a safe bet as AI disrupts the job market, according to several reports. 

‘We’ve been telling kids for 15 years to code. ‘Learn to code,’ we said,” Rowe said. “Yeah, well, AI is coming for the coders.” 

He also said that the technology, however, isn’t “coming for the welders… the plumbers, the steamfitters or the pipefitters… the electricians.” 

This comes as the skilled labor market has taken a beating with the supply of workers in the field is shrinking due to retirements and fewer young entrants. 

LOWE’S, METALLICA TEAM UP TO BOLSTER SKILLED LABOR WORKFORCE

As worker numbers fall, demand is projected to remain high due to infrastructure needs, a surge in real estate redevelopment and the energy transition, according to consulting firm McKinsey. Additionally, the re-purposing of commercial real estate due to hybrid work may also increase demand for construction trade workers.

In order to meet the anticipated demand for construction services this year, the construction industry will need to attract an estimated 439,000 net new workers in 2025, according to a proprietary model developed by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). In 2026, the industry will need to bring in 499,000 new workers.

ABC chief economist Anirban Basu said if the industry fails to fill those roles, then labor costs across the industry will accelerate, exacerbating already high construction costs and reducing the volume of work that is financially feasible. 

EMPLOYERS ARE FED UP WITH COLLEGE ‘WASTE,’ OPT FOR SKILLED BLUE-COLLAR WORKERS INSTEAD

Rowe sounded alarm bells on the nationwide blue-collar worker shortage in June 2024, warning there are significant national security implications for the country if American-made production plummets as a result of the scarcity. 

During an appearance on Fox News Radio’s “The Brian Kilmeade Show,” Rowe, an outspoken advocate for young people entering blue-collar lines of work, argued it is “scary” that there are not enough tradespeople entering the labor force at the rate they are currently needed. 

“Every year, for every five tradespeople who retire, two people replace them. This has been going on for about 18 years, and the math has become so critical and so under-reported,” Rowe said, “You can’t find a single major corporation today who relies to some degree on skilled labor [that] isn’t struggling to hire.”

 Fox News’ Bailee Hill contributed to this report.