Podcast Summary: Dirt Talk by BuildWitt
Episode: Andrew Brown w/ Trades Media – DT 412
Date: January 29, 2026
Host: Sam (BuildWitt)
Guest: Andrew Brown (Founder, Trades Media)
Overview
This episode of Dirt Talk dives into the urgent challenges, realities, and opportunities facing the skilled trades in America. Host Sam sits down with Andrew Brown, founder of Trades Media, to discuss bridging generational gaps, tackling workforce shortages, and how tradespeople—often overlooked—are the backbone of disaster recovery and national infrastructure. The conversation, rich in both personal stories and industry insights, explores what it will really take to attract and retain the next generation of skilled workers.
Key Themes & Discussion Points
1. Andrew’s Origin in the Trades: From Ground Zero to Purpose
[01:20–12:40]
- Andrew’s life-transforming experience at Ground Zero after 9/11. Originally aiming for a tech career, Andrew recounts being drawn into volunteering alongside tradespeople and first responders during the aftermath of 9/11.
- “There was something inside me to say, I don’t want to sit around and not do anything. That’s not my personality. I’m always a doer.” — Andrew [01:47]
- Tradespeople as “Second Responders.” The trades play a key role in long-term disaster recovery, yet their work and sacrifices often go unrecognized in mainstream media coverage.
- “The news cycle covers it for five to seven days... but then that is only when the work begins. There’s then years, decades sometimes, of work after that that has to happen just to get whatever that community is back to zero.” — Sam [06:51]
2. Fulfilling Work – But Invisible
[10:54–17:00]
- Fulfillment through skilled trades. Andrew and Sam stress the purpose and meaning that tradespeople find in their work, contrasting it to the limited coverage and public perception.
- Discussion of Andrew’s decision to leave a budding IT career to start a tool and safety company focused on serving the broader skilled trades.
- “People don’t realize that tradespeople work side by side with first responders. In some case, thick of the storm...” — Andrew [04:21]
3. Decades of Underlying Workforce Issues
[15:54–19:58]
- Nationwide shortages are not new. Both speakers emphasize that the crisis in skilled labor is not a surprise; industry veterans have noted worker shortages, stagnant wages, and recruitment difficulties for years.
- “For every five that leave, only two come in. Right. We all know that.” — Andrew [17:42]
4. Honest, No-BS Trades Promotion: What Works and What Doesn’t
[19:04–22:19]
- Andrew discusses his viral videos and authentic approach to telling the truth about wages, quality of life, and the day-to-day realities in various trades—rather than simply encouraging everyone to join.
- “Things are fucked up. I agree. And it’s connecting the dots of...you have workers who are not satisfied because they don’t make enough, they have mental health issues. We talked about this; there’s drug addiction. There’s a lot of things going on...” — Andrew [19:04]
- Sam criticizes oversimplified recruitment campaigns that unrealistically hype up money in the trades without addressing the deep financial and lifestyle challenges new workers face.
5. The Money Gap: Wages, Quality of Life & Mismatched Perceptions
[25:08–37:21]
- The reality of apprentice vs. fast food wages.
- “They look at apprentice wages and they see it’s $16–18 an hour. Right. I can go to work at McDonald’s or Chipotle for $21, $22 an hour inside.” — Andrew [26:12]
- Regional discrepancies, overtime, long commutes, and sacrifices not reflected in “sticker” wage numbers.
- Stigma and challenges facing women in the trades—from PPE to harassment to work-life balance. The speakers highlight the need for companies to move beyond tokenism or PR gestures.
- “They've worked their whole career to just be one of the people doing the job.” — Sam [38:51]
- “Women only make about 4 or 5% in the trades...” — Andrew [36:17]
6. Who Are the Trades Really For? Not for Everyone.
[32:51–44:15]
- Sam urges honesty that trades careers are not universally suitable and shouldn’t be marketed to everyone indiscriminately.
- “I think part of it is like, not just bringing people in, but bringing the right people in. Because anybody that's worked in the field knows that, again, it is. It's not for everybody.” — Sam [47:33]
- Physicality, problem-solving, and personal fit discussed as critical factors.
- The evolving discussion about gender, diversity, and meaningful support (i.e., beyond Women in Construction Week PR stunts).
7. Entrepreneur’s Journey and Business Owner Dilemmas
[47:49–56:01]
- Transitioning from tradesperson to business owner: different skills, rare to be suited for both.
- The false idol of entrepreneurship—many who pursue ownership are unhappier than when they were in the field.
- “I know a lot of former tradespeople that have become business owners that are miserable. That hate it.” — Sam [50:03]
8. Wages, Economics, and the Harsh Math
[51:30–75:16]
- Industry-wide themes: low wages, lack of respect, unpredictable booms and busts.
- Wage data discussed (e.g., welders’ median wage $26.49/hr, but significant regional and trade-specific variability).
- “If you work 60 hours a week, 52 weeks a year...you make, yeah, you’re in the 80s (thousand/year). You're not swimming in money.” — Sam [73:08]
- The impact of private equity and rollups. Concern that business consolidation won’t improve life for workers and may erode core values.
- “When a company's acquired... Very rarely are the people within that company better, better off. Rarely.” — Sam [61:49]
- The potential of employee ownership (ESOPs) to empower and transfer wealth to the workforce.
- “He did the same thing, turned into employee owned. He said it was the best thing we ever did. Best thing we ever did.” — Andrew [68:38]
9. The Generational Divide & Recruiting Gen Z
[80:10–85:54]
- Gen Z has different motivations: “instant gratification,” desire for purpose, paid transparency, feeling connected to mission and values, and clearer paths for advancement.
- Business owners need to fundamentally change their approach, showing up at schools, being honest about the ups and downs, and emphasizing true opportunity while openly discussing challenges.
- “I pushed them back. I said, they're not lazy. Again, they have different motivators. It's not how you used to do it. This is a different generation.” — Andrew [83:50]
10. Responsibility: Leadership Must Step Up
[85:54–104:40]
- Real, sustainable change must begin with company leadership’s self-reflection, not external blame or PR campaigns.
- “I think 90% of the responsibility—the lion's share of the responsibility—is on the shoulders of the leadership, existing leadership within the industry.” — Sam [88:14]
- You can't delegate recruitment and culture change; the most effective organizations have leaders directly involved in championing the mission and showing up in the field and in the community.
11. Call to Action: Real Stories, Real Impact, Real Change
[104:45–end]
- The conversation closes with both Sam and Andrew urging companies and industry vets to get involved, to share authentic stories, and to invest in the people—current and future—who will sustain the nation’s infrastructure and quality of life.
- “Just talking about all the good stuff is not going to get us there.” — Sam [105:53]
Notable Quotes
- “There isn’t one fix, but it’s getting business owners, getting people in the trade sort of together and finding sort of that happy medium of what’s going to result in fixing the overall problem.” — Andrew [20:10]
- “If you’re waiting for me to inspire the next generation... we’re not going to get there, man. No way... Everybody in America within this world [needs to be] talking about it.” — Sam [94:48]
- “It’s got to start from the top and work its way down.” — Andrew [97:42]
- “If you're in the next generation and all you do is just religiously show up on time every day. You're ahead of 90%.” — Sam [88:14]
- “If you want to be a business owner, first you need to walk in those footsteps of actually doing the work.” — Andrew [48:07]
- “We've got to get people more money somehow... as a business owner, economics, like there's been way more times through business than not, we haven’t been able to pay people as much as we've wanted to...” — Sam [70:44]
Timestamps for Key Segments
- Andrew’s 9/11 story; Trades as ‘Second Responders’ – [01:20–12:40]
- Seeing the reality of skilled trades in daily business – [15:54–17:32]
- Viral content and ‘the feedback’ from the field – [19:04–22:19]
- Wages, quality of life, what’s broken in the pipeline – [26:12–30:38]
- Gender, trades, and what real inclusion means – [36:15–44:15]
- Work-life, financial unsustainability, and apprentice catch-22 – [51:30–56:21]
- Private equity, employee ownership, and the risk to the trades – [60:14–72:22]
- Recruitment, Gen Z, and modern motivators – [80:10–85:54]
- Industry leadership: Taking real responsibility and action – [85:54–104:40]
Conclusion
Sam and Andrew pull no punches in this episode, challenging comfortable narratives about the trades and insisting on real, sometimes uncomfortable, conversations about money, lifestyle, generational change, and industry leadership. Their call: If infrastructure—and society—is to be rebuilt and maintained, the trades must be publicly valued, realistically portrayed, and led by leaders willing to look in the mirror and act. No top-down policy or PR blitz will suffice.
Find Andrew Brown:
- Social: @andrewbrowntrades on TikTok, LinkedIn, Instagram
- Podcast: The Lost Art of the Skilled Trades (Spotify, Apple, YouTube)
For more: Visit buildwitt.com for resources, leadership training, and summit details.
This summary aims to provide an engaging, accurate guide to the episode’s themes, highlights, and action points, including accessible entry points for anyone considering or invested in the future of the skilled trades.