Amid all the hand-wringing about AI destroying jobs, Lowe's CEO Marvin Ellison has a very different concern.

"AI without question is changing work," he told me recently. "But somebody will still be required to crawl under your sink and fix a leak, get your HVAC working, or do construction on a data center."

And those people are in short supply. The Education Department has said as many as 2.1 million skilled trade jobs could go unfilled by 2030-creating potential economic losses of up to $1 trillion a year.

With that in mind, Ellison today is announcing the creation of what's billed as the "largest cross-sector skilled trades coalition in U.S. history" to help train and develop up to a million plumbers, electricians, roofers, welders and others for skilled trades jobs by 2035. The coalition includes community colleges, trade organizations and nonprofits, as well as corporate leaders including Nvidia, Bank of America, AT&T, General Motors and more. (CEO Brief got an early look at the plan.)

Other companies have launched projects with the same aim recently. In June, Meta and Google each announced millions in spending for construction and skilled-trade training programs.

For Ellison, the mission is personal. "People ask me what led me from a small rural town in western Tennessee, a father who never graduated from high school," to become CEO of two Fortune 500 companies (he was CEO of J.C. Penney before Lowe's). "I give credit to my faith in God. I'm thankful I was raised with two great parents. I'm also grateful I was born in this country."

Rather than watch this problem grow from the sidelines, he "decided to get off the sidelines to do something about it."

The Lowe's Foundation in April committed $250 million over the next 10 years to address the skilled trade workers shortage-a commitment that aligns nicely with its home improvement business purpose. But Ellison recognized the challenge wasn't a one-company effort. So he reached out to educators, suppliers and other companies to create the new coalition.

Part of the challenge is cultural. "For decades, fewer young people have been encouraged to pursue trades. ...We have to redefine what defines good employment. You can create a great life and a great career and start a business by becoming a skilled tradesperson." And there is little danger artificial intelligence will take your job-at least in the near term.

Ellison says the company will work with community colleges, vocational schools and others that can do training and certification to "scale how this works" and create consistent pathways to new jobs.

Here's what some of the CEOs who are part of the coalition had to say about it in a press release that will go live later this morning:

"As AI and other emerging technologies become more deeply embedded in everyday life, the resilient broadband networks that underpin them will be more important than ever-and those networks can't be built or maintained without skilled workers." -AT&T CEO John Stankey

"We are helping create opportunities for more skilled trades careers to build the talent needed to strengthen local economies and help drive American prosperity and competitiveness." -Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan

"Skilled trades professionals keep our world running." -Carrier CEO David Gitlin

Alan Murray President, WSJ Leadership Institute

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