Workwear brand Carhartt has teamed up with heavy metal band Metallica’s nonprofit All Within My Hands foundation in an effort to attract a new generation of workers in the skilled trades. 

Carhartt announced that it is donating all online sales made this past Labor Day to the foundation’s Metallica Scholars program, an initiative dedicated to providing skills and services to students who are looking to enter a traditional trade or other applied learning program. It also provides direct support to 23 schools through the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) to enhance their career and technical education programs.

The Labor Day campaign recreates a 1981 “Musicians Wanted” ad that was placed in a Los Angeles newspaper by Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich, which ultimately led to the formation of the band. 

“To build the workforce of the future, we need to connect more people to the training and education that helps fill essential jobs,” said Janet Ries, Vice President of Marketing at Carhartt. “With our partnership, we’re sending the message that whether you’re in high school looking for a first step, or out of work looking for a new start: come join the skilled trades. What better time to recruit job seekers into these exciting, high-demand opportunities than on Labor Day?”

Metallica emphasizes the importance of skilled workers, noting how crucial they are in the live events industry, which was hit hard due to the pandemic. As part of the partnership, Carhartt and All Within My Hands recruited a group of job seekers to build a mock Metallica stage piece at Upstaging, Inc., a production and transportation company that’s behind the shows for some of the biggest names in the music and entertainment industry. The experience is documented in a video titled “Hard Rock is Hard Work”, which also goes into detail about the program.

"The music industry, and the country at large, do not run without the skilled trades," said Metallica guitarist James Hetfield in the video. "Behind every concert we play and song that we sing, there's a symphony of carpenters, electricians, laborers, welders, truckers, mechanics, painters and much more who make it all happen. But we need more of you."