Get paid to learn the trades.
No classroom. No tuition. Just real work, real pay, and a career that lasts.
At GFJ, we’re building the next generation of tradespeople.
You’ll start on real jobsites — learning hands-on skills from experienced pros while earning a paycheck.
Whether you’re just getting started or ready to change careers, this is your on-ramp to the trades.
Our Story
Our
anti-classroom, community college 'drop out' glow-up
Not everyone was built for the classroom.
Some of us were built for the jobsite.
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GFJ was inpsired by a guy who felt stuck. He didn’t make it to college — hell, he failed out of community college (if that’s even a thing). He bounced from job to job — working as a groundsman, then a package delivery driver — doing what he had to do, but always knowing he was capable of more.
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At 32, he tried to join Chicago's Electrician's Union. They tested 500 people and only took 90. He didn’t make the cut despite taking extra classes to learn the test and having a sponsor write a letter for him. After being denied a union card, there was no place for someone like him to learn the trades unless he already had experience. Every apprenticeship required at least a year on the job.
He couldn’t get a job without experience, and he couldn’t get experience without a job.
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That’s the gap that created GFJ, we are built for people who don’t belong in classrooms but still belong in the trades.
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For people who learn by doing — not by memorizing.
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For people who want a good fckin’ job and a shot to prove themselves.
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For people who can't fully commit to trade school or pay pricey tuitions.
Because a test score doesn’t define your work ethic. A degree doesn’t define your talent.
And a classroom sure as hell doesn’t define your worth on a real job site.
At GFJ, we train, employ, and deploy real people into real jobs that build our communities — and their futures.
