DIMON: ‘Something went wrong, and the leaders collectively are responsible’

Business Insider

Jamie Dimon is worried about a lost generation.

The CEO and chairman of JPMorgan has spoken about a “national catastrophe” in education, and a generation that has been left behind.

Business Insider spoke with Dimon on May 5, at the Alfred E. Smith Career and Technical Education High School in the South Bronx, New York. JPMorgan Chase had just announced a $6 million investment in the Bronx as part of its $75 million New Skills for Youth initiative.

We talked about education, the economy, and the Trump administration. We also discussed the level of anger at the global elite, fueling a rise in populism around the world.

Here’s what he had to say:

Dimon: I kind of agree with it, when you leave people behind, and those people who are left behind, it’s not their fault, it’s the leaders of the institutions. There’s always going to be an elite. You can have an elite in a communist society. It is the leaders, something went wrong, and the leaders collectively are responsible.

There’s some more terrible numbers — men, age 25 to 55, the labor-force participation rate is down 10%. That’s unbelievable. There are 35,000 dying of opioids every year. Seventy percent of kids age 17 to 24 can’t get into the US military because of health or education. Obesity, diabetes, reading and writing. Is that the society we wanted? No. We should be working on these things, acknowledge the flaws we have, and come up with solutions. Not Democrat. Not Republican. Not knee-jerk.

Any good job is a good job. This whole concept of a dead-end job? It’s not true. I’ve heard it my whole life. Jobs lead to dignity. If you’re good at the first, then you can get the second. Jobs lead to household formation. Jobs are a better solution for society. The other part, the expanded earned-income tax credit, which can help the lower paid have more a living wage, which will lead them to do more. It will help small business. It won’t help big business.