Labor economics pioneer Ray Marshall retires A look at the career of a former U.S. Labor Secretary

Photo by Larry Murphy

LBJ School Professor Ray Marshall, a pioneer in the field of labor economics and one of the fathers of workforce development policy, will retire at the end of this academic year. A standard-bearer for his profession for almost 50 years, Marshall's contributions as a teacher, researcher, and public servant have influenced many individuals and affected labor-related public policy in the United States and abroad.

Former President Jimmy Carter, with whom Marshall worked from 1977 to 1981 as U.S. Secretary of Labor, described Marshall as "one of the most committed and caring public servants" he has ever known. "I appointed him Secretary of Labor because he successfully bridged the worlds of academia and real folks," Carter said. "He had the unique ability to see and approach every issue from the perspective of the working man. I am confident history will remember him as one of this country's best secretaries of labor."

"He had the unique ability to see and approach every issue from the perspective of the working man." former President Jimmy Carter

As a member of the Carter cabinet, Marshall oversaw the development of employment programs that produced the first increase in minority youth employment in the 1970s. In other areas, he strengthened collective bargaining by establishing dispute settlement procedures and supporting legal rights for workers to organize and bargain collectively; strengthened international labor activities; fostered labor-management cooperation through safety and health committees as an alternative to regulation; and strengthened worker protections. Within the U.S. Department of Labor itself, he improved management by consolidating programs, upgrading the women's bureau, and eliminating hundreds of unnecessary regulations.

At UT Austin, where he has been a professor since 1962, Marshall has held the Audre and Bernard Rapaport Centennial Chair in Economics and Public Affairs since 1982. He has also held professorships at the University of Mississippi, Louisiana State University, and the University of Kentucky. Throughout the years, Marshall has chaired or served on numerous boards, commissions, and professional associations. He has also authored about 40 scholarly books and monographs and over 200 articles and chapters.

Marshall's impact on the many programs and lives he has touched throughout his life is immeasurable. Many researchers who have worked with or for him have moved on to highly successful careers in public life, including U.S. Labor Secretary Alexis Herman; Charles Knapp, former University of Georgia President and now chair of the Aspen Institute; James Hefner, President of East Tennessee State University; and former Texas Governor Mark White, among others. At UT Austin, one of Marshall's greatest contributions is an interdisciplinary research center he founded as part of the UT Austin Economics Department in 1970. The internationally renowned Center for the Study of Human Resources, which became affiliated with the LBJ School in 1987, has conducted important theoretical research for some of the most influential federal, state, and nonprofit organizations in the country. (See related story.) These include the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Labor, as well as numerous Texas state agencies and state boards and commissions. Foundations and nonprofit clients include the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, Foundation for Child Development, Ford Foundation, Hogg Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and Texas Industrial Areas Foundation. In recognition of Professor Marshall's many contributions to the LBJ School--and in honor of his retirement from teaching--the School will change the name of the Center for the Study of Human Resources to the Ray Marshall Center for Work and Family. An endowment will be established to provide a continuous source of funds to the Center, which has been self-supporting throughout its existence, and to perpetuate the spirit of Marshall's work. For additional information about the fund, contact Carlton Schwab, Director of Development, LBJ School of Public Affairs, Box Y, Austin, Texas 78713-8925; telephone: (512) 471-2760; e-mail: cschwab@mail.utexas.edu.

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