William B. Gould IV on chairing the NLRB and honoring his great-grandfather, a black Civil War sailor

William B. Gould IV, the Charles A. Beardsley Professor of Law, emeritus at the Stanford University Law School, discusses his work on labor relations, his chairmanship at the National Labor Relations Board, and a remarkable great-grandfather who escaped slavery and joined the Union Navy in the Civil War. 

In this episode, Gould and Ashenfelter discuss: 

• Gould’s admittance to the University of Rhode Island despite his less-than-stellar high school career. “I was very undisciplined as a kid…when it came time to graduate from high school, my record was undistinguished.” 
• His decision to attend Cornell Law School, which he first considered a mistake. But he met Kurt Hanslowe who taught a legal research course that sparked Gould’s interest. “...that was my first really lucky professional break in life.” 
• Gould’s experiences at the London School of Economics, “I met trade unionists and Socialist Party leaders in France as well as in Britain and in Scandinavia also. So, it was a remarkable year and a very exciting year.” 
• His work at the law firm of Battle, Fowler, Stokes, and Kheel in New York where he focused on labor disputes. “I…was able to represent a number of…clients on both the employer and union side.”
• Gould’s work with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and his eventual appointment as Chairman during the Clinton Administration.  
• Gould’s major accomplishments as chair of the NLRB: the largest issuance and authorization of 10(j) injunctions. These are designed to stop harmful conduct or unfair labor practices during the time a dispute is in the process of being settled. 
• Gould’s perspective on current efforts to politicize NLRB appointments. “I think that the attempt to change the appointment process will rob it of one of its greatest, strongest characteristics, [which is the rule of law in the workplace.]” 
• Gould’s remarkable story of his great-grandfather, an escaped slave who joined the United States Navy during the Civil War.

William B. Gould IV earned his LLB from Cornell University in 1961. He is the Charles A. Beardsley Professor of Law, emeritus at the Stanford University Law School. He served as Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB, 1994–98) and subsequently Chairman of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board (2014-2017). His memoir, Those Who Travail and are Heavy Laden: Memoir of a Labor Lawyer, is forthcoming in 2025, published by WPI Press.  "The Work Goes On"—a podcast produced by Princeton's Industrial Relations Section (IR Section)—is an oral history of industrial relations and labor economics hosted by Princeton's Orley Ashenfelter.