The Work Goes On
An Oral History of Industrial Relations and Labor Economics
In this podcast series of conversations with leading thinkers and practitioners, we are creating an oral history of an entire generation of industrial relations experts and labor economists whose contributions to their fields have been absolutely extraordinary. Hosted by Orley Ashenfelter, the Joseph Douglas Green 1895 Professor of Economics, Emeritus at Princeton University.
James Heckman on his early academic career and the work that makes him proud
James J. Heckman, Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor in Economics at the University of Chicago, joins the podcast to discuss graduate school at Princeton, why an often overlooked paper on the effect of civil rights laws is his favorite, and much more.
Daniel Hamermesh on the overhyped four-day work week and a lifetime of creative labor economics research
Daniel Hamermesh, the Sue Killam Professor of Economics Emeritus at the University of Texas at Austin, joins the podcast to talk to Princeton’s Orley Ashenfelter about “the promise” of the four-day work week, how physical appearance affects compensation, and his lifetime of contributions to the field of labor economics.
Frank Stafford on the origins of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID)
Frank Stafford, Professor of Economics Emeritus at the University of Michigan, joins the podcast to talk to Princeton’s Orley Ashenfelter about the origins of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) and his research on labor supply, income volatility, household finances, and more.
Robert Solow on growing up in Brooklyn, fighting Nazis, and everything that came after
In a wide-ranging interview, Robert Solow joins the podcast to talk about the origins of his remarkable career, covering everything from his being “a child of the Great Depression” to leaving Harvard to fight in WWII to his time serving in President Kennedy’s Council of Economic Advisors.
Richard Freeman on the state of unions in the U.S., why few Americans pursue STEM degrees, and more
Richard Freeman, who holds the Herbert Ascherman Chair in Economics at Harvard University, joins the podcast to talk to Princeton’s Orley Ashenfelter about the early influences of Martin Segal and John Dunlap on his career, who pursues careers in STEM and why, and whether we can expect inequality at the bottom of the wage distribution, which shrunk during the pandemic for the first time in recent history, to continue its decline.