Bob McKersie, former ILR dean, dies at 96

Bob McKersie, distinguished scholar, educator, author, mentor and one of the most influential voices in industrial and labor relations, died July 11 at his home in Arlington, Massachusetts, at the age of 96.

From 1971-79, McKersie served as dean of the ILR School, where he recruited and mentored a new generation of faculty whose rigorous social science approach helped redefine the study of industrial and labor relations, and continues to shape the ILR School today. McKersie left Cornell in 1980 to join the MIT Sloan School of Management, where he served as deputy dean from 1991 to 1994, and served as co-director of the Industrial Relations Section, now the MIT Institute for Work and Employment Research. Upon his retirement, he was named professor emeritus and remained actively engaged in the academic community into his 90s.

"Bob had a deep and lasting impact on the ILR School," said Alexander Colvin, Ph.D. '99, the Kenneth F. Kahn '69 Dean and Martin F. Scheinman '75, M.S. '76, Professor of Conflict Resolution. "His time as dean was during a critical period for the school, as many of its founding faculty were retiring. Bob hired a new generation of faculty who would be at the core of ILR's success over the next half century, building a foundation of excellence in research and teaching thousands of our students."

In McKersie's memoir, "A Field in Flux: Sixty Years of Industrial Relations," he described his experience at ILR, writing that he had no administrative experience in the academic world and "was not well informed about the institution. But leading a school with a broad mandate for teaching and research in industrial and employment relations was very attractive."

As dean, he led the school during a period of labor-management flux, with factories across the state closing and the global economy evolving.

In his second year as dean, he brought on seven new faculty members, including Lee Dyer, emeritus professor of Human Resource Studies, who taught at ILR for 45 years and was elected a fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources in 1994.

"Bob devoted considerable time and attention to broadening and deepening the strength and influence of ILR's management side," Dyer said. "He focused on hiring young HR faculty members with strong research skills but also a commitment to influencing the application of leading-edge policies and practices in organizations. His plan worked. In short order, HR-oriented academic publications were flowing, relationships with HR executives materially improved, and the stage was set for the eventual formation of the Center of Advanced Human Resource Studies, which over time has become a major component of ILR, both reputationally and financially."

Through his strategic faculty hires, McKersie similarly strengthened ILR across the fields of labor relations, labor economics and organizational behavior, positioning the school as a leader in the applied social sciences relating to work, labor and employment.

"It was under Dean McKersie that labor economics at ILR transitioned from an institutionalist approach toward studies of the labor market to one rooted in economic theory and statistical analysis," said Bob Smith, now in his 50th year as a professor of labor economics at ILR. "Under his deanship, the department hired individuals who were instrumental in building the prestigious group of labor economists the school has today."

Robert B. McKersie earned his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1951 as a member of the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC), after which he served three years as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy on a destroyer during the Korean Conflict. After his military service, he attended Harvard Business School, where he earned his master's and doctoral degrees in business administration.

Following completion of his graduate studies in 1959, McKersie joined the faculty of the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, where he began his pioneering research on collective bargaining and negotiations that culminated in his collaboration with Richard Walton. Their 1965 book, "A Behavioral Theory of Labor Negotiations," transformed the study and practice of negotiation by introducing the concepts of distributive and integrative bargaining.

During his years at Chicago, his commitment to justice extended beyond the classroom, and he actively participated in the Civil Rights Movement. Fifty years later, the Rev. Jesse Jackson recalled, "when Robert McKersie and Richard Walton were developing the behavioral theory of labor negotiations, Bob was also volunteering with our community organizing efforts in Chicago. He was putting into practice the theory that he was developing at the time."

McKersie left the University of Chicago for Cornell in 1971.

"Bob led a remarkable life," said Harry Katz, the Jack Sheinkman Professor of Collective Bargaining, who co-authored a book about the transformation of American industrial relations with McKersie and Kochan. "Not only did he make immense contributions to the fields of industrial relations and conflict resolution, but he also served as a mentor and caring friend to so many. It was a privilege to get to know him personally and professionally."

A memorial service celebrating McKersie's life will be held Aug. 4 at 2 p.m. at First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington, Massachusetts.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Robert and Nancy McKersie Labor Day Lecture at the Cornell ILR School. Please designate the named fund on the webpage.

Julie Greco is the communications director for the School of Industrial and Labor Relations.