About
Mission Statement
The mission of the School of Labor and Employment Relations is to make organizations, workplaces, and communities better by promoting excellence in teaching, research and outreach in the fields of human resource management, labor and employment relations and organizational leadership. The School is committed to achieving this mission by enhancing our understanding of these topics from a strategic perspective both domestically and globally. We are also committed to a multi-stakeholder perspective that includes workers, employees, employers, unions and government.
History of LER
1862
1940s
1942
1946
1950
1952
1958
1960s
1967
1970s
1973
1970s - 80s
1980s
1982
1980s
1990s
1990s
2000s
2002
2007
2010s
2011
2012
2020s
2020
2021
1862
The School of Labor and Employment Relations (LER) is an outgrowth of Penn State’s land grant mission. In 1862, Congress designated one university in each state as a land grant institution and charged that institution with serving the educational needs of all segments of society. Penn State was designated as the land grant university for Pennsylvania.
1940s
In the early 1940s, the Pennsylvania Federation of Labor (AFL) and the Pennsylvania Industrial Union Council (CIO) asked Penn State to conduct labor education programs in the Commonwealth.
1942
In 1942, Penn State conducted its first labor education program for the Shipbuilders Union in Philadelphia.
Pennsylvania union officials, citing the University's land grant mission, approached Penn State about conduction programs for union leaders and their activists to help them be more effective in their roles under the new national labor-management system created by the National Labor Relations Act of 1935.
Pennsylvania union officials, citing the University's land grant mission, approached Penn State about conduction programs for union leaders and their activists to help them be more effective in their roles under the new national labor-management system created by the National Labor Relations Act of 1935.
1946
United Steelworkers of America:
In 1946, the United Steelworkers conducted their first Institute on campus. In August 2018, they returned to campus for the first time since 1998.
1950
In 1950, the program began offering credit classes at University Park and an undergraduate degree in Labor-Management Resources.
1952
The first Labor-Management Resources majors graduate!
1958
The program is granted departmental status and becomes the Department of Labor Education.
1960s
In the 1960s, the program officially achieved status as an academic unit when it became the Department of Labor Studies affiliated with the College of the Liberal Arts.
1967
LER Hall of Famer: Arlene Smith
Department Office Manager and Academic Adviser Student Confidant. Arlene worked for the Department for 39 years. 1967-2006.
1970s
Major is renamed Labor Studies (LS)
In the early 1970s, the name of the major was changed from LMR to Labor Studies (LS) and the department added research to its existing endeavors of offering degree programs and outreach services.
1973
LER Hall of Famer, Doug Allen '73
Nittany Lion Academic All-American Penn State Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, President of the LER Alumni Program Group, and Professor of Practice.
1970s -1980s
Labor Education Union Leadership Academic Sites
The union Leadership Academy had been established years earlier but probably reached its most active level in the 70s and 80s with centers across the world.
The union Leadership Academy had been established years earlier but probably reached its most active level in the 70s and 80s with centers across the world.
1980s
The 1980s saw a significant increase in the number of majors.
1982
The program celebrates its 40th anniversary!
1980s
In the late 1980s, the department renamed its major to Labor Studies and Industrial Relations (LSIR).
1990s
HRER: The department added an Honors Program and established its first graduate degree program, a Master of Science (M.S.) in Industrial Relations and Human Resources (IRHR). As the name of the master's degree suggested, the department also began to offer a growing number of human resource management courses to meet the needs of majors going into that field. The name was later changed to HRER.
Affiliated Program Group: In 1996, LSIR became the first department in the college to establish an Affiliated Program Group to reconnect alumni with their undergraduate program.
Affiliated Program Group: In 1996, LSIR became the first department in the college to establish an Affiliated Program Group to reconnect alumni with their undergraduate program.
1990s
LER Hall of Famer, Jackie Brova '73 Jackie was the Executive Vice President of Human Resources at Church and Dwight Co., Inc. She won the 2012 Service to Penn State Alumni Award and is a apart of the LER Alumni Group.
2000s
The department continued to evolve and change during the 2000s.
2002
In 2002, the University eliminated funding for the department’s labor education program. In recognition of the decline of basic industry and the rise of the service sector in the American economy, the name of the major and the department was changed to Labor and Employment Relations (LER) and the name of the M.S. degree became Human Resources and Employment Relations (HRER). The department also added a formal concentration in human resource management to the LER major.
2007
In 2007, LER offered its first online course. In subsequent years, it began offering its B.A. and B.S. degrees in LER, MPS in HRER, and a new B.A. and B.S. degree in Organizational Leadership (OLEAD) completely online via Penn State’s World Campus.
2010s
The beginning of the 2010s saw the department growing rapidly. The number of LER majors at University Park increased and the online degree programs also saw steady growth in enrollments.
The online BA/BS in labor and employment relations (LER) was added in 2010 and the online BA/BS in organizational leadership (OLEAD) was added in 2011.The department's growth in degree programs, research, and outreach was recognized in 2012 when the department was granted school status.
The new status was recognition that the school's reputation had grown nationally and internationally, marking it as a peer of the top five labor, employment relations, and human resource studies programs in the United States (Cornell, Rutgers, Illinois, Michigan State, and Minnesota).
2011
LER Hall of Famer, Joseph Costello '78
Joseph Costello is a long-time member of APG, was awarded the LER Outstanding Alum Award in 2011, is an Attorney and Partner at Morgan Lewis and the Lead Gifter on the LER Endowed Professorship.
2012
School reinstates Labor Education Program after 10 years of inactivity. School also establishes Center for Workplace Performance (formerly the Academy of Human Capital Development) to provide outreach services to the HR community.
2020s
Despite a global pandemic, the School of Labor and Employment Relations continued to offer a great education to all our students. The name of our major changed to Labor and Human Resources (LHR) to reflect our students' growing interest in human resource studies.
2020
We welcomed our first Brova Family Endowed Professor of Leadership and Human Resources, Dr. Craig Pearce, in 2020.
2021
After serving as the school's director for twenty years, Dr. Paul Clark stepped down and returned to focusing on teaching and research as a faculty member in 2021. Dr. Elaine Farndale, professor of human resource management,