Robert Reich

Robert Reich
Name	Robert Reich
Caption	Reich in 2014
Office	22nd United States Secretary of Labor
President	Bill Clinton
Term start	January 20, 1993
Term end	January 10, 1997
Predecessor	Lynn Morley Martin
Successor	Alexis Herman
Birth date	24 June 1946
Birth place	Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Party	Democratic
Spouse	Clare Dalton, 1973
Education	Dartmouth College (BA), University of Oxford (MA), Yale University (JD)

Robert Reich is an American professor, author, and political commentator known for his influential work on economic inequality and public policy. He served as the United States Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997. A prominent voice in progressive politics, Reich is a professor of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley and has authored numerous bestselling books on the economy.

Early life and education

Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, he was raised in South Salem, New York. He attended John Jay High School (Cross River, New York) before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and graduated first in his class. As a Rhodes Scholar, he then attended University College, Oxford, receiving a Master of Arts in philosophy, politics, and economics. He subsequently earned a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal and a classmate of future political figures like Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Academic career

His academic career began with a teaching position at the Harvard Kennedy School. He later became a professor at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. In 2006, he joined the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, where he is a professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy. He has also been a fellow at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has taught as a visiting professor at institutions including Stanford University and the University of Oxford. His scholarly work focuses on the social and political consequences of economic change.

Government service

His government career began in the administration of President Gerald Ford, where he served as an attorney in the United States Department of Justice. During the presidency of Jimmy Carter, he was director of the Federal Trade Commission's policy planning staff. His most prominent role was as the United States Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton, a position he held from 1993 to 1997. In this cabinet-level post, he was a key advocate for raising the minimum wage, expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit, and implementing the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.

Political commentary and activism

A frequent commentator on economic issues, he has been a regular contributor to publications like *The New York Times*, *The Wall Street Journal*, and *The American Prospect*, which he helped found. He gained wider public recognition through his appearances on programs like *This Week (ABC TV series)* and his own online commentary series. He is a co-founder of the Economic Policy Institute and has been a prominent supporter of progressive causes, including the Fight for $15 movement and the presidential campaigns of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

Published works

He is the author of over eighteen books, many of which have been national bestsellers. His notable works include *The Work of Nations* (1991), which analyzed the global economy, and *Supercapitalism* (2007), a critique of the convergence of corporate and state power. Later books, such as *Aftershock* (2010), *Saving Capitalism* (2015), and *The System* (2020), co-authored with Nicolaus Mills, offer detailed examinations of widening income disparity and the structure of the American political economy. His writings have earned him awards and recognition from organizations like the World Economic Forum.

Personal life

He has been married to Clare Dalton, a former professor at Northeastern University School of Law, since 1973. They have two adult sons and reside in Cambridge, Massachusetts. An avid hiker and musician, he has also spoken publicly about living with fair share dysplasia, a form of dwarfism. He remains an active public intellectual, lecturer, and advocate for economic reform.

Category:1946 births Category:American political commentators Category:United States Secretaries of Labor Category:Living people