Ray Marshall

Freddie Ray Marshall ( born August 22, 1928 in Oak Grove, West Carroll Parish, Louisiana) is a retired American university professor and former politician (Democratic Party), who held the office of U.S. Secretary of Labor under President Jimmy Carter.

Ray Marshall grew up in an orphanage. At the age of 15, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, where he made false statements about his year of birth. After fighting in World War II, he studied at Louisiana State University and Millsaps College. Later he graduated as a PhD in economics from the University of California at Berkeley.

Subsequently, he held various academic posts, before joining in 1962 the University of Texas at Austin. There he was for many years until his retirement in 1998, holder of the Audre and Bernard Rapoport Centennial Chair, a Chair of Economics and Public Policy.

An exception was there his term as a member of the U.S. government under Jimmy Carter. January 27, 1977 to January 20, 1981 Marshall directed the Department of Labor, which played at this time an important role in Carter's attempt to stimulate the economy again. As Secretary Ray Marshall expanded its programs for the public service and vocational training. He devoted special attention to its actions on health problems in the workplace and the promotion of professional women.

After the defeat of the Democrats in the 1980 presidential election Marshall resigned from his post and returned to the University of Texas. In 1986 he founded with a number of other economists, including Lester Thurow and the later Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich, in Washington, the Economic Policy Institute, a think tank that deals with economic issues.

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