Contact My SSW Intranet

Main menu

Directories

Lawrence Root

Professor Emeritus of Social Work

Lawrence Root

Lawrence Root is a professor in University of Michigan's School of Social Work. His research and practice have focused on the intersection of employment and social welfare. He has directed programs and published in the areas of fringe benefits and social policy, employee assistance programs, aging and work, work-family flexibility, employment issues among low-income individuals, and international labor. From 1993 to 2008, he directed the University's Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations (subsequently re-organized as the Institute for Research on Labor, Employment and the Economy). During that time, he worked extensively with union-management joint programs and, with colleagues, developed Institute programs, such as “Urban Entrepreneurship” and “Labor and Global Change.” Within the University, he chaired of the President’s Committee on Labor Standards and Human Rights, which addressed sweatshop conditions in the apparel industry.

Recent international work has included projects developing labor-management committees in Chinese companies and developing methods for assessing labor standards as a part of trade agreements. This work has been funded by grants from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Department of State. Most recently he has been working on developing educational and research opportunities in India.

Research Interests/Focus

Social welfare/employment, services in the workplace, work-family, and cross-national labor policy/practices.

Contact Information

PhoneEmailRoomAddress
lroot@umich.edu4648 SSWBUniversity of Michigan
School of Social Work
1080 S. University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
(734) 763-3116University of Michigan
Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations
1111 Catherine St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Education

Year Degree   School
1980 PhD Social Service Administration University of Chicago, IL
1971 MSS Community Organizations/Social Planning Bryn Mawr College, PA
1968 AB Philosophy/Religion Haverford College, PA
Year Description
2006 Root, L. (2006). Work-related issues in clinical social work practice. Presented at the CSWE Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL.
2005 Root, L. (2005, November). U.S. 'social safety net'-policy choices and their consequences. Presented at Xian Jiaotong University, Xian.
2005 Root, L. (2005, November). U.S. Labor force and employment policies: Challenges of equity and efficiency. Presented at the School of Public Administration, Renmin University.
2005 Root, L. (2005, November).The 'social safety net' in the U.S.: Dilemmas of a mixed public-private structure. Presented at the School of Public Administration, Renmin University.
2005 Root, L. (2005, July). Formulation and modification of employment policies in the U.S. Presented at the Conference on Chinese Employment Policy, Szechuan University, Chengdu, China.
2005 Root, L., & Wooten, L. P. (2005, May). Informal flexibility within rigid work schedules: Involvement children's sports/extracurricular activities. Presented at the Sloan Centers Work and Family Conference, Chicago, IL.
2005 Root, L. (2005, February). International labor standards, sweatshops, and the "Conscientious Consumer" movement: Implications of the campus anti-sweatshop movement for social work education and practice. Presented at the CSWE Annual Meeting, New York City.
2004 Root, L. (2004, June). Social dialogue in the development of employment policies. Presented at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Beijing.
2004 Root, L. (2004, June). Union-management joint training approaches in the United States. Presented at the International Conference of High Tech Resource Development, Wuhan.
2004 Root, L., & Rudd, E. (2004, May). When you work my shift, there's no am and pm in here: (In)Flexibility in family work and factory life. Presented at the Sloan Centers Work and Family Conference, Boston, MA.
2003 Root, L. (2003, July). Workforce diversity in the U.S. and in Europe. Presented at the international colloquium, Chateau de la Bretesche, France.
2003 Root, L. (2003, June). The policy context of U.S. employment and social welfare provisions. Presented at East China College of Law and Economics, Shanghai.
2003 Root, L. (2003, June). The policy context of U.S. employment and social welfare provisions. Presented at Capital University, Beijing.
2003 Root, L. (2003, April). Work and family issues: The effects of long work hours. Presented at the Wayne State University Truck Driver Occupational Safety and Health Conference, National Institute of Safety and Health (NIOSH) conference on Health and Safety in Trucking, Detroit, MI.
2002 Root, L., Young, A., & Rudd, E. (2002, May). The Sylvania plant-overtime in the industrial midwest. Presented at the Sloan Centers Work and Family Conference, San Francisco, CA.
2002 Root, L. (2002, January). International labor standards: Universities, NGOs, and the U.S. debate on sweatshops. Presented at the Forum on Industrial Relations and Labour Policies in a Globalizing World, Peking University, Beijing.

Contact Us Press escape to close