Festschrift Conference Honors Harry Katz
On April 11th and 12th 2026, the ILR School hosted a Festschrift conference honoring Jack Sheinkman Professor of Collective Bargaining and Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution Director Harry C. Katz, for his contributions to the field of industrial and labor relations. The event brought together former students, colleagues, collaborators and scholars from around the world to celebrate Katz’s career as a researcher, teacher and mentor, while also examining the future of labor relations through new scholarly work inspired by his research.
A former Dean of the ILR School, Katz has spent decades shaping the study of labor and employment relations. Throughout the conference, participants reflected not only on the impact of his scholarship, but also on the students and academics whose careers he helped guide.
The conference featured presentations on topics including labor conflict, conflict management systems, labor institutions, worker voice and the changing dynamics of employment relations in the United States and internationally. Papers presented at the conference, organized around the theme “Labor Relations at a Crossroads,” will appear in a forthcoming special issue of the ILR Review.
“I feel honored that the ILR School chose to celebrate my career with a Festschrift conference and ILR Review special issue,” Katz said. “The conference was particularly heartwarming as it gave me the opportunity to interact with former Ph.D. students and with other faculty co-authors and research collaborators from around the globe.”
Dionne Pohler, the David and Alexandra Lipsky Professor in Dispute Resolution and Labor Relations, and Associate Director of the Scheinman Institute, described the event as both a scholarly milestone and a reflection of Katz’s influence on the field.
“The Festschrift honoring Harry Katz convened four generations of scholars to celebrate a giant in our field,” Pohler said. “Faculty and students from across the globe presented papers that built on Professor Katz’s extraordinary legacy, illuminating both the profound transformations in industrial relations over recent decades and the enduring labor conflicts and power dynamics that continue to shape the field.”
In addition to highlighting new research, the conference underscored Katz’s lasting role as a mentor to students and emerging scholars. The event was organized by several of his former students: ILR Dean Alexander Colvin, Kenneth F. Kahn ’69 Dean and Martin F. Scheinman ’75, MS ’76 Professor; Ariel Avgar, David M. Cohen ’73 Professor of Labor Relations; and Danielle van Jaarsveld, Professor of Organizational Behavior at the University of British Columbia.
“The conference was a wonderful celebration of Professor Katz’s legacy as a teacher and mentor of doctoral students, as well as bringing together important new research building on important themes he has examined over the course of his career,” said Colvin. “As with many others who participated in the conference and studied under Professor Katz, he shaped my own career and thinking in profound ways.”
Katz’s research has helped to define the study of labor relations and workplace conflict, while his mentorship fostered a broad network of scholars who continue to expand the field. By bringing together former students and researchers from around the world, the Festschrift served both as a recognition of his remarkable career and as a reflection of the continued evolution of industrial and labor relations research.
