Herbert Arthur Frederick Turner
Encyclopedia
Herbert "Bert" Arthur Frederick Turner (1919-1998) was a British economist
, statistician
, and academic. His great strength was a thorough understanding of economics and statistics, particularly the operation of labour markets and the limitations of available statistics. This set him apart from
most other academic industrial relations specialists. He was an inspiring lecturer and his tutorials and post-graduate supervisions were challenging and provocative as students were prodded and persuaded into thinking.
, aged 16, to study with Harold Laski
. As a young promising left-wing intellectual, he interacted with the Webbs and, through Leonard Woolf
, with the Bloomsbury group
. He graduated in June 1939 and spent the war years first in the army then on the Second Sea Lord’s
staff.
In 1944, Turner joined the research and economic department of the TUC. He served as part of the team that prepared the Interim Report on Post-War Reconstruction, which mapped out the Attlee
government’s programme. Turner worked under Sir Walter Citrine
, which developed his lasting interest in economic policy, trade union
activities and management and industrial relations. In 1947, Turner became Assistant Education Secretary for the TUC.
In 1950, Turner was elected to the lectureship in industrial relations at Manchester University. Senior Lecturer in 1959, he defended his PhD on industrial relations in the cotton industry in 1960, which still is the seminal work on the subject.
in 1964. He stayed there until his retirement from the Professorship, to be succeeded by William Brown
, the son of one of his Leeds colleagues, in 1983. On his election to the Cambridge chair, Bert Turner became a Professorial Fellow of Churchill College, and a Life Fellow on becoming Professor Emeritus in 1984.
From his arrival in Cambridge, Bert Turner’s career took two different but complementary directions. The nature of his research together with the world political conjuncture meant that he was very much in demand as an expert and consultant at the time of decolonisation. As a Visiting Professor, he taught at the universities of Lusaka
(1969), Harvard and M.I.T. (1971–72), Sydney
(1976–77), Hong Kong (1978–79, 1985–88), Bombay and Lucknow
(1983) at South China University of Technology
(1986), and Zhongshan
(1987). He was also a founding member of the Department of Industrial Relations at Monash in Melbourne.
and Patrice Lumumba
under the aegis of the UNO
. Through the late sixties and seventies he thus worked in Zambia, Tanzania, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and other developing countries After working at the ILO
in Geneva for some time, he was sent to Malawi (1967), and to Iran (1975). The last of these international missions was undertaken for the World Bank
in China in 1988. As Hong Kong’s transfer to China was looming, he was granted a last Leverhume Senior Fellowship from 1985 to 1988, to assess the labour force situation in the colony. Through the years, on such complex and sometimes sensitive expeditions, he was accompanied by a team of younger assistants who have now become experts in their own right, such as Dudley Jackson, Keith Hart
, Patricia Fosh, or Ng Sek Hong.
and Garfield Clack, who co-signed the relevant book with him. Turner was the first academic in Britain to consider the Swedish concept of wage drift (the tendency of earnings to increase faster than agreed wage rates). He innovated in examining the impact of trade union organisation and policy on wages and wage differentials. He was among the first to consider the potential for prices and incomes policies to counter wage and price inflation
. He also carried out ground-breaking studies of strikes
and the extent to which trade unions cause inflation. In 1967, he became a part-time member of the National Board for Prices and Incomes, until its dissolution in 1970.
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, statistician
Statistician
A statistician is someone who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. The core of that work is to measure, interpret, and describe the world and human activity patterns within it...
, and academic. His great strength was a thorough understanding of economics and statistics, particularly the operation of labour markets and the limitations of available statistics. This set him apart from
most other academic industrial relations specialists. He was an inspiring lecturer and his tutorials and post-graduate supervisions were challenging and provocative as students were prodded and persuaded into thinking.
Personal Life
Turner, known as Bert to family, friends, and colleagues, was born in London on December 11, 1919, the eldest son of Frederick Turner and Elizabeth May King; he had three siblings. Turner's fourth marriage, to a French academic, led him to spend much of his later years in France with his family. He died in Veneux- les –Sablons, near Fontainebleau, on December, 2nd, 1998, a few days short of his 79th birthday.Education
Turner studied at the Henry Thornton School in Clapham before going to the London School of EconomicsLondon School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, aged 16, to study with Harold Laski
Harold Laski
Harold Joseph Laski was a British Marxist, political theorist, economist, author, and lecturer, who served as the chairman of the Labour Party during 1945-1946, and was a professor at the LSE from 1926 to 1950....
. As a young promising left-wing intellectual, he interacted with the Webbs and, through Leonard Woolf
Leonard Woolf
Leonard Sidney Woolf was an English political theorist, author, publisher and civil servant, and husband of author Virginia Woolf.-Early life:...
, with the Bloomsbury group
Bloomsbury Group
The Bloomsbury Group or Bloomsbury Set was a group of writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists who held informal discussions in Bloomsbury throughout the 20th century. This English collective of friends and relatives lived, worked or studied near Bloomsbury in London during the first half...
. He graduated in June 1939 and spent the war years first in the army then on the Second Sea Lord’s
Second Sea Lord
The Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command , commonly just known as the Second Sea Lord , is one of the most senior admirals of the British Royal Navy , and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establishments.-History:In 1805, for the first time, specific functions were...
staff.
In 1944, Turner joined the research and economic department of the TUC. He served as part of the team that prepared the Interim Report on Post-War Reconstruction, which mapped out the Attlee
Clement Attlee
Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...
government’s programme. Turner worked under Sir Walter Citrine
Walter Citrine, 1st Baron Citrine
Walter McLennan Citrine, 1st Baron Citrine, GBE, PC was a British trade unionist and politician....
, which developed his lasting interest in economic policy, trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
activities and management and industrial relations. In 1947, Turner became Assistant Education Secretary for the TUC.
In 1950, Turner was elected to the lectureship in industrial relations at Manchester University. Senior Lecturer in 1959, he defended his PhD on industrial relations in the cotton industry in 1960, which still is the seminal work on the subject.
Professor
Turner moved to Leeds University in 1961, when he was elected to the Montague Burton Chair of Industrial Relations, then to the Cambridge chairMontague Burton Professor of Industrial Relations
The Montague Burton Professorship of Industrial Relations is a professorship in industrial relations at the University of Cambridge. It was founded on 14 November 1930 and endowed by Montague Burton...
in 1964. He stayed there until his retirement from the Professorship, to be succeeded by William Brown
William Arthur Brown
William Arthur Brown, CBE is an academic specialising in the field of industrial relations and the current Master of Darwin College, Cambridge.-Education and Academic Career:...
, the son of one of his Leeds colleagues, in 1983. On his election to the Cambridge chair, Bert Turner became a Professorial Fellow of Churchill College, and a Life Fellow on becoming Professor Emeritus in 1984.
From his arrival in Cambridge, Bert Turner’s career took two different but complementary directions. The nature of his research together with the world political conjuncture meant that he was very much in demand as an expert and consultant at the time of decolonisation. As a Visiting Professor, he taught at the universities of Lusaka
University of Lusaka
University of Lusaka is a private university founded in 1999 in Lusaka, Zambia.It is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities.- External Links :**...
(1969), Harvard and M.I.T. (1971–72), Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
(1976–77), Hong Kong (1978–79, 1985–88), Bombay and Lucknow
University of Lucknow
The University of Lucknow is a university in the city of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is affiliated to University Grants Commission; Association of Commonwealth Universities ; Association of Indian Universities ; Distance Education Council...
(1983) at South China University of Technology
South China University of Technology
South China University of Technology is a Chinese university located in Guangzhou, capital of the Guangdong province. In 1999, SCUT ranked No...
(1986), and Zhongshan
Zhongshan
Zhongshan , also spelled Chungshan and historically known as Xiangshan or Siangshan, is a prefecture-level city in the south of the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province in southern China. Zhongshan, one of the few cities in China with an eponymous name, is named after Dr. Sun Yat-sen who was...
(1987). He was also a founding member of the Department of Industrial Relations at Monash in Melbourne.
Governmental Consultant
Turner also served as an advisor and consultant for foreign governments and international organisations. The first of such missions was a fairly sensitive one in the Congo where he met with both Moise TshombéMoise Tshombe
Moïse Kapenda Tshombe was a Congolese politician.- Biography :He was the son of a successful Congolese businessman and was born in Musumba, Congo. He received his education from an American missionary school and later trained as an accountant...
and Patrice Lumumba
Patrice Lumumba
Patrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese independence leader and the first legally elected Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo after he helped win its independence from Belgium in June 1960. Only ten weeks later, Lumumba's government was deposed in a coup during the Congo Crisis...
under the aegis of the UNO
Uno
-Games:* Uno , a kind of card game.** Uno for the Game Boy Color** Uno , the video game version of Uno.-Political organizations:* United Nations Organization, international organization...
. Through the late sixties and seventies he thus worked in Zambia, Tanzania, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and other developing countries After working at the ILO
Ilo
Ilo is a port city in southern Peru, with some 58,000 inhabitants. It is the largest city in the Moquegua Region and capital of the province of Ilo.-History:...
in Geneva for some time, he was sent to Malawi (1967), and to Iran (1975). The last of these international missions was undertaken for the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
in China in 1988. As Hong Kong’s transfer to China was looming, he was granted a last Leverhume Senior Fellowship from 1985 to 1988, to assess the labour force situation in the colony. Through the years, on such complex and sometimes sensitive expeditions, he was accompanied by a team of younger assistants who have now become experts in their own right, such as Dudley Jackson, Keith Hart
Keith Hart (anthropologist)
Keith Hart is a Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Goldsmith's College, University of London. He co-directs the Human Economy Group at the University of Pretoria and is Honorary Professor of Development Studies at the University of Kwazulu-Natal, Durban. His main research has been on Africa...
, Patricia Fosh, or Ng Sek Hong.
Domestic Economic Issues
On the home front, Turner is famous for his work on the motor industry, for which he gathered around him a notable team, including Geoffrey RobertsGeoffrey Roberts
Geoffrey Roberts is a British historian of the Second World War.Geoffrey Roberts was born in Deptford, south London in 1952. His father worked as a labourer at the local power station and his mother as a cleaner and tea lady...
and Garfield Clack, who co-signed the relevant book with him. Turner was the first academic in Britain to consider the Swedish concept of wage drift (the tendency of earnings to increase faster than agreed wage rates). He innovated in examining the impact of trade union organisation and policy on wages and wage differentials. He was among the first to consider the potential for prices and incomes policies to counter wage and price inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
. He also carried out ground-breaking studies of strikes
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
and the extent to which trade unions cause inflation. In 1967, he became a part-time member of the National Board for Prices and Incomes, until its dissolution in 1970.
Major Works
- Trade Unions, Growth, Structure and Policy. A Comparative Study of the Cotton Unions, 1962
- Wages : the Problems for Underdeveloped Countries, 1965
- Wage Trend Wage Policy and Collective Bargaining, 1965
- Prices Wages and Incomes Policies, 1966
- Labour Relations in the Motor Industry, 1967
- Is Britain Really Strike-Prone ?, 1969
- Do Trade Unions Cause Inflation ?, 1972
- Management Characteristics and Labour Conflict, 1978
- The Last Colony : but Whose ?, 1980
- The ILO and Hong Kong, 1986
- Between Two Societies : Hong Kong Labour in Transition, 1991