PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

John Edward McCarthy

Also known as John E. McCarthy, John McCarthy

John Edward McCarthy is a Cornell labor researcher whose current work examines how generative AI affects organizations and workers. He joined Cornell ILR in 2015 after doctoral study at Rutgers and research roles at Wharton and MIT Sloan. His earlier research connected labor-management collaboration and employee voice with student and workplace outcomes, and he coauthored a book on public-school reform. In 2025 and 2026, he took part in AI research on worker voice and job attraction; as of October 2026, he leads JEM Lab for Generative AI at Work.

Works
22

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 27 October 2026. Citations and h-index are hidden because this OpenAlex record may be incomplete or mix in other authors.

Timeline

  1. 2015

    Joining Cornell ILR

    He earns a PhD at Rutgers and serves as a visiting doctoral student and research fellow at Wharton and a postdoctoral fellow at MIT Sloan before joining Cornell ILR as an assistant professor in 2015.

  2. 2021

    School collaboration and employee voice

    With Saul Rubinstein, he connects highly collaborative public schools with stronger English and math performance. In 2021, a study with JR Keller finds that managers who welcome employee input attract workers from other units.

  3. 2022

    Tenure and the ILR Review

    Cornell grants him tenure in 2022. The ILR Review's August 2022 issue features his paper with JR Keller on managerial openness and internal attraction.

  4. By 2024

    A book on public schools

    By 2024, he coauthors Democracy and Reform in Public Schools with Saul Rubinstein and Charles Heckscher. The book examines how collaboration among school boards, administrators and teacher unions can strengthen public education.

  5. October 2025

    Worker voice and AI research

    In October 2025, he becomes a co-investigator on a Cornell ILR project examining worker voice, AI adoption and job quality in telecommunications and game development.

  6. March 2026

    Generative AI and job attraction

    In March 2026, CAROW awards him and Michael Maffie a seed grant for an inter-industry experiment on how labor-relations institutions and generative AI shape job attraction.

  7. As of October 2026

    Leading the JEM Lab

    As of October 2026, he is an associate professor at Cornell ILR and the principal investigator of JEM Lab for Generative AI at Work. His research examines how generative AI reshapes work and organizations.

Career

  1. NowCornell UniversityAssociate professor
  2. NowCornell UniversityPrincipal investigator, JEM Lab for Generative AI at Work
  3. From 2015Cornell UniversityAssistant professor
  4. University of PennsylvaniaVisiting doctoral student and research fellow
  5. Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyPostdoctoral fellow

Education

  1. Rutgers UniversityPhD

From the biography.

Checked career sources: ecornell.cornell.edu.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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  1. AI and the Future of HR - eCornell ecornell.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  2. Three ILR Professors Promoted ilr.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  3. Supporting K-12 Student Success smlr.rutgers.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  4. Study: Managers who listen attract top talent news.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  5. Research of four ILR professors featured news.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  6. Hot Type: New releases by Swarthmoreans magazine.swarthmore.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  7. Two grants to study AI and worker voice awarded to ILR news.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.
  8. CAROW Announces AI and Work Grant Recipients news.cornell.edu. Checked 27 October 2026.