Betty Southard Murphy, first female National Labor Relations Board member, dies at 77

Betty Southard Murphy, a Washington lawyer who in 1975 became the first female member of the National Labor Relations Board, died Oct. 16 of pneumonia at George Washington University Hospital. She was 77.

Mrs. Murphy first rose to prominence as a private practice lawyer specializing in labor, equal opportunity and libel law. By 1970, she had become a full partner at the firm of Wilson, Woods & Villalon in Washington.

She had also given birth to two children, missing a total of only three weeks of work - a sign of her strength and ambition in a time when courts did not always welcome women.

In the late 1960s, she defended investigative journalists Drew Pearson and Jack Anderson against libel charges filed by U.S. Sen. Thomas Dodd (D-Conn.).

"Your Honor, it is difficult at best to argue against a woman attorney," Dodd's lawyer complained to the judge. "But to argue against a woman attorney who is going to have a baby in 10 days is downright unfair."

Dodd, whom the journalists had accused of misdirecting campaign funds for personal use, was forced to drop the libel suit and won no damages. In 1967, Dodd was censured by the Senate for ethical lapses.

In 1974, Mrs. Murphy joined the Department of Labor as administrator of its wage and hour division. She was the first woman to hold the position, in which she was responsible for enforcing federal employment laws - including minimum wage and overtime pay - for about 70 million workers across the country.

In 1975, President Gerald Ford tapped her to be chairman of the National Labor Relations Board. He said she had been chosen "not because she was a woman," but because she was "the most qualified and best-respected person."

A Republican, Mrs. Murphy served as chairman of the labor board, an independent regulatory agency that guards against unfair labor practices and protects workers' organizing rights, until President Jimmy Carter replaced her with Democrat John H. Fanning in 1977.

During Mrs. Murphy's tenure, the five-person board made important decisions defining bargaining units in the health-care industry. Mrs. Murphy, who frequently cast the deciding vote, won favor with representatives of management and unions.

She continued to serve as a member of the board until 1979, when she resigned after declining a 40-day interim appointment.

After Ronald Reagan was elected president, Mrs. Murphy was among the front-runners for labor secretary. Instead, the job went to Republican fundraiser Ray Donovan.