This book examines the emergence and development of teacher unionism in three small New York school districts during the sixties and seventies. Based on interviews conducted in 1969 and 1971 the book investigates the reasons why teachers organized along labor union lines. It also discusses the circumstances surrounding teacher strikes, and the changes in the unions which took place over time. The author shows that the motivations for forming unions were not mainly economic, but instead were caused by teachers feeling powerless in coping with rapid school expansion, bureaucracy, and excessive school board interference in internal school affairs.