Generational Unionism and Crisis: Conflict Within One Local Teachers’ Union

• In Event: Teacher Unions and Educational Governance

Abstract

This case study of a local teachers’ union draws on Kerchner and Mitchell’s (1988) theory of generational unionism and combines it with Martin’s (1992) theory of organizational lenses. The researcher draws on data collected from 25 surveys and 8 interviews of teachers at a comprehensive high school in California. The type of conflict discovered within this union holds implications for the sustainability of teachers’ unions in general.

Authors

• Tiesha Tallman, University of California - Santa Barbara

• Sharon C. Conley, University of California - Santa Barbara

• John T. Yun, University of California - Santa Barbara