Although the upsurge of unionism among public workers was the greatest of any group of workers since the 1930s, the backgrounds and aspirations of public employees were not homogenous. Professionals and semiprofessionals whose work required lengthy, specialized training, including a college education and graduate school, such as teachers, social workers, librarians, and nurses, shared little at first glance with blue collar public employees like police and firefighters, trash collectors, school secretaries, and street maintenance and building construction workers. But what they all wanted—a greater say in how their jobs were run, better pay and benefits, and ultimately the right to bargain collectively to achieve these goals—produced enough glue to help overcome distinctions between “middle class” and “working class” occupations, and propelled a movement.