In the literature on African trade unions during decolonization and in the immediate post-independence period, two schools of thought can be distinguished: one is pessimistic about the unions' economic and political roles, and the other is optimistic. This study attempts to assess the role of autonomous teachers' trade unions in Anglophone Cameroon during the period 1959–72. The emergence, development and dissolution of these unions appears to have closely followed the region's political and educational reforms. It is argued that two main issues formed a constant source of conflict between the government and these unions, namely the preservation of trade union autonomy, and union demands for a substantial improvement in members' conditions of service.