City Council Calls for Berkeley Honda Boycott By MATTHEW ARTZ
The City Council unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging residents to boycott Berkeley Honda, which they accused of union busting.

“I have a ‘94 Honda Accord and I’m not going back there again until they treat their people honorably,” said Councilmember Linda Maio.

Machinists and mechanics have been picketing the dealership at 2600 Shattuck Ave. for the past month after the new ownership refused to rehire about half of the unionized autoshop staff and honor the union contract that expired at the end of June.

The new owners took over the shop that was previously Jim Doten Honda on June 1. They let 15 union workers go and retained 13, said Machinist union representative Donald Crosatto. The average seniority at Jim Doten Honda was 15 years, according to the council report.

In a letter to the council, Berkeley Honda General Manager Steve Haworth wrote that the dealership was “willing to negotiate with the union” and that its stance was “motivated purely by its desire to operate a successful business in Berkeley.”

At the suggestion of Councilmember Gordon Wozniak, Mayor Tom Bates offered to mediate the dispute if both sides were open to his participation.

Crosatto accepted the mayor’s offer, but contended that the dealership wasn’t interested in keeping the union.

At the first bargaining session held Monday, the dealership offered a one-year deal that would give the union workers their jobs back, but at less pay and with poorer benefits.

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