During a recent conversation, Shige Yoshida, retired executive vice president and chief operating officer of Honda of America Manufacturing, detailed labor relations and the tact Honda officials took in the company’s early days in America. Yoshida was speaking to the Columbus Rotary. Above is a letter he displayed as part of his presentation. The letter was sent in 1979, by the United Auto Workers, to all Honda associates.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Kevin Behrens)
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Editor’s note: This is the second in a multi-part series based on talks given by Honda officials at the Columbus Rotary. In a rare sequence of two consecutive Monday meetings, the Rotarians invited Shige Yoshida, retired executive vice president and chief operating officer of Honda of America Manufacturing, and Tom Shoupe, the current executive vice president and chief operating officer of Honda of America Manufacturing. Honda officials also discussed a variety of topics with the Journal-Tribune following the meetings.
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The man largely responsible for keeping the United Auto Workers out, says he doesn’t know how Honda would be different if workers had unionized.
“I have no idea,” said Shige Yoshida, retired executive vice president and chief operating officer of Honda of America Manufacturing (HAM). “I cannot imagine that happening.”
Yoshida was the first Honda executive sent to America, charged with establishing the first Honda plant. He said merging Honda philosophies with American culture and work ethic would be the most difficult part.
“How would Americans react? We knew all American auto companies had unionized work forces and also management and labor fought each other,” Yoshida said. “How could we change this?”
Yoshida said he found his answers within three American mentors — Irénée du Pont, former president of the DuPont company; Le Herron Jr., former chairman at O.M. Scott and Sons; and John McConnell S.R., founder of Worthington Industries. He said all three taught the importance of respecting workers and allowing the management to set a positive tone, rather than having a union create a hierarchy.
In 1979, Honda hired Al Kinzer, the company’s first American. Yoshida said Kinzer was important in creating a positive culture. Guidelines included a common uniform for all employees, all called associates, with only a first name on the shirt; a Honda ball cap given to all associates and allowing only Honda caps to be worn; creating common facilities such as parking lots, lunch and locker rooms with no special area for management; no probation period with pay and benefits immediately.
“That was critical for us,” Yoshida said. “That is the only way we could survive.”
Yoshida said 3,000 people applied for the first 64 Honda jobs.
In 1980, founder Soichiro Honda returned to Ohio to see how production was going. By that time, Honda had more than 2,000 associates.
“When I walked him into the plant, he darted to the production area and started shaking hands,” Yoshida said. “He wanted to shake each associate’s hand and thank them for her or his good work.”
He stressed that Soichiro Honda believed in valuing his employees and empowering them to do their job.
Officials said there was a push from the unions to represent Honda associates.
“The same month motorcycle production began, the United Auto Workers Union had opened an organizing office in Marysville. I knew something of unions, “Yoshida said, adding that Honda plants in Japan were unionized and the relationship between labor and management was “different” and often times promotions were based on union relations.
“I had visited many UAW automobile plants,” Yoshida said. “Some are good. Some are not.”
The UAW office was in a building near the Five Points intersection in Marysville. Letters were sent to Honda employees urging them to stop into the site.
“The UAW challenged us from the beginning. They threatened a boycott of Honda products if only Honda hats could be worn at work,” Yoshida said. “Eventually, we agreed to allow other hats to be worn, but not of competitors.”
He said Honda leaders in Japan were still concerned.
“They pressured us to start talks,” Yoshida said. “I never thought that was needed, but with such pressure, Al and I had three meetings with UAW officials over the next three years.”
He said meetings increased after that and Yoshida said he learned UAW organizing tactics.
Honda grew tremendously in the early ‘80s as did pressure from the unions.
“The UAW pushed hard in the mid-1980s,” Yoshida said. “Nasty ads appeared in local papers and on radio. In October 1985, the United Auto Workers requested that HAM be organized as the exclusive bargaining agent of our associates.”
Yoshida said a poll revealed that, by 3 to 1, the associates opposed unionization and some even formed a coalition to oppose UAW.
Yoshida said he was summoned to Japan for a “frank discussion” about why the plant had not organized. He said he talked about what the workers wanted, but leadership was “annoyed” and said that the plant needed to unionize.
“I knew that most HAM associates did not want the UAW and Americans would buy Honda products, even if HAM were a non-union operation,” Yoshida said.
Through a scheduling conflict, “the meeting ended without any other given order to change our direction.”
Yoshida said 10 days before the scheduled vote to organize, “The UAW, fearing defeat, delayed the vote.”
The vote was eventually rescheduled several months later.
“A few days before the rescheduled election, the UAW withdrew its request,” Yoshida said. “No election was ever held. The UAW hung around, but finally closed their Marysville office.”