Berkeley Residents Form City’s 1st Tenants Union Under New Renters Rights

Residents of a building in North Berkeley have formed the city’s first tenants association under expanded renters rights, which voters passed last year, they announced Friday.

At 1332 Shattuck Ave., tenants like Nikolas De Bremaeker said persistent maintenance issues regarding mold, leaks and electricity spurred him and his neighbors to form the Berkeley Tenants Union Local 1.

De Bremaeker helped organize his building starting in December after seeing a flyer about Measure BB, which changed Berkeley’s Rent Ordinance to codify tenants’ right to organize into collective bargaining units, among other protections.

Before the measure passed in November, there was no formal process for tenants to organize, and other collective actions like rent strikes are “functionally illegal” most of the time, said Avery Arbaugh of the citywide advocacy group Berkeley Tenants Union.

“Measure BB gives tenants the right to bring a landlord to the bargaining table in a similar way to a labor union,” Arbaugh said. “I hope that this union will be able to get the landlord to the bargaining table so that they’re able to address some of the major concerns that they’re having in their building.”

De Bremaeker said he and other tenants quickly found the necessary signatures — in their building of 18 units, they needed nine.

“[Some neighbors] were so worried about joining the tenant association out of fear of repercussions from the landlord, so we submitted it when we had 10 signatures, but we definitely feel that there’s even broader support in the building,” De Bremaeker said.

Landlords are prohibited from retaliating against tenants who participate in a tenant association. However, De Bremaeker alleged that he and other members received an intimidating letter after they officially petitioned to form a union.

The landlord, BTP Capitol Avenue LLC, said in a statement through attorney Daniel Bornstein that they reject any claims of intimidation.

“We conduct our business in accordance with all applicable laws and ethical standards, ensuring that all interactions are handled with professionalism and respect,” the statement read.

Arbaugh said that although some conflict is likely inevitable in the organizing process, the city’s Rent Board will have a “strong response” to any reports of retaliation and intimidation. Measure BB also stipulates that landlords and tenants bargain in good faith — and if the landlord fails to do so, tenants can petition the city for a rent reduction.

“Berkeley has a very strong, uniquely strong tenant union system,” Arbaugh said. “If there’s a violation of the lease, that really ought to go both ways.”

Arbaugh said tenants association members can operate on behalf of the entire building when it comes to better living conditions and more affordable rent.

“One of the main goals is just to put collective pressure on the leasing company and management company to kind of meet maintenance requests as well as the promises that were guaranteed in our lease,” said Hala El Solh, another member of the tenants association.

For example, El Solh said she didn’t know it was within her rights as a tenant to request an electrician until she talked to her neighbor, who did so successfully.

“That kind of information sharing is one of the primary reasons that we have this association,” she said.

Other tenant protections in Measure BB include a 5% cap on how much landlords can increase the rent each year, down from 7%, and a requirement that landlords provide a notice of tenants rights.

Measure BB passed with 56% of the vote in November. Unlike other ballot measures, BB was competing with an alternative proposal called Measure CC, whose primary backers were property owners associations.

Ultimately, voters chose BB as the route to amend the city’s rent ordinance, and tenants in the Shattuck Avenue building said they’re grateful for those protections.

“We feel stronger and we feel more empowered, and we feel like we can exercise our rights,” De Bremaeker said.