With the 2024-25 ski season quick approaching, Park Metropolis Mountain Resort’s ski patrollers discover themselves in a well-known and precarious place. The collective bargaining settlement between Vail Resorts and Utah’s Park Metropolis Skilled Ski Patrol Affiliation (PCPSPA) expired on April 30, leaving patrollers with out a new contract as opening day looms simply 50 days away.
Negotiations for a brand new settlement started in March, however progress has been gradual. The state of affairs echoes the contentious 18-month negotiation course of that resulted in January 2022, when patrollers narrowly averted a strike after 50 bargaining periods.
“Conferences have been productive, with constructive forwards and backwards discussions between the perimeters and the trade of a number of proposals and counterproposals. Regardless of progress remodeled the previous month, vital work stays earlier than an settlement is reached.”
– PCPSPA assertion in Could
On this ‘David versus Goliath’ state of affairs, the union, representing roughly 200 patrollers, is navigating advanced negotiations with out skilled authorized illustration in opposition to the company may of Vail Resorts’s authorized groups. As an alternative, an elected group of ski patrollers has volunteered their time to advocate for his or her colleagues.
The expired contract, which introduced some constructive adjustments in 2022, together with wage will increase and incentives, will stay in impact till a brand new settlement is reached. Nonetheless, the dearth of a present contract leaves patrollers in a state of uncertainty as they put together for pre-season coaching.
Vail Resorts maintains its dedication to good-faith bargaining. “We care deeply about all our workers and are repeatedly bettering the worker expertise,” stated Sara Huey, senior supervisor of communications for Park Metropolis Mountain, in Could. “We’re happy with the wages and advantages we offer and are dedicated to reaching a good settlement.”
As negotiations proceed, the PCPSPA calls on group assist, asking ski fanatics and locals to unfold the phrase concerning the state of affairs.
Historical past
The Park Metropolis Skilled Ski Patrol Affiliation (PCPSPA) reached a hard-fought settlement with Vail Resorts in January 2022, concluding a contentious 18-month negotiation course of. The union, on the time representing about 180 patrollers and security personnel at Park Metropolis Mountain Resort, narrowly averted a strike in the course of the busy Martin Luther King Jr. vacation weekend.
Negotiations started in August 2020 and had been marked by pressure over wages and dealing situations. Patrollers cited considerations about low pay, lengthy hours, and the excessive price of dwelling in Park Metropolis. The union initially sought a beginning wage of $16.70 per hour for first-year patrollers, whereas Vail Resorts proposed $15 per hour.
As talks dragged on, patrollers confronted growing monetary pressure. Some reported issue affording primary requirements, together with gasoline, for his or her commutes. In response, supporters established a solidarity fund to help patrollers throughout negotiations.
The state of affairs reached a vital level in January 2022 when union members voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike if an settlement couldn’t be reached. This transfer pressured Vail Resorts to return to the bargaining desk.
After a marathon 15-hour negotiation session, the 2 sides lastly reached an settlement. Whereas particular particulars weren’t totally disclosed, it was reported that the union accepted a base wage of $15 per hour, with extra incentives for patrollers working at each Park Metropolis Mountain Resort base areas.
The Park Metropolis ski patrol unionization was a part of a broader development within the business. Related efforts had succeeded at different resorts, together with Breckenridge, Colorado, and Massive Sky, Montana. These actions mirrored rising considerations about wages and dealing situations within the ski business, notably as resort cities confronted rising dwelling prices.
You may also like:
