Industry News
KEYSTONE, CO—Yesterday, the Keystone Ski Patrol Union (KSPU) in Colorado conducted its first collective action since unionizing last season. Negotiations with Vail Resorts began in September with slow progress. With only about ¼ of the agreed-upon proposed contract, the company holds the remainder in review while the union waits for a response.
- Related: Park City Ski Patrol Votes Unanimously to Strike, Escalating Wage Dispute With Vail Resorts
KSPU filed an unfair labor practice charge against Vail Resorts on October 18 for failing to provide merit increases to patrollers who earned a raise last season. The union believes this violates the status quo requirement while under negotiations. In the previous bargaining session on December 5, Vail Resorts also presented counter proposals that unreasonably removed standard contract terms, which the company had already agreed upon with other unionized patrols.
In response, the Keystone Ski Patrol Union organized a collective action walk-in to demonstrate solidarity and this patrol’s ability to mobilize. This comes when Park City Ski Patrol has voted to authorize a strike against the company for failing to engage in fair negotiations. Yesterday’s collective action represents Keystone’s solidarity with Park City and KSPU’s intolerance for Vail Resort’s stalling negotiations and denying Keystone Ski Patrollers their earned annual merit increase.
The walk-in consisted of the patrollers scheduled to work on December 18 and dozens of others who arrived in support of the movement. Roughly 60 patrollers gathered in the parking lot at 7 a.m. to walk into the patrol’s locker room together before work. The KSPU bargaining team delivered a letter to Vail Resorts leadership explaining the purpose of the demonstration and demanding timely and meaningful contract agreements.
VP & GM of Keystone Resort Shannon Buhler responded to the current negotiations with Ski Patrol in an email to SnowBrains, writing:
“We are making progress in our negotiations with the union that represents our ski patrollers to reach a contract, with our next meeting taking place all day today. Conversations have been professional, productive and respectful. We are committed to negotiating in good faith, and we are pleased to have reached tentative agreements on seven articles. We have great respect for our ski patrollers and all of our team members at the resort, and I’m continually grateful for the amazing team we have here.”
Negotiations are set to resume today, December 19, when the union hopes to receive a response on previously submitted contract terms.
